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The himalayas

The himalayas

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The Himalayas

Introduction

The Himalayas derives its name from the Sanskrit words hima, “snow”, and alaya,

“dwelling”, meaning “The Land of Snow”. It is the loftiest mountain range in the world,

prompting people to often refer to it as ‘The Roof of the World’. The Himalayas mountain

ranges are found in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and China. It is about 2500 kilometers long and

includes smaller mountains such as Hindu Kush and Karakoram. This paper looks at the

Himalayas Mountains in detail.

Geographical Features

The Himalayan mountain ranges can be placed into four parallel longitudinal belts with

different widths. From south to north, they are designated as the Sub-Himalayas, otherwise

known as Siwalik Range, the lower, or lesser Himalayas, the Great Himalaya Range, and the

Tibetan Himalayas. From west to east they are broadly divided into the western, central, and

eastern mountain regions. The Himalayas contains a century of mountains whose altitude is

higher than 7200 meters. They also include the 15 mountains with the highest altitudes on earth,

as well as the tallest unclimbed mountain, Gangkhar Puensum.

The outer Himalayas consist of structural valleys that are flat-floored, as well as the

Siwalik Range. But for small gaps in the east, the Siwalik ranges run for the full length of the

Himalayas, with a 62 miles maximum width. Crests in these ranges average heights of between

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900 and 1500 meters. It passes through West Bengal state. The Great Himalaya range is the

backbone of the Himalayas. It reaches its maximum height in Nepal and rises to the perpetual

snow zone. The Lesser Himalayas rises to heights of between 3600 to 4600 meters. They are

composed of both geologically young and ancient crystalline rocks. They are traversed by many

deep gorges that were formed by swift-flowing streams fed by glacier from the snowy peaks.

The mountain arc is geologically young, with geologists estimating its formation to have

started at about 70 million years ago. Powerful plate-tectonic forces gradually moved the earth’s

crust leading to the formation of the Eurasian mountain ranges, which include the Himalayas

(Khan, Mohd). They were formed as a result of the collision of Asia with India along the

convergent boundary. The movement of the Indian plate makes the region susceptible to

earthquakes. It moves at about 67mm per annum, causing the lifting of the Himalayas by

approximately 5mm per year.

The Himalayas ranges are drained by 19 major rivers. Among these, the Brahmaputra and

Indus are the largest, each with catchment basins of approximately 260,000 square km in extent.

Five of the rivers, with an overall catchment areas of 132000 square km are from the Indus

system. These include the Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi, Sutlej, and the Beas. Nine of the rivers are

from the Ganges system, which includes the Ganges, Ramganga, Yamuna, Kali, Rapti, Kanali,

Baghmati, Gandak, and Kosi (Pletcher, Kenneth).

The big Himalayan rivers emanate from north of the ranges and flow through deep

gorges. This reflects a geologic feature, such as the presence of a fault line. While flowing

through the mountain region, the rivers of the Ganges-Brahmaputra systems generally follow the

courses to the east while those of the Indus system follow the courses to the northwest.

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Last Name 1 Your Name Instructor Name Course Number Date The Himalayas Introduction The Himalayas derives its name from the Sanskrit words hima, “snow”, and alaya, “dwelling”, meaning “The Land of Snow”. It is the loftiest mountain range in the world, prompting people to often refer to it as ‘The Roof of the World’. The Himalayas mountain ranges are found in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and China. It is about 2500 kilometers long and includes smaller mountains such as Hindu Kush and Karakoram. This paper looks at the Himalayas Mountains in detail. Geographical Features The Himalayan mountain ranges can be placed into four parallel longitudinal belts with different widths. From south to north, they are designated as the Sub-Himalayas, otherwise known as Siwalik Range, the lower, or lesser Himalayas, the Great Himalaya Range, and the Tibetan Himalayas. From west to east they are broadly divided into the western, central, and eastern mountain regions. The Himalayas contains a century of mountains whose altitude is higher than 7200 meters. They also include the 15 mountains with the highest altitudes on earth, as well as the tallest unclimbed mountain, Gangkhar Puensum. The outer Himalayas consist of structural valleys that are flat-floored, as well as the Siwalik Range. But for small gaps in the east, the Siwalik ranges run for the full length of the Himalayas, with a 62 miles maximum width. Crests in these ranges average heights of between Last Name 2 900 and 1500 ...
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