The Trans Himalayas Mountain Region, also known as the Tibet Himalayan Region, is located to the north of the Great Himalayas and includes the mountain ranges of Karakoram, Ladakh, Zaskar, and Kailash. It is also known as the Tibet Himalayan Region since the majority of these ranges are located in Tibet. The Gangdise range to the west and the Nyenchen Tanglha range to the east make up Transhimalaya. This article will explain to you about The Trans-Himalayan range which will be helpful in Geography preparation for the UPSC Civil service exam.

The Trans Himalayan range

• The Himalayan ranges are located directly to the north of the Great Himalayan range. Because the majority of it is in Tibet, it is also known as the Tibetan Himalaya.
• The primary ranges are the Zaskar, Ladakh, Kailas, and Karakoram. It runs over around 1,000 kilometres in an east-west direction.
• The average elevation is 3000 metres above sea level.
• This region's average width is 40 km at the extremes and around 225 km in the centre.
• The Nanga Parbat (8126 m) is a significant range in the Zaskar Range.
• The Ladakh Range runs parallel to and north of the Zaskar Range. Only a few peaks in this range reach elevations of exceeding 6000 metres.
• The Kailas Range (Gangdise in Chinese) is an extension of the Ladakh Range in western Tibet.
• Mount Kailash is the highest point (6714 m). The Indus River rises on the northern slopes of the Kailash mountain.
• The Great Karakoram Range, also known as the Krishnagiri Range, is India's northernmost Trans-Himalayan Range.
• The Karakoram Range stretches for around 800 kilometres east of the Pamir. It is a mountain range with high peaks [height 5,500 m and higher].
• It is home to some of the world's largest glaciers outside of the polar regions.
• Some of the summits rise above sea level by more than 8,000 metres. K2 (Godwin Austen or Qogir) is the world's second highest mountain and the tallest in the Indian Union.
• The Ladakh Plateau is located to the north-east of the Karakoram Mountains.
• It is divided among several plains and mountains (Soda Plains, Aksai Chin, Lingzi Tang, Depsang Plains, and Chang Chenmo).

Trans himalayan range

Zaskar Range

• The Zaskar Range, sometimes called Zanskar, is a mountain range in the Himalayas, south-central Asia, northern India, and China's western Tibet Autonomous Region.
• It divides Ladakh from the Kashmir lowlands and the Chenab River.
• In other words, it acts as a border line between Kashmir's Ladakh area and the state's other two regions, Jammu region and Vale of Kashmir.
• Many rivers originate in various parts of this mountain and run northward to join the big Indus River.
• Hanle River, Khurana River, Zanskar River, Suru River, and Shingo River are among these rivers.
• It also divides Kinnaur and Spiti in Himachal Pradesh. Himachal's tallest peaks are found in the Zanskar range.
• The Zanskar Range is notable for the Nanga Parbat (8126 m).

Karakoram Range

• It is also known as Krishnagiri, and it is located in the northernmost Trans-Himalayan mountains.
• It serves as a watershed between India and Turkestan and creates India's borders with Afghanistan and China.
• It stretches for around 800 kilometres eastward from the Pamir. This range's typical breadth is 120-140 kilometres.
• It is a mountain range with towering peaks whose elevation seldom falls below 5,500 metres.
• It is the abode of some of the greatest Glaciers of the world outside the Polar Regions. Some of the peaks are more than 8,000m above mean sea level.
• K2 is the second highest peak in the world and highest in the Indian Territory. It has been named as Godwin Austen by the Britishers and Qogir by China.

Ladakh Ranges

• It is located to the north of Leh and is part of the Trans-Himalayan range, which merges with the Kailash range in Tibet.
• Khardung La and Digar La are two significant passes to the north and east of Leh.
• It is bounded to the east by the Chinese Tibet Autonomous Region, to the south by the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, to the west by both the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, and to the far north by the southwest corner of Xinjiang across the Karakoram Pass.
• The region is drained by the Indus River and its major tributaries, the Shyok-Nubra, Chang Chenmo, Hanle, Zanskar, and Suru-dras rivers.
• The high altitude terrain of Ladakh was produced by glaciofluvial processes enhanced by freeze-thaw weathering.
• Ladakh has a severe climate and is one of the highest and driest inhabited areas on the planet.
• Ladakh's climate is known as a "cold desert" climate because of its arctic and desert characteristics.

Kailas Ranges

• It is a branch of the Ladakh mountain range in western Tibet. It has an average elevation of 5,500-6,000 metres above sea level and a breadth of 30 kilometres.
• The highest mountain in this range is Mount Kailash (6,714 m). The Indus River rises on the northern slope of the Kailash mountain.
• The Kailash Ridge is distinguished by rocky, fragmented terrain with elevations ranging from 4,000 to 5,500 metres.
• Helmet Top, Gurung Hill, Spanggur Gap, Muggar Hill, Mukhpari, Rezang La, and Rechin La are among its most notable features.
• Chushul Bowl, an important communications hub, is dominated by The Ridge.

Significance of Trans Himalaya

• The Trans Himalaya is composed of granitic and volcanic rocks that developed between 110 and 40 million years ago.
• The southern Tibetan block's metamorphic and sedimentary rocks were intruded by these igneous rocks.
• The collision of the Himalayan plate with the Eurasian plate results in the formation of the Trans Himalaya.
• This Zone includes the northernmost states of Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh.
• It is an extension of the Tibetan plateau that wraps around the Himalayas.
• The mountains, unlike the major Himalayas, are not split by extensive river gorges and lack a clear alignment.
• The highest pass, Chargoding Pass, is 17,500 feet (5,330 metres) in elevation (19,308 feet [5,885 metres]).

Conclusion

Trans-Himalayas, the eastward extension of the Himalayas' highest northern mountains in China's Tibet Autonomous Region. It is made up of an ill-defined mountain range that is 600 miles long and 140 miles broad in the centre, tapering to 20 miles at the eastern and western extremities. The Trans-Himalayas are mostly made of Neogene and Paleogene granites and volcanic rocks.