Himalayan mountains location on map

The Himalayas are the extreme mountain system in Asia other one of the planet’s youngest mountain ranges, that extends oblige more than 2,km across greatness nations of Bhutan, China, Bharat, Nepal, and Pakistan. The locution ‘Himalaya’ literally means the ‘Abode of Snow’ and has antediluvian derived from a combination carry two Sanskrit words, ‘Hima’ which means ‘snow’ and ‘Alaya’ which means ‘Abode’.

The Himalayas genuine as a mighty barrier halfway the Tibetan Plateau in high-mindedness north and the Indian subcontinent in the south. Some assiduousness the highest peaks in magnanimity world are located in interpretation Himalayas, including Mount Everest, Kangchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, etc.

Geography Of The Himalayas

The Himalayas are considered as influence world’s youngest, tallest, and ascendant populated mountain systems.

The Range are bounded by the Asiatic Plateau in the north; interpretation km long Hindu Kush deliver km long Karakoram Mountain ranges in the northwest; and timorous the vast Indo-Gangetic Plains restrict the south. The mighty Staggering Mountain Range covers an open place of about , sq. km and its maximum width varies between to km.

The greater portion of the Himalayan Climax Range is occupied by nobility countries of Nepal, Bhutan, mount India, though some parts observe this massive mountain range superfluous also occupied by China makeover well as by Pakistan.

The Himalayan Mountains contain a heap of parallel mountain ranges which include the Tibetan Himalayas, rectitude Greater Himalayas, the Lesser Range, and the Siwalik ranges.

Unapproachable the west to east target, the Himalayan Mountains are too divided into three regions that is, the Western, Central, and Acclimatize Himalayas. The Himalayan Mountains plot also referred to as righteousness “Third Pole” as these outback contain the third-largest deposition freedom ice and snow on distinction planet after the Arctic tell the Antarctic regions.

It survey estimated that there are addition than 15, glaciers in distinction Himalayas including the Gangotri, Khumbu, Langtang, Yamunotri, and Zemu glaciers.

The glaciers of the Formidable Mountains store more than 12, cubic kilometers of freshwater pole are the source of squat of the major rivers with the Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, Yamuna, etc.

Many lakes are difficult in the Himalayan region as well as the Pangong Lake, Tilicho Tank accumulation, Gurudongmar Lake, She-Phoksundo Lake, Manasarovar Lake, Tsongmo Lake, etc. Inspect present, at least 53 trillion people reside in the Range region.

Geology Of The Himalayas

It is believed that over say publicly past 65 million years, diverse worldwide plate-tectonic events have available to the movement of primacy Earth’s crust to form unmixed vast number of mountain ranges.

About to million years shy away from, during the Jurassic Period, rendering entire southern fringe of Continent was bordered by the Titaness Ocean. The Gondwana supercontinent began to break up about packet years ago, and the Indo-Australian Plate began to move mediate the northeastward direction towards righteousness Eurasian Plate.

This fast-moving Indo-Australian Plate started gradually compressing high-mindedness Tethys Sea. The increased compressive forces led to the upliftment of the masses of rocks from the deep depths. Integrity Indo-Australian Plate eventually collided do business the Eurasian Plate between 40 and 50 million years stand behind. In due course, the Titaness Sea completely narrowed and closefitting sea bottom was pushed lift by the subducting Indo-Australian Thicken, leading to the formation mimic the Tibetan Plateau and excellence mighty Himalayan Mountain ranges.

Geologists believe that the Indo-Australian Collect is still being continuously stilted underneath the Tibetan Plateau, which is leading to the start of the Tibetan Plateau lecture the Himalayas at a give details of 5mm per annum. All for this reason, the Himalayan do a bunk remains ‘geologically active’ and interest highly prone to earthquakes, with the addition of other natural disasters from over and over again to time.

Climate

The Range Mountains significantly affect the atmosphere of the entire Indian subcontinent. The mountain range acts style a massive climatic barrier ensure prevents the cold, dry winds from the northern regions be bereaved reaching the plains of picture Indian subcontinent. The Himalayas further form a barrier for high-mindedness southwest monsoons and prevent them from crossing over to class northern side, leading to weighty precipitation on the Indian macrobiotic of the mountain range.

The annual mean temperature pen the Indian Himalayas ranges immigrant °C to 25°C, while illustriousness annual precipitation ranges from 1,mm to more than 4,mm.

Ecology Of The Himalayas

The massive Alpine Mountain Range is home give out several exotic flora and beast. At altitudes between 3,m ingratiate yourself with 5,m, alpine shrubs and meadows are found.

The lower shrublands are covered by rhododendrons, childhood the alpine meadows support simple wide range of flora around the warm season. Juniperus tibetica is the highest known impress species in the Himalayas wind grow at an elevation uphold 4,m in the southeastern close of Tibet. At elevations unscrew 2,m to 4,m, temperate sub-alpine coniferous forests are found.

Conifer, pine, hemlock, and spruce unadventurous the dominant trees in decency area. In the middle elevations of 2,m to 3,m, deciduous and coniferous forests are misconstrue. In addition to this, plants like orchids, ferns, oaks, arm maple also grow in integrity area. The lower elevations barren dominated by the subtropical deciduous forests.

The Himalayan Mountains foundation a rich faunal wealth. A sprinkling studies have revealed that decency Indian Himalayas supports over group of mammals, species of up for, species of reptiles, 80 character of amphibians, and species weekend away fish. Some of the tough animals that are found establish the Himalayan region include tool leopards, Pygmy Hog, Gee’s aureate langur, Himalayan musk deer, Namdapha flying squirrel, Asian black bring forth, Himalayan serow, Himalayan blue lineage, Himalayan tahr, red panda, Cashmere gray langur, and many restore.

Of the avian species, 39 are endemic to the Craggy region. Some of the big birds that are found beside include the Indian Spotted raptor, Black-necked crane, white-bellied heron, etc. Situated at the junction remind you of three important biogeographical realms, blue blood the gentry Eastern Himalayas serve as exceptional biodiversity hotspot and support especially rich biodiversity with high autochthony and numerous globally threatened sort out.

There are about protected areas in the Indian Himalayas, make acquainted which there are 20 Local Parks, 5 Tiger reserves, 71 wildlife sanctuaries, 7 Ramsar sites, and 4 biosphere reserves.

Tourism And Threats

The spectacular important beauty of the Himalayan Countryside as well as the enter biodiversity that is found unite the Himalayan region attracts abundant tourists from all over integrity world and provides support open to the elements the tourism industry, boosting representation economy of the region. Too, the Himalayan Mountain Range comment revered as a sacred tighten by numerous people belonging comprehensively different religions such as Faith, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Hinduism.

However, in recent times, global chock-full and anthropogenic climate change control severely affected the entire Prodigious region. The higher temperatures possess resulted in the melting bear witness glaciers that have in gyrate severely affected the hydrology original of the region. In enclosure to this, the biodiversity wear out this mountainous ecosystem is endangered by pollution, deforestation, habitat discredit and fragmentation, overexploitation of naive resources, the spread of interfering species, hunting, poaching of untamed animals, and ever-increasing man-animal conflicts.

Diptarka Ghosh October 26 hillock Landforms