The Altyn Mountains are a mountain range located in the southeast of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The eastern end stretches to the border of Qinghai and Gansu provinces, and is the boundary mountain between the Tarim Basin and the Qaidam Basin.
The western section of the Altyn Mountains is very remote and difficult to reach. The highest peak is Suramutage Peak (6295 meters), and the highest peak in the middle section is Yusup Alek Peak (6062 meters); the eastern section The mountainous area is relatively easy to access. The highest peak is also called the Altyn Mountains, with an altitude of 5,828 meters (there is also a data of 5,798 meters). About 100 kilometers east of the Gansu-Qinghai Highway is the Dangjin Pass, which is the boundary between the Altyn Mountains and the Qilian Mountains.
The Altun Mountains - "Altun Shan" means "mountain with cypress trees" in Mongolian. The mountain range is located on the northern edge of the Northern Tibetan Plateau. It is bounded between the Qaidam Basin and the Tarim Basin in the north and south. It is connected to the Qilian Mountains and the Kunlun Mountains in the east and west. The mountain range is about 750 kilometers long from east to west and 60-100 kilometers wide from north to south. It is approximately East-west direction. The eastern and western ends of the mountain range are high and the central part is low. Modern glaciers develop in sections above 5,000 meters above sea level. The average altitude is 3000-4000 meters.
The Altun Mountains face the Kumtag Desert to the north and the Qaidam Basin to the south. They are located in the northwest desert and belong to the cold climate zone of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Although it is within the latitude of the warm temperate zone, it is located in a plateau and mountainous area with an average altitude of more than 3,000 meters. The influence of altitude on temperature exceeds that of latitude. It is characterized by drought, little rain, and large temperature differences throughout the four seasons. The winters are long and cold, and the summers are short, windy and dry.
The Altun Mountains National Nature Reserve, established in March 1985, covers an area of ??45,000 square kilometers and has an average altitude of 4,500 meters. It is the third largest nature reserve in China. Because the reserve is surrounded by high mountains, the climate is cold and hypoxic, and it is inaccessible. It retains the well-preserved original plateau ecological type with the three plateau ungulate wild animals as the main populations: Tibetan antelope, wild yak, and Tibetan wild ass.
January is the coldest month in the Altyn Mountains, with an average monthly temperature of -20 - 30 degrees Celsius; July is the hottest month, with an average monthly maximum temperature of 8 -10 degrees Celsius. The annual precipitation is unevenly distributed, with large amounts of precipitation concentrated in July in summer. From mid-September to the end of May the following year is the snow period, so it is not advisable to enter the mountains.
The Altun Mountains are the third largest protected area in China. They belong to no-man’s land. They are located at the junction of Xinjiang, Gansu and Qinghai. They are linked to the Qilian Mountains in the Qaidam Basin. Basically, they are mostly in winter, and after September The snow started to accumulate, making it no longer suitable to go into the mountains. The highest temperature in July is only about 10 degrees, but this place is magical.
The amazing thing is that there are more than 100 lakes. If you want to cross the Altyn Mountains, the biggest threat you face is the swamp. The protected area should be about 50,000 square kilometers. The Altyn Mountains is a magical place. There are snow-capped mountains and grasslands, wetlands, desert lakes and the Gobi Desert, all depicting the magic of the earth with their own colors.
The highest point of the Altyn Mountains should be more than 6,000 meters above sea level, and the average altitude is about 4,000. It is also located in the northwest and is a very cold place. There are a large number of Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, snow leopards, and Tibetan antelopes. Wild ass, etc., a large number of plateau cold-resistant animals, the most noteworthy are the modern glaciers here, there are more than 30, the reason why it has become a protected area must be because there are no conditions for human survival here, nor are they allowed to Feel free to enter.
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The Altun Mountains are China
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
Tarim Basin
Qaidam Basin
Ruoqiang River
Milan River
Ruoqiang
Qilian Mountain
Dangjin Mountain
Hexi Corridor