Kangchenjunga,also spelled Kanchenjunga,Kanchanjanghā and Khangchendzonga,is the third-highest mountain in the world. Its summit lies at 8,586 m (28,169 ft) in a section of the Himalayas,the Kangchenjunga Himal,which is bounded in the west by the Tamur River,in the north by the Lhonak River and Jongsang La,and in the east by the Teesta River. It lies in the border region between Koshi Province of Nepal and Sikkim state of India,with the two peaks West and Kangbachen in Nepal's Taplejung District and the other three peaks Main,Central and South directly on the border.
Nepal measures about 880 kilometers (547 mi) along its Himalayan axis by 150 to 250 kilometers across. It has an area of 147,516 km2 (56,956 sq mi).
The Himalayas,or Himalaya is a mountain range in Asia,separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has several peaks exceeding an elevation of 8,000 m (26,000 ft) including Mount Everest,the highest mountain on Earth. The mountain range runs for 2,400 km (1,500 mi) as an arc from west-northwest to east-southeast at the northern end of the Indian subcontinent.
The geography of Tibet consists of the high mountains,lakes and rivers lying between Central,East and South Asia. Traditionally,Western sources have regarded Tibet as being in Central Asia,though today's maps show a trend toward considering all of modern China,including Tibet,to be part of East Asia. Tibet is often called "the roof of the world," comprising tablelands averaging over 4,950 metres above the sea with peaks at 6,000 to 7,500 m,including Mount Everest,on the border with Nepal.
The Friendship Highway is an 800-kilometre (500 mi) scenic route connecting the capital of Tibet,Lhasa,with the Chinese/Nepalese border at the Sino-Nepal Friendship Bridge between Zhangmu and Kodari. It includes the westernmost part of China National Highway 318 (Shanghai-Zhangmu) and crosses three passes over 5,000 m (16,400 ft) before dropping to 1,750 m (5,700 ft) at the border.
Tsangpo is the Tibetan word for river. It can often be found as a suffix attached to names of rivers originating or sometimes flowing through the Tsang province of Tibet,including:
The Kosi or Koshi is a transboundary river which flows through China,Nepal and India. It drains the northern slopes of the Himalayas in Tibet and the southern slopes in Nepal. From a major confluence of tributaries north of the Chatra Gorge onwards,the Kosi River is also known as the Saptakoshi for its seven upper tributaries. These include the Tamur River originating from the Kanchenjunga area in the east and Arun River and the Sun Kosi from Tibet. The Sun Koshi's tributaries from east to west are the Dudh Koshi,Likhu Khola,Tamakoshi River,Bhote Koshi and Indravati. The Saptakoshi crosses into northern Bihar,India where it branches into distributaries before joining the Ganges near Kursela in Katihar district. The Kosi is the third-largest tributary of the Ganges by water discharge after the Ghaghara and the Yamuna.
A glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) is a type of outburst flood caused by the failure of a dam containing a glacial lake. An event similar to a GLOF,where a body of water contained by a glacier melts or overflows the glacier,is called a jökulhlaup. The dam can consist of glacier ice or a terminal moraine. Failure can happen due to erosion,a buildup of water pressure,an avalanche of rock or heavy snow,an earthquake or cryoseism,volcanic eruptions under the ice,or massive displacement of water in a glacial lake when a large portion of an adjacent glacier collapses into it.
Nyalam is a small town in and the county seat of Nyalam County in the Shigatse Prefecture of the Tibet Autonomous Region,near the Nepal border. It is 35 km from Zhangmu town in the same county,which is the point of entry to Nepal. Nyalam is situated at 3,750 metres (12,300 ft) above sea level.
The Arun River is a trans-boundary river that is part of the Koshi or Sapta Koshi river system in Nepal. It originates in the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China where it is called the Phung Chu or Bum-chu.
Mahālangūr Himāl is a section of the Himalayas in northeast Nepal and south-central Tibet of China extending east from the pass Nangpa La between Rolwaling Himal and Cho Oyu,to the Arun River. It includes Mount Everest,Lhotse,Makalu,and Cho Oyu —four of Earth's six highest peaks. On the Tibetan side it is drained by the Rongbuk and Kangshung Glaciers and on the Nepali side by Barun,Ngojumba and Khumbu Glaciers and others. All are tributaries to the Koshi River via Arun River on the north and east or Dudh Kosi on the south.
The Araniko Highway or NH 34 connects Kathmandu with Kodari,112 kilometres (70 mi) northeast of the Kathmandu Valley,on the Nepal-China border. It is among the most dangerous of highways in Nepal due to extremely steep slopes on each side of the road from Barabise onwards;massive landslides and bus plunges are not uncommon,especially after rains. At the Sino-Nepal Friendship Bridge,it connects with China National Highway 318 to Lhasa,and eventually to Shanghai.
The Indravati River in Nepal is a tributary of the Sun Koshi River. It used to be called "Melamchi" or "Melamchu" until the 19th century.
The Barun River is a tributary of the Arun River and is part of the Kosi river system in Nepal.
The Sunkoshi,also spelt Sunkosi,is a river that is part of the Koshi or Saptkoshi River system in Nepal. Sunkoshi has two source streams,one that arises within Nepal in Choukati,and the other more significant stream that flows in from Nyalam County in the Tibet region of China. The latter is called Bhote Koshi in Nepal and Matsang Tsangpo in Tibet. Due to the significant flows from Bhote Koshi,the Sun Koshi river basin is often regarded as a trans-border river basin.
Imja Tsho is a glacial lake created after melt water began collecting at the foot of the Imja Glacier on the lower part of the glacier in the 1950s. A 2009 study described this lake of melt water as one of the fastest-growing in the Himalayas. Held in place by a terminal moraine,Imja Tsho threatens downstream communities with the potential for a glacial outburst flood.
The glaciers in Bhutan,which covers about 3 percent of the total surface area,are responsible for feeding all rivers of Bhutan except the Amochu and Nyere Amachu.
The Chatra Gorge is a canyon cut by the Kosi River across the Mahabharat Range in Nepal.
Kharta is a region in Tibet lying to the east of Mount Everest and centred on the Kharta valley and Kama valley. The 40-kilometre (25 mi) Kharta valley starts at the col at Lhakpa La at the head of the Kharta Glacier from which the Kharta Chu river flows east to join the Phung Chu just beyond Khata village. Nearby to the south,the Kama valley starts at the Kangshung Glacier at the foot of Everest's Kangshung Face,and the Kama Chu flows southeast to the Phung Chu. The 1921 British Mount Everest reconnaissance expedition discovered Kharta when reconnoitring ways to climb Mount Everest and managed to reach the North Col via the Lhakpa La. Since that time Kharta has not been used as a way to approach the summit of Everest but the two valleys have become a popular area for trekking.
Thulagi glacier is located in the catchment area of the Marshyangdi River basin in Nepal. A study by KfW,Frankfurt and the BGR,in cooperation with the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology of Nepal have identified it as a potentially dangerous glacier due to possibility of outburst of the lake created by the glacier.
