Geladaindong Peak (also spelled Geladandong, Geladaintong or Kolha Dardong) is a snow-covered mountain (or

massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

) located in Southwestern Qinghai Province of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

near the border of

Tibet Autonomous Region The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), often shortened to Tibet in English or Xizang in Pinyin, Hanyu Pinyin, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China. It was established in 1965 to replace the ...

. It is the tallest mountain in the Tanggula Mountain Range of the Tibetan Plateau with an elevation of above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

. The traditional source of the Yangtze River, begins with

glacier A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

s on its surface. The Yangtze's longest source, however, lies away at the head of the Dam Qu River. The mountain's name is Geladaindong in the

Tibetan language Tibetan language may refer to: * Lhasa Tibetan or Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dialect * Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard * Any of the other Tibetic languages See also * Ol ...

. The name in Chinese is 各拉丹冬 (Pinyin: Gèlādāndōng) or 各拉丹冬峰 (Pinyin: Gèlādāndōng Fēng, literally "Geladandong Peak").

Location

Geladaindong is located in the administrative unit known as Tanggula Town: an

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

of Haixi Prefecture, in the middle section of Tanggula Shan (the Tanggula Mountain Range). The Geladaindong Peak is encircled by over twenty high peaks exceeding in height. It is approximately long from north to south and approximately wide from west to east, covering an area of approximately with ice and snow, covered by over 40

s. This area is directly across the border from Amdo County, Nagqu Prefecture,

. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway crosses the Tanggula Mountain Range around to the east of Geladaindong Peak.

Climate

Due to the area's arid climate, its annual precipitation is only . In the high-altitude area of over , however, there exists violent local air circulation and its yearly precipitation is several hundred mm more than that in the foothill area. Thus,

snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

and hailstones frequently fall, presenting conditions for the development of glaciers. The average temperature is , and the hottest months are from June to August with a temperature of over , while the coldest month is January, with a temperature of . In the high-altitude area of over , it remains cold all year round, the lowest temperature being less than .

Wildlife

The mountain serves as a shelter for more than twenty kinds of wild animals, including the white-lipped deer, Asiatic wild ass, snow leopard, and alpine snowcock.

Climbing

Geladaindong was first climbed by Japanese team in 1985 after three years of trying to obtain a permit.http://c498469.r69.cf2.rackcdn.com/2009/348_China_aaj2009_web.pdf They ascended the peak via the northwest ridge approaching from the northeast. In 1997 an American team climbed a new route up the northeast face (55–60°). The team consisted of William N. Rom M.D., Dan Luchtel PhD, and Mark Newcomb. Mark Newcomb also pioneered a face solo route on the same expedition. Although a dangerous peak to climb, Geladaindong is popular among Chinese mountain climbers. In 1994, the Mountaineering Association of

Peking University Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...

(MAPKU) became the first Chinese climbing team to reach the summit of Geladaindong.

References

External links

Geladandong page

Peking University mountaineering team's 1994 Geladaindong Climbing Photos page
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100618163508/http://www.mapku.org/album/mt-geladandong-climbing-1994 , date=2010-06-18 Mountains of Qinghai