IIIF Color HighRes
National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
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| IIIF Color HighRes |
| Southern Tibet : vol.7 |
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Citation Information
CONTINUATION OF THE KARA-KORUM SYSTEM.
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various marbles. With its length of 45 miles the Siachen Glacier seems to be the
largest in Asia. He regards the Siachen as the complement of the Baltoro just
as the Biafo Glacier may be regarded as the complement of the Hispar. It is the
merit of Longstaff to have laid down the outlines of the Siachen Glacier and to
have joined it to the labyrinth of glaciers previously known in these regions. That
it had escaped detection for so long was due to the difficulties of access, difficulties
which nobody had been able to overcome before.
In the following words Longstaff mentions some of his most important results:
Whatever the real height of Teram Kangri may be, my observations fulfil Burrard's remarkable prophecy while Younghusband's views as to the northward extension of the Indo-Turkestan water-parting have been definitely established. H. R. H. The Duke of the Abruzzi has made the startling discovery that Conway's Broad peak attains an altitude of 2 7,13 2 feet. Also that both this peak and the four Gusherbrums are composed of marbles and conglomerates. The massif of Teram Kangri is a continuation of this range; its base appears to consist of schists and slates , and its peaks of marbles and calcites. There are indications that the same formation occurs in the Nubra-Shyok peaks; certainly the high peaks in the range south of the Depsang plains, which continues south-eastwards for an unknown distance some few miles back from the left bank of the Shyok river, consist chiefly of calcite. It would, therefore, appear that at least half of the main line of elevation of the Karakoram, the second highest range in the world, must be coincident with an axis of limestone.
Regarding Dr. Longstaff s views of the name and extension of the Kara-korum
I wrote in I 9 I O the following :
The paper of Dr. Longstaff has the title, »Glacier Exploration in the Eastern Karakoram», and the same title, »Eastern Karakoram» is given to the map. I do not mind Karakoram being written as one word, although Kara Koram should be more correct, as we write Hindu Kush , Kwen Lun , Arka Tagh , or Kichik Kumdan. I write Karakorum. But the term Eastern Karakoram for the part of the system situated between 761° and 78° I regard as perfectly wrong. Colonel Burrard says, The Karakoram and Hindu Kush ranges of mountains are different sections of the same crustal fold ... The eastern portion of the fold is known as the Karakoram range, the western portion as the Hindu Kush .... The western termination of the Karakoram is the Hindu Kush, but of its eastern termination we know nothing.2
During my last expedition I crossed Chang-lung-yogma (18,96o feet), which is on the Kara-korum at 79°, and from where the system can be seen stretching south-east as far as the eye reaches. The whole orography of the country proves that this pass is situated in the Kara-korum range. South-east of Aru-tso I went over a pass at an altitude of 18,55o feet, of which I am pretty certain that it is situated on the same crustal fold as the Kara-korum Pass and the Chang-lung-yogma, that is to say, the system can be followed to 83°. On the other hand, it is only conjecture when I say that I believe the Kara-korum Range continues through the whole of Tibet, almost as distinctly as Kwen-lun and the other great systems. And I believe that a more detailed knowledge in the future
i!
I Geographical Journal. August t9 I o, p. 19 2.
2 A Sketch of the Geography and Geology of the Himalaya Mountains and Tibet, pp. 98, 99.
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