| Altyn-Tagh | |
|---|---|
| Altun Mountains, Altun Shan, A'erjin Shan, A-erh-chin Shan | |
 Eastern part of Altun Shan at bottom of elevation map | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Sulamutag Feng, Xinjiang |
| Elevation | 6,245 m (20,489 ft) |
| Coordinates | 37°55′N87°23′E / 37.917°N 87.383°E /37.917; 87.383 |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 805 km (500 mi) WSW-ENE[1] |
| Geography | |
 | |
| Country | China |
| Provinces | |
| Range coordinates | 38°36′N89°0′E / 38.600°N 89.000°E /38.600; 89.000[1] |
| Borders on |
|
| Biome | Desert |
Altyn-Tagh,[nb 1] also called theAltun Mountains, is a mountain range innorthwestern China that separates the easternTarim Basin from theTibetan Plateau. The western third is wholly withinXinjiang, while the eastern part forms the border betweenQinghai to the south, and Xinjiang andGansu to the north.
Altun Shan, i.e.Altun Mountain, is also the name of a 5,830 metres (19,130 ft) mountain near the eastern end of the range, the highest point in Gansu.
Altyn Tag meansGold Mountain inTurkic, and Jin Shan (金山) isChinese for Gold Mountain.
A series ofmountain ranges run along the northern edge of theTibetan Plateau, with theKunlun Mountains located in the West. About halfway across the south side of theTarim Basin, the Altyn-Tagh Range diverges northeast while the Kunluns continue directly east, forming a relatively narrow "V".[nb 2] Inside the "V" are a number ofendorheic basins. The eastern end of the Altyn-Shan is near theDangjin Pass on theDunhuang-Golmud road in far westernGansu. East of the Altyn-Tagh theborder range rises to theQilian Mountains. The range separates the Tarim Basin, to the north, andLake Ayakkum, to the south. The range can be divided into three portions. The southwest portion borders theKunlun Mountains and is very rugged, with peaks reaching more than 6,100 metres (20,000 ft) and many perennial snow fields. The central portion is lower in elevation, around 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). The eastern portion is higher in elevation, about 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) and consists of a group of smaller ranges oriented in a south-east to north-west trend.[2]
Along the northern side of the mountains ran the mainSilk Road trade route fromChina proper to the Tarim Basin and westward. The Altyn-Tagh and Qilians were sometimes called theNan Shan ('south mountains') because they were south of the main route. Near the east end of the Altyn-Shan, the Gansu orHexi Corridor ends and the Silk Road splits. One branch follows the Altyn-Tagh along the south side of the Tarim Basin while the other follows the north side.
The southwestern part of the Altyn-Tagh range reaches snowy peaks of up to 6,245 metres (20,489 ft), although it descends to an average of 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in the narrow middle and eventually rises up to average 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) as it meets the Qilian Mountains.
There are a dearth of rivers and streams in these mountains, due to the aridity of the region. The western portion has some small streams that either head north into the desert or south into Lake Ayakkum. The remainder of the range is lacking in rivers.[2]
Inside the V-shaped area between the Altyn-Tagh and the main Kunlun range (which in this area is calledArka-Tagh) a number ofendorheic basins are located.
Within southeastern Xinjiang, the main of these basins is theKumkol Basin (Chinese:库木库里盆地;pinyin:Kùmùkùlǐ Péndì)[nb 3]
The two main lakes in this basin are the salineLake Aqqikkol (also Ajig Kum Kul,[6] Achak-kum;Chinese:阿其克库勒湖;pinyin:Āqíkèkùlè Hú; 37°05′N, 88°25′E, 4,250 metres (13,940 ft) elevation)[7] andLake Ayakum (Chinese:阿牙克库木湖;pinyin:Āyákèkùmù hú; 37°30′N, 89°30′E; elevation 3,876 metres (12,717 ft)).[8] These lakes are two of the few noticeable bodies of water in this extremely arid area; the area around them is officially protected as theAltun Shan Nature Reserve.[8]
Farther east, in northwesternQinghai, the much largerQaidam Basin starts between the Altyn-Tagh and the Kunlun and extends almost to the east side of the plateau; the Altyn-Tagh separates the west side of this basin from theKumtagh Desert.
The four highest peaks areSulamutag Feng (6,245 metres (20,489 ft)),Yusupu Aleketag Shan (6,065 metres (19,898 ft)), Altun Shan (5,830 metres (19,130 ft)) andKogantag (4,800 metres (15,700 ft)).[7][9]
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China National Highway 315 crosses the Altyn-Tagh on its way between Qinghai and Xinjiang.
TheGolmud-Korla Railway crosses the Altyn-Tagh as well. The project, involving the construction of the 13.195 km-long Altyn-Tagh Tunnel (阿尔金山隧道),[10] was completed in 2020.[11]
