How is tian shan translated? Mountain systems of Kazakhstan: central Tien Shan

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Russian Championship in mountain tourism technique (all-around) – through the eyes of an eyewitness
Moscow. Personnel training
Strategy and tactics of mountain treks
The story of one emergency
Valera Khrishchaty
Icefall
Peak Garmo, 6595 m. Traverse
Fan Mountains. Mountain trekking 6 class.
Traverses
First ascents
Tien Shan - 1993

Geography

We will talk here about the high-altitude part of the Tien Shan, which includes quite a large number of peaks with a height of more than 6000 m. If you take a map, you will notice that only a small part of this area lies on the territory of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, while a large part lies on the territory of China. Strictly speaking, the Kyrgyz part of the high-altitude Tien Shan is the Tengritag, Kokshaaltau ridges (its eastern part up to the Saryjaz River), and the Meridional ridge in a short section from the Marble Wall to Rapasov Peak. But if we take the area as a whole for hiking, it is worth adding here the “adjacent” ridges - the eastern tip of Terskey-Alatau, Adyrtor, Saryjaz, Inylchektau, Kaindy-Katta, Aktau.

The largest glacier here is the southern Inylchek, in the area of ​​Lake Merzbacher its northern branch branches off from it - the northern Inylchek. Other large glaciers in the region are Semenova, Mushketova, Bayankolskiye, Kaindy, Kuyukap. The southern Inylchek glacier has many tributaries, including large ones, which got their name. The northern tributaries are the Demchenko, Razorvanny, Semenovsky, and Svor glaciers.

Top view of the upper reaches of the Saryjaz and Tengritag ridges

The southern tributaries are the Northern, Zvezdochka, Dikiy, Proletarsky Tourist, Komsomolets, Shokalsky, Putevodny. In the tributaries of the river basin Inylchek there are several more large glaciers - Kanjailyau and others. And large tributaries of the Northern Inylchek glacier are the Eleven and Krasnov glaciers.

From the west, the area is limited by the level of the lower reaches of the Saryjaz River. The dimensions of the Kyrgyz part are 50-70 km in the latitudinal direction, 20-50 km in the meridional direction.

The Chinese part of the high-altitude Tien Shan borders Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. And in the same way, the highest point of the Chinese Tien Shan is Pobeda Peak, which in China is called Tomur. On the Chinese side, the high-mountainous Tien Shan (with an average height of 5500-6000 m and possible passes of 4700-6000 m) stretches for more than 100 km from west to east, having a width in the meridional direction of 50 - 70 km. This area is approximately 4-5 times larger than “our” side. And this entire area is practically unexplored. Strictly speaking, we can say that the entire high-altitude part of the Tien Shan is located east of the 79o05’ meridian and stretches east for several hundred kilometers (and further, but already dropping below 6000 m), approximately between the 43o and 41o parallels. The Kyrgyz part of the high-altitude Tien Shan in the “List of high-mountain passes” is highlighted in a separate section - “Eastern part of the central Tien Shan”; in the “List of classified peaks” it is scattered throughout the Tien Shan in alphabetical order of the names of the ridges. And in this area there is the northernmost seven-thousander in the world - Pobeda Peak (Tomur), 7439 m. Focusing on the ridges whose names we are accustomed to, we can describe a little the Chinese part of the area. All the ridges along the parallels - these are Saryjaz, Tengritag, Kokshaaltau - have their continuation to the east, another 30-40 kilometers, to the Muzart River. The Saryjaz ridge extends further to the east in the area of ​​​​mark 4910 - this is slightly south of the Chinese pass, Tengritag - between the peaks of the Marble Wall and the Russian Geographical Society, Kokshaaltau - from the village of Rapasova (6814). The Kokshaaltau ridge, together with its continuation, has an extensive network of southern spurs up to 50 km long, which are more like independent ridges. One of them - with the Kashkar peak - can be safely called the Kashkartau ridge. Starting in the area of ​​the “obelisk” in the village of Pobedy, it stretches to the south, and then with several branches to the west and east for 60-80 km, and the total length of all its spurs exceeds 200 km. The nodal peak of this ridge is the village of Kashkar - 6435 m, in the immediate vicinity of it several more noticeable six-thousanders can be noted - this is Kashkar Yu., about 6250 m, and V. 6050 (although visually it seemed to me that it was higher, closer to 6300). This ridge can be considered the most developed today, since it was here that two expeditions were concentrated. Just in the vicinity of the Kashkartau ridge is located, probably, the zone of the most ambitious glaciation of the southern part of the high-altitude Tien Shan. To the west of the ridge flows the huge Temirsu glacier (the length of the main body of the glacier is about 40 km) with an extensive network of tributaries - everything that is visible from above is amazing. Moreover, considering that none of the athletes who are fond of mountains have ever appeared on this glacier. To the east is the already “developed” Chonteren glacier, and to the south of the village of Kashkar is the Kochkarbashi glacier. And only in the Kashkartau ridge can one note several dozen logical, but unpassed passes. In the area of ​​the tongue of the Temirsu glacier, another six-thousander rises.

The glaciation zone continues further to the east, mirroring all glaciers in the Meridional Ridge. The northern Inylchek glacier is reflected to the east by the Karagul glacier, and the southern Inylchek glacier is reflected by the Tugbelchi glacier. Both of these glaciers are 35-40 km long.

Here it is worth noting several interesting objects for future expeditions. First of all, this is a continuation of the Tengritag ridge - between the Karagul and Tugbelchi glaciers it stretches to the east for 30 kilometers before it begins to decline, and along its entire length rise regular marble pyramids - the twin brothers of Khantengri. The first of them is 6769, then sequentially - 6550, 6510, 6497, etc. The last of them, already at the level of the tongues of the Karagul and Tugbelchi glaciers, is 6025. The main body of the Tugbelchi glacier flows at an altitude of 4000 m and below, and already approaches These pyramids lead to the Tugbelchi glacier with enormous walls - at least in that part of the ridge that we saw in 2002. It is likely that in this continuation there will also be no simple passes, and not a single one has been passed. In the eastern continuation of the Kokshaaltau ridge there are also independent very interesting objects - this is peak 6435 (according to other maps - 6342), which rises above the Tugbelchi pass, and somewhat to the east - node c. 6571 – 3-4 peaks above 6000 m can be noted there.

To the west of this node is the Kichikteren glacier, the eastern neighbor of the Chonteren glacier. The spur or ridge separating the Chonteren and Kichikteren glaciers is a direct continuation of the Meridional Ridge, which 40-50 kilometers to the south dissolves into the plain.

Even further to the east, already beyond the Muzart River, there is another glaciation zone led by the Muzart-Baskelmes glaciers (35-40 kilometers long) and a grandiose ridge to the south of the glacier with the main peak 6637 with the beautiful name White Lotus - this is exactly that peak , which had one successful ascent by a Japanese expedition. This ridge to some extent looks like a continuation of the Tengritag ridge, cut here by the river. Muzart, just like Kokshaaltau, is cut through by the river. Sarajaz. And the White Lotus peak is not the only one here - on a section of the ridge 15-20 km away one can note another 7-8 six-thousanders, which, again, no one has climbed yet. Heights - 6596, 6555, 6549, etc. We haven’t even seen this part of the Chinese Tien Shan, and I hope that the next expedition to this area will allow us to at least look into this corner for a start.

Entrances, approaches, decoration

Unfortunately, it is not yet possible to conduct “end-to-end” hikes – starting in Kyrgyzstan and ending in China, or vice versa. You can only jump a little in one direction or another through a couple of passes. Therefore, for now these parts of the districts should be considered separately.

From Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan there are two highways for entering the region. From Kyrgyzstan - through the city of Karakol (formerly Przhevalsk) along a decent road to the Semenov, Mushketov, Yu. Inylchek glaciers (to the Maidaadyr outpost), Kaindy. From Kazakhstan – through the regional center Narynkol to the upper reaches of the river. Bayankol (the road ends at the Zharkulak mine), from where it’s a 12-15 km walk to the Bayankol glacier system. Mountain hikes generally begin and end at these points. But if there are no special restrictions on funds, you can use a helicopter - for small groups as a companion (i.e., for transfer), for large groups - you can order and pay for a separate board. Today the situation is such that the area is served only by 2 Kyrgyz helicopters. (I won’t be surprised if there will be one next year, because last season one burned out, but I really hope that there will be a second one). The flight is carried out from two points - Karkara (Kazakhstan, through Kazbek Valiev), the Maidaadyr outpost (Inylchek river, Tien Shan Travel, Vladimir Biryukov).

There are several more camps serving clients in South Inylchek, besides Valiev and Biryukov there are three more. The first two plus one more are located at the confluence of Yu. Inylchek with the Zvezdochka glacier, two more - with opposite side, under the slopes of Gorky. In Northern Inylchek, only Kazbek Valiev’s camp now operates (previously there were two). But according to V. Biryukov, this summer the Kyrgyz camp (Tien Shan Travel company) will also begin operating in Northern Inylchek. Through any of these companies you can visit the area, choosing more suitable prices. Over the years, I have used the services of Kazbek Valiev, the Dostuk-Tracking company (Bishkek, Shchetnikov N.). In recent years, I have been using the services of Vladimir Biryukov’s Tien Shan Travel company, also because I have many friends there. Depending on which check-in method you use - through a company or on your own - transport prices will vary greatly. I don’t see the point of describing them here - you can look up their prices through the company on their websites, but I simply don’t know the prices for self-hired transport - I haven’t used it for too long. As for the helicopter, I think these are more stable numbers. Today, a helicopter hour in Kyrgyzstan costs $1,800, and an approach from Karkara or Maidaadir costs $150 per person. When flying, for example, from Maidaadyr, you can scatter drops in 2-3 places during the flight hour and land at the beginning of the route (in 2001, using a helicopter, we delivered drops to Southern and Northern Inylchek, and landed ourselves at the bottom of the Mushketov glacier , thus excluding traffic along river valleys from the route).

If we talk about the most common way to get there today, it’s by car from Bishkek through Karakol to Maidaadyr, then by helicopter to South or North Inylchek, or on foot (then you can drive a little further by car, or you can hire horse-drawn transport and use it to get almost to the Yu. Inylchek glacier). The second option is from Alma-Ata to Karkara, from where by helicopter to the same place - that is, to the South or North of Inylchek. People visit other places to start routes less often. And ascents are mainly carried out from the listed camps (a rare exception, which has been repeated more than once in recent years, is ascents to the Marble Wall from the Bayankol glaciers).

You should probably know that to visit the area through any state, you need to obtain registration (if entry/exit is carried out through different states, then in each of them) and passes to the border zone (for now, the expected complication of issuing passes has resulted in additional payment). All this is formalized in different places(registration with the police, passes with the border guards), so I prefer to use the services of companies.

On the Chinese side, things are somewhat different. In order to enter the area, you must obtain a military permit ($650 per group), a permit to visit the Tomur National Park (another $650), and insurance for all participants ($72/person). So far, today I know only one tour operator who undertakes to arrange all this. And naturally, payment for operator services will also be added here.

To enter the region for the first time, we used the traditional route to the Kashgar Mountains at that time - Moscow-Bishkek-Osh (plane) - Irkeshtam checkpoint (car) - Kashgar (car) - Aksu (train) - village. Talaq (machine). This journey took 6 days. We made our way back in exactly the same way, but it took 4-5 days. The second time we went directly to China, Moscow-Urumqi-Aksu (plane) - Talak (car). This option took us 2 days, and today is the optimal route to the area. But if we talk about departure from Moscow, there is currently no direct flight to Urumqi, so you have to fly with a transfer. From the nearest cities, planes fly to Urumqi from Novosibirsk, Almaty, Bishkek. Therefore, you can travel by plane from any of these cities. Probably, you can also calculate the option of visiting these cities by train, and then by plane. The entire route by train probably does not make sense, although it is theoretically possible. Maybe this option will one day become acceptable - there is persistent talk about the construction of a railway connection from Kyrgyzstan to China (Kashgar). Considering the speed at which the Chinese are building, I would not be surprised if such a road appears within a year or two after the decision is made. In the meantime, it would be good if a road was built through Irkeshtam - perhaps the drive through Kyrgyzstan, especially to the Kashgar Mountains (Kongur - Muztagata), would become quite convenient.

From the village of Talak, where the border post is located, you can also drive by jeep in different directions - probably to the Temirsu glacier. The path known to us, used in all expeditions (by the Chinese, the Japanese, and us), leads towards the Kokyardavan pass (you can almost get to the pass). Then a caravan of horses is organized (although it is also possible to start on foot) and after 30-35 km along the river valley. In Chonterex you can go to the tongue of the Chonteren glacier, where all the expeditions established a base camp. The route can be covered on horseback in 1.5-2 days.

In the neighboring valley - Kichiktereksu - there is a coal mining plant. The valley itself is more extensive than Chonterexu, with many small settlements. Having gone down a fairly decent path to the plant, you can then go further by car. By the way, the trail here is really good, but it’s easy to lose it, which is what we did from time to time. In the upper reaches of the river (in a section of 10 kilometers) it quite often branches, and the chosen path may simply turn out to be a dead end (for example, to a summer camp). The main trail, however, goes 300-400 meters up or down the slope, which is quite difficult to guess. Sometimes they helped us get back on the trail local residents, for whom we seemed to act as a visiting zoo. To the river valley Kichikterex can also be visited at the start of any hike.

We did not try other check-in options. One of them is along the Muzart River, along which the road rises quite far, and you can get approximately to the level of the Tugbelchi glacier. There are probably other options for arrival, but other expeditions have yet to get acquainted with them. There are a lot of dirt roads in these places, only local residents know them well (a simple example - our tour operator knew nothing about the coal mining plant and the road there - otherwise we would have immediately planned one of the ending points of the hike there.

The Nomads have a special dream, it appeared a long time ago - at the dawn of our campaigns, that is, for a very long time! Many nomads have not yet been in the world...
So it was a long time ago...
And this dream is to visit the Tien Shan!!!
Visit these amazing mountains!
But so far, only Damir Gilmutdinov among ours has visited the Tien Shan several times! And now he is known as an expert on this mountain system!
We hope that someday we will get together and see this mountainous region! But for all Tatars and Turks this is a holy land, for it is their home ancient god Tengri - at the peak of Khan Tengri! This is a real roof of the world - for those who lived in the Soviet Union!

Khan Tengri Peak, abode of the god Tengri

Geography of Tien Shan
Tien Shan (pinyin: Tiānshān shānmài, Kyrgyz. Ala-Too, Kazakh. Aspan-Tau, Tanir shyny, Tanir tau, Uzbek. Tyan Shan, Mongolian Tenger-uul) is a mountain system located in Central Asia on the territory of four countries : Kyrgyzstan, China (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region), Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
The name Tien Shan means “heavenly mountains” in Chinese. As E.M. Murzaev reports, this name is a tracing from the Turkic Tengritag, formed from the words: Tengri (Sky, God, divine) and tag (mountain).

The Tien Shan system includes the following orographic regions:
Northern Tien Shan: Ketmen, Trans-Ili Alatau, Kungei-Alatau and Kyrgyz ridges;
Eastern Tien Shan: ridges Borokhoro, Iren-Khabyrga, Bogdo-Ula, Karlyktag Halyktau, Sarmin-Ula, Kuruktag
Western Tien Shan: Karatau, Talas Alatau, Chatkal, Pskem and Ugam ranges;
Southwestern Tien Shan: ridges framing the Fergana Valley and including the southwestern slope of the Fergana Range;
Inner Tien Shan: bounded from the north by the Kyrgyz ridge and the Issyk-Kul basin, from the south by the Kokshaltau ridge, from the west by the Fergana ridge, from the east by the Akshiyrak mountain range.
The Tien Shan Mountains are considered one of the highest in the world, among them there are more than thirty peaks over 6000 meters high. The highest point of the mountain system is Pobeda Peak (Tomur, 7439 m), located on the border of Kyrgyzstan and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China; the next highest is Khan Tengri Peak (6995 m) on the border of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.

Three mountain ranges diverge from the Central Tien Shan to the west, separated by intermountain basins (Issyk-Kul with Lake Issyk-Kul, Naryn, At-Bashyn, etc.) and connected in the west by the Fergana Range.

Trans-Ili Alatau Tien Shan Mountains

In the Eastern Tien Shan there are two parallel mountain ranges (height 4-5 thousand m), separated by depressions (height 2-3 thousand m). Characterized by highly elevated (3-4 thousand m) leveled surfaces - syrts. The total area of ​​glaciers is 7.3 thousand km², the largest is South Inylchek. Rapids rivers - Naryn, Chu, Ili, etc. Mountain steppes and semi-deserts predominate: on the northern slopes there are meadow-steppes and forests (mainly coniferous), higher up there are subalpine and alpine meadows, on the syrts there are so-called cold deserts.

The length of the Tien Shan from west to east is 2500 km. Mountain system in Sr. and Center. Asia. Length from 3. to E. 2500 km. Alpine folding and the remains of ancient leveled surfaces were preserved at an altitude of 3000-4000 m in the form of syrts. Modern tectonic activity is high, earthquakes are frequent. Mountain ranges are composed of igneous rocks, basins are composed of sedimentary rocks. Deposits of mercury, antimony, lead, cadmium, zinc, silver, and oil in the basins.
The relief is predominantly high-mountainous, with glacial forms, screes, and permafrost is common above 3200 m. There are flat intermountain basins (Fergana, Issyk-Kul, Naryn). The climate is continental, temperate. Snowfields and glaciers. The rivers belong to the internal drainage basins (Naryn, Ili, Chu, Tarim, etc.), lake. Issyk-Kul, Song-Kel, Chatyr-Kel.
The first European explorer of the Tien Shan in 1856 was Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov, who received the title “Semyonov-Tian-Shansky” for his work.

PUTIN PEAK
Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev signed a decree naming one of the Tien Shan peaks after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
“The height of this peak reaches 4,500 meters above sea level. It is located in the Ak-Suu river basin, in the Chui region,” the office of the head of the Kyrgyz government said.
One of the Tien Shan peaks in the Issyk-Kul region of Kyrgyzstan is named after the first president of Russia, Boris Yeltsin.

spring on the Kyrgyz ridge, Tien Shan

FROM THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE USSR
The highest point of the Tien Shan - Pobeda Peak (7439 m) rises on the state border of the USSR and China. Nearby on the territory of the USSR rises the Khan Tengri Peak (6995 m). This border highland region with the highest ridges and largest glaciers, located east of the glaciated Akshiyrak massif, is now called by some researchers the Central Tien Shan, meaning its central position in the system of the entire Tien Shan (including the eastern, Chinese part). The space located to the west of this area is a high internal highland, bordered on all sides by barriers of high mountain ranges (Kyrgyz and Terskey-Ala-Too from the north, Fergana from the southwest, Kakshaal-Too from the southeast), which formerly called the Central Tien Shan, it received the apt name of the Inner Tien Shan. In addition, the Northern Tien Shan, which includes the Ketmen, Kungey-Ala-Too, Kyrgyz, Zailiysky Alatau, Chu-Ili mountains, and the Western Tien Shan, which includes the Talas Alatau and the ridges extending from it: Ugamsky, Pskemsky, are distinguished , Chatkalsky with Kuraminsky, Karatau.

Geological structure and relief. The relief of the Tien Shan is characterized by powerful ridges and intermountain basins separating them. The ridges are composed of sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks of the Paleozoic and Precambrian (schists, sandstones, limestones, marbles, gneisses, granites, syenites, effusive rocks); intermountain basins are filled primarily with loose continental sedimentary deposits of the Cenozoic. Tien Shan Mountains

The majority of the northern chains of the Tien Shan (including the Terskey-Ala-Too ridge belonging to the Inner Tien Shan, as well as the ridges of the Western Tien Shan - Talas Alatau and partly Karatau) are characterized by the widespread development of Proterozoic and Lower Paleozoic rocks - terrigenous and carbonate geosynclinal sediments, with ancient (Proterozoic and Caledonian) granitoid intrusions breaking through them. Proterozoic and Caledonian folding movements were widely manifested here. From the Upper Silurian, a continental regime was established, and subsequently only in the troughs of the Caledonian folded basement did terrigenous sediments accumulate. The Hercynian folding, accompanied, like the previous ones, by intrusions, completed the Paleozoic stage of development of this northern geological zone.

The rest of the Tien Shan belongs to the southern geological (structural-facies) zone, which is separated from the previous zone by a series of tectonic disturbances (the so-called most important structural line of the Tien Shan, traced from Karatau to the eastern part of Terskey-Ala-Too). Precambrian and Lower Paleozoic rocks are insignificantly distributed in this zone, but marine Upper Devonian and Carboniferous sediments are widely developed, often in the carbonate facies. The main folding here was the Hercynian. In this zone, two subzones are distinguished: Chatkal-Naryn and Fergana-Kakshaal. In most of the first of them, the geosynclinal stage of development ended in the Middle Carboniferous, in the second it ended in the Permian.

Western Tien Shan

Upon completion of the Hercynian folding, the northern and southern zones of the Tien Shan formed a single massif with a similar tectonic regime, generally close to the platform one. In place of the mountain uplifts formed as a result of the Hercynian folding, already in the Upper Permian (according to V.A. Nikolaev), a peneplain was formed, which existed on the site of the current Tien Shan Mountains throughout the Mesozoic, Paleogene and early Neogene. Only in the Jurassic did differentiated movements appear, leading to the emergence of local depressions and troughs, which were filled with freshwater coal-bearing sediments; in other periods, the territory experienced oscillatory movements of relatively small amplitude, characteristic of platform areas. In the Cretaceous and Paleogene, the territory of the Tien Shan apparently resembled the current Kazakh small hills with the dominance of denudation plains and low mountain ranges.

Terskei, Kyrgyzstan, Tien Shan

Shallow seas entered the areas of the Western Tien Shan in the Cretaceous and Paleogene. Marine transgressions further leveled through abrasion the denudation plains that had previously arisen here (the watershed surface of the Karatau ridge, the Angren plateau) and deposited shallow sediments. But in most of the territory, only continental, mainly clastic, sediments are developed from Paleogene and Neogene deposits. The local uplifts that arose as a result of differentiated movements of small amplitude were eroded, the depressions were filled with clastic material, and a weathering crust was formed on the denudation plains.

Tectonic activity increased sharply at the end of the Neogene. The platform regime was replaced by sharp differentiated movements of large amplitude, which continued into the Quaternary period. As a result of Neogene and Lower Quaternary tectonic movements, the modern high-mountain relief of the Tien Shan was formed in place of denudation plains and small hills.

Previously, it was believed that the structure of the Tien Shan, which arose as a result of Neogene and Lower Quaternary (i.e., Alpine) movements, was typically blocky. The Tien Shan ridges were considered as long horsts stretched along fault lines, and the valleys and basins were considered as grabens. But now it can be considered proven (a large amount of factual material on this issue has been summarized by S.S. Shultz) that in addition to movements along deep faults, the other main type of neotectonic movements in the Tien Shan was the formation of folds of large radius, i.e. swell-like bulging and subsidence of the aligned Paleozoic folded base. As a result of the formation of wide waves of longitudinal folds in the consolidated Hercynian folding and the Paleozoic base leveled by denudation, the current Tien Shan ridges were uplifted, accompanied by the subsidence of the valleys and basins separating them. Thus, the ridges are not horsts, but anticlinal uplifts, while the valleys and basins are not grabens, but synclinal troughs, wide troughs. This concept does not at all deny the existence of longitudinal discontinuities, proven by numerous geological studies, but it considers a significant part of these discontinuities as secondary phenomena, derived from another type of tectonic deformation - wave-like bending of a denudation surface developed on a Paleozoic folded base. It explains well the patterns of arrangement of ancient alignment surfaces found in the modern relief of the Tien Shan.

Large radius folds grew gradually. The formation of anticlines and the uplift of ridges were accompanied by denudation processes (erosion, and when the ridges grew sufficiently, then by glacial demolition), dismemberment of ancient leveled surfaces and the accumulation of continental sedimentary strata in sagging troughs.

The processes of formation of tectonic structures and tectonic relief continue to this day, as evidenced by the intensity of seismic phenomena. For example, the echoes of the Kebin earthquake in the Northern Tien Shan with an epicenter south of Alma-Ata (1911) spread throughout the globe, circling it three times. The energy released at the source of this earthquake was measured at 1025 ergs; such an amount of energy could be provided by the Dnieper hydroelectric station with continuous operation for 300-350 years (G.P. Gorshkov).

Mount Choibalsan Tien Shan Mountains

Tashkent is located in the transition zone from the Tien Shan mountains to the Epi-Hercynian platform of the Kyzylkum desert (part of the Turan Plate). The devastating Tashkent earthquake of 1966, which occurred at the end of April and was accompanied by strong aftershocks in the following months, was associated with movements along the meridional gap in the Paleozoic foundation underlying the sedimentary soils of the city. At the same time, the eastern block, that is, located towards the mountains of the Western Tien Shan, experienced a relative rise. Ultimately, the cause of the Tashkent earthquake (a similar earthquake occurred there in 1868) should obviously be considered the continuing development of the Tien Shan mountains.

The relief of most of the ridges of the Tien Shan ranges is high mountain. The highest altitudes are in the Central Tien Shan, especially in the area of ​​the peaks of Khan Tengri - Pobeda Peak; along and to the west of Saryjaz the altitudes reach more than 5000 m (eastern part of Terskey-Ala-Too, Kuylyutau ridge, Akshiyrak massif). The Kakshaal-Too ridge in the part that frames the Inner Tien Shan reaches almost six kilometers in height (Dankov Peak - 5982 m). In the Northern Tien Shan, the Trans-Ili Alatau ridge rises to 4973 m (Talgar peak), the Kyrgyz ridge - to 4875 m.

foothills of the Tien Shan

The high mountain ranges of the Tien Shan have sharp ridges with sharp peaks “peaks” in the literal sense of the word, i.e., a typical alpine glacial relief. Often, however, especially in the Central and Inner Tien Shan, less often in the Northern Tien Shan, on the crests of ridges there are flat surfaces of ancient alignment, inclined to one side due to folding deformation (formation of folds of large radius). An example is the crest of the Terskey-Ala-Too ridge: its plateau-like surface inclined to the south in some places completely imperceptibly turns into the southern slope and is hidden under the moraine sediments of the syrts of the Inner Tien Shan. The mid-altitude ranges of the Tien Shan also have leveled, sometimes abrasive surfaces; for example, the ridge of the eastern part of the Karatau ridge is so smooth that a road passes along it.

In the Inner and Central Tien Shan, leveled surfaces often form the bottoms of high-mountain valleys, covered with moraine, alluvial and other sediments, and wide terrace-like steps along the sides of the valleys. At the highest altitudes, such valley bottoms are almost bare rocky tundra. The bottoms, which are covered with herbaceous vegetation and serve as pastures, are called syrts by the local Kyrgyz population. The name “syrt” contrasts the useful pasture area of ​​the highlands with the rest of the territory (“tau” - mountains with rocky slopes, “bel” - mountains covered with glaciers, etc.). The Syrt region of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, with highly elevated valley bottoms and a relatively small relative height of the ridges, despite their enormous absolute height, is a typical highland, framed by a border of high-mountain ridges and much higher than the Issyk-Kul basin in the north and the Kashgar deserts in the south.

Terskey Alatau ridge

The slopes of the Tien Shan mountain ranges are dynamic. Erosion processes develop on them, screes and rockfalls form, in some places landslides, and mudflows in gorges. The northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau is known for exceptionally high mudflow activity in river valleys. Destructive mudflows, landslides and landslides were accompanied by strong earthquakes here.

The foothill steps of the ridges, composed of sedimentary rocks - mostly loose and clastic Paleogene, Neogene and Lower Quaternary sediments, are strongly dissected by erosion. In the Northern Tien Shan they are called counters. The bottoms of the valleys and basins of the Tien Shan have flat accumulative terrace surfaces. The wide alluvial cones of the side gorges superimposed on them give the relief an undulation. Among the intermountain basins, the Issyk-Kul and Naryn basins stand out for their size.

The climate of the Tien Shan is generally characterized by sharp continentality, which is associated with its position in relatively low latitudes inside the continent, at a considerable distance from Atlantic Ocean, among the dry flat desert spaces. However, the high altitudes of the ridges, the complexity and dissect of the relief lead to significant contrasts in temperatures and the degree of moisture. The influence of neighboring deserts has a greater impact on the climate of the foothills and low-mountain zones.

Moisture-saturated Atlantic air masses in the form of western air currents, traveling at a considerable altitude above the Central Asian deserts, reach the Tien Shan ridges. Under the influence of mountainous terrain, atmospheric fronts intensify and significant amounts of precipitation fall (in some places more than 1600 mm/year), mainly on the western slopes (in mid-mountain and high-altitude zones). On the contrary, on the eastern slopes and in the basins of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, arid conditions are created (precipitation - 200-300 mm/year). The maximum precipitation is in summer, but on the western slopes of the mountains there is also a lot of precipitation in winter. On them and in the valleys open to the west, the thickness of the winter snow cover reaches 2-3 m, while on the eastern slopes and beyond them, especially in the valleys of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, there is almost no snow in winter. Places where there is no snow cover are used as winter pastures.

Strong warming of air over deserts Central Asia in summer it contributes to an increase in the level of condensation in the Tien Shan mountains, and therefore the snow line is located much higher than, for example, in the Western Caucasus and the Alps. In the Inner and Central Tien Shan, passes even at an altitude of more than 4000 m are free of snow in summer.

Temperature conditions in the Tien Shan change in accordance with the pattern of altitudinal zonation. Climatic high-altitude zones are distinguished here - from the climate of sultry deserts at the foot of the mountains to the cold climate of the high-mountain snow-ice zone. In the valleys of the lower mountain zone average temperature July 20-25°, in mid-altitude valleys 15-17°, and on the tops of mountain ranges it drops to 0° and below. In winter, in all zones, with the exception of the highlands, cold periods alternate with thaws, although average January temperatures are negative (in most of the valleys −6° and below). Temperature inversion phenomena are widespread.

Jamansu Glacier Tien Shan Mountains

Some local climate features depend not only on the topography, but also on other factors. For example, the lake has a moderating effect on the climate of the Issyk-Kul basin. In Przhevalsk, on the shores of Issyk-Kul, in January it is 3.5° warmer than in Alma-Ata, located only slightly to the north, but 900 m lower. In Naryn, which also lies in a basin, only 250 m higher than Przhevalsk, but somewhat further south, it is 11° colder in January. If you drop one degree per difference in absolute heights, then you can assume that the huge water mass of the lake increases the air temperature in January by about 10°.

The eastern part of the Issyk-Kul basin is moistened much better than the western part, where desert landscapes are common. This phenomenon is often explained by the role of moisture evaporating from the surface of the lake, carried east by westerly winds. To make sure it's not main reason, you can contact landscape features Fergana Basin, where the eastern part is also much more humidified, although in the center of the basin there is not a lake, but a desert. West Side The basin is deserted not only in the flat areas, but also in its mountain frame, while on the slope of the Fergana Range, which forms the eastern frame of the basin, beautiful forests of walnuts and wild fruit trees grow. The fact is that in both basins, atmospheric fronts coming from the west and southwest are washed away when descending from the mountains of the western frame and are restored under the influence of eastern mountain barriers. In the Issyk-Kul basin, an increase in temperature due to the foehn effect created by westerly winds is combined in winter with the warming influence of the lake’s water mass.

Foehns are widespread in the mountains and foothills of the Tien Shan, and in particular are not uncommon in the Tashkent region, where they rush from the mountains, from the Chirchik valley.

Glaciation. The snow line in the Tien Shan rises from the periphery into the mountain system, generally from northwest to southeast, which is associated with an increase in climate aridity in this direction. On the Talas Alatau and Kyrgyz ridges it is located at an altitude of 3600-3800 m on the northern slopes and 3800-4200 m on the southern ones, and in the Central Tien Shan, in the Khan Tengri region - Pobeda Peak - at an altitude of 4200-4450 m. However It is the Central Tien Shan, and especially the Khan Tengri region - Pobeda Peak, that is characterized by the greatest glaciation, which is explained by the enormous height of the mountain ranges. The largest glacier of the Tien Shan, Inylchek, about 60 km long, is located here.

One of the large glaciers of the Akshiyrak massif, the Petrov Glacier, gives rise to the Kumtor River, the main source of the Naryn River (upper reaches of the Syr Darya). Large glaciers are located on the Kakshaal-Too and Terskey-Ala-Too ridges. The latter, as well as some other Tien Shan ridges, are characterized by so-called flat-top glaciers, which are found on the highest elevated ancient planation surfaces. They lie in the form of small shields (caps, loaves) on flat, slightly inclined summit surfaces of ridges. Since these glaciers occupy watershed areas of the ridges and there is nowhere for debris to fall on them (only atmospheric dust settles), moraine formations are very poorly developed on them. There are many glaciers on the northern ridges of the Tien Shan - on the Kungey-Ala-Too, Trans-Ili Alatau, and Kyrgyz ridges. In addition to valley glaciers and flat-top glaciers, cirque and hanging glaciers are abundant in the Tien Shan. The glaciated area of ​​the Tien Shan is about 7,300 km2, the number of glaciers is more than 7,700. The bulk of the glaciers are now in the process of shrinking.

In many areas of the Tien Shan, traces of ancient glaciation are clear; Thus, the highest syrts of the Inner and Central Tien Shan are characterized by hilly-moraine terrain. It is believed that the Tien Shan was subjected to two glaciations, and during the first of them the glaciers reached their greatest development and, apparently, descended to the foothills of the mountain ranges (which, however, did not correspond to modern foothills, since during the interglacial period the piedmont plains were raised by significant height). On the syrts of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, as a result of the sliding of ice and firn on them from the gentle slopes of the ridges, ice sheets then formed. The glaciation of the dissected marginal ridges of the Tien Shan, apparently, was valley, and the glacial troughs were very wide.

Traces of the maximum glaciation are greatly eroded and erased by subsequent glaciation, the forms due to which, on the contrary, are perfectly preserved. These are typical trough valleys, cirques, ridges, moraines, etc. The second glaciation was smaller in size than the first, but still significantly larger than the modern one. It is believed that during this glaciation the syrts were filled with sedentary, wide and flat glaciers of the cover type. Valley glaciers were much larger than modern ones. The Inylchek glacier reached 110 km in length.

The rivers of the Tien Shan end in the drainless lake basins of the deserts of Central and Central Asia, in the internal Tien Shan lakes, or have “dry deltas,” that is, their waters seep into the alluvium of the piedmont plains and are used for irrigation. Most of the rivers belong to the Syrdarya basin. The rivers of the Northern Tien Shan belong to the basins of the Ili and Chu rivers. A significant (southeastern) part of the Inner and Central Tien Shan belongs to the Tarim basin (Saryjaz, sources of Kokshaal).

Rivers originating in the highlands are predominantly fed by glaciers and snow; Their high water is summer. Small rivers, the sources of which are located in lower altitude zones, are fed by groundwater(karasu), as well as melted snow and rain.

The rivers of the Tien Shan are used for energy purposes and for irrigation of arid basins, especially neighboring desert areas. Alma-Ata, Chui, Talas, Tashkent, Golodnostep, Fergana oases, as well as oases along the lower reaches of the Syrdarya, are fed by the waters of rivers running from the Tien Shan mountains.

Lake Kolsai

There are many lakes in the Tien Shan. The largest of them is Lake Issyk-Kul, which occupies a tectonic depression. This is one of the deepest lakes in the USSR, the third deepest after Baikal and the Caspian Sea. Its maximum depth is 668 m. The lake is unusually beautiful due to the intense color of the water, blue or blue-green, and the picturesque mountain ranges surrounding the lake basin (in the north - Kungey-Ala-Too, in the south - Terskey-Ala-Too). Due to its great depth and colossal volume of water (1.7 times greater than in the Aral Sea), Issyk-Kul does not freeze in winter, with the exception of bays and a narrow coastal strip in some places.

The water in the lake is brackish (salinity in the open part is 5.8‰), but contains significantly less salt than in most other closed reservoirs. This is explained by the fact that the lake became drainless and began to become salinized relatively recently. It is also necessary to take into account the enormous volume of water: during the same period of time, a shallow lake would have had time to become more salinized,

The fauna of Issyk-Kul is poor in species, but there are fish of commercial importance (osman, chebak, carp, etc.). The lake is navigable. Steamboats run from the village of Rybachye (where the final railway station is) to the Przhevalsk pier.

The most significant lakes of the Inner Tien Shan are Sonkel and Chatyrkol. Sonkel is a flowing lake, Chatyrkol is drainless and shallow. There are many small lakes on the syrts in the depressions of the moraine relief. Subglacial lakes are common.

High-altitude landscape zones and belts. Nature in the Tien Shan mountains changes noticeably with altitude, obeying the pattern of altitudinal zonation. Back in the middle of the last century (1857), P. P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky identified on the northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau “five zones, located as if on floors, one above the other,” and gave a description of their natural features and economic use 1.

Altitudinal zonation is most fully and clearly expressed on mountain ranges open to the west, southwest or north, while on internal ridges it is sometimes somewhat obscured or modified; on the high inland highlands the lower zones fall out. The nature of the lower altitude zones of the Southwestern Tien Shan is close to the Pamir-Alai and has subtropical features.

mountain lake, Eastern Tien Shan

The flat spaces bordering the Tien Shan mountains are occupied by clayey wormwood and saltwort deserts, turning into wormwood-ephemeral and ephemeral deserts in the south. On the foothill plains and low foothills, deserts give way to semi-deserts, or desert steppes, mostly of the boreal type, but in the most southern regions Western Tien Shan and on the western slope of the Fergana Range, already acquiring features of a subtropical type. Some geobotanists call semi-deserts (desert steppes) of this type, with the dominance of ephemerals and ephemeroids, low-grass semi-savannas. However, the climatic regime and rhythm of natural development in the south of Central Asia have nothing in common with those in tropical savannas. In savannas there are no hot and cold seasons; there are dry and rainy seasons, which occur at completely different times of the year.

Karakol glacier

In the zone of foothill semi-deserts of the main part of the Tien Shan, the vegetation cover is dominated by wormwood-turf-grass communities. To the south, during the transition to the subtropics (in the southwestern part of the Tien Shan), wormwood-ephemeral communities are widespread in the same altitudinal zone (with the dominance of thick columnar sedge and bulbous bluegrass, i.e., close to the communities of ephemeral and wormwood-ephemeral deserts) , transforming with height into ephemeroid wheatgrass-poagrass with the participation of tall grasses. In the north, in the zone of foothill semi-deserts, northern (low-carbonate) sierozems are common, in the south (Southwestern Tien Shan) - ordinary (typical) and dark sierozems. The upper limit of the landscape zone of foothill semi-deserts is 900-1200 m abs. high This zone is inhabited by desert and steppe fauna of piedmont clayey and loess plains.

Mountain-steppe high altitude landscape zone. Dry steppes are common in its lower belt, and large-grass subtropical steppes are common in the south. The vegetation cover of the belt, represented by cereal-forb communities, is dominated in the north by feather grass and fescue with an admixture of wormwood (especially on gravelly soils), and in the south by large perennials of the ephemeral type - wheatgrass, bulbous barley, and among forbs - elecampane, etc.

The southern subtropical steppes with the dominance of hairy wheatgrass and bulbous barley are called by some geobotanists large-grass “semi-savannahs”. However, the seasonal rhythm of development of “semi-savannas” is directly opposite to the rhythm of development of tropical savannas of the northern hemisphere. Neither the climate regime nor the soils of the low-mountain subtropical steppes of Central Asia, as well as the foothill semi-deserts, have anything in common with tropical savannas.

The soils of large-grass subtropical steppes are dark gray dry steppe (leached sierozems). In the dry steppe belt of the more northern regions of the Tien Shan, mountain light chestnut soils are common. The upper belt of the mountain-steppe zone is a belt of tussock-grass (fescue-feather grass) steppes on mountain dark chestnut and chernozem soils. The turf-grass steppes above transform into mid-mountain meadow steppes of the next altitudinal zone.

In the mountain-steppe zone there are spring-summer (below) and summer-autumn (above, in the belt of turf-grass steppes) pastures.

From an altitude of 1200-2000 m and in some places more, the high-altitude landscape zone begins - mountain forest-meadow-steppe. There is already middle mountain range with rather steep slopes and narrow erosion gorges. In the lower belt of the zone, meadow steppes on mountain chernozems, shrub thickets and deciduous forests are common.

In the Southwestern Tien Shan, meadow steppes and bushes grow on mountain brown soils, and forests grow on dark brown soils. This belt has excellent pastures and good hayfields; in some places rain-fed farming is possible here.

Deciduous forests in the Tien Shan do not form a continuous belt, being located in separate tracts among meadow steppes, bush thickets (rosehip thickets are especially widespread) and rocky areas. On the western slope of the Fergana Range, on the southern slope of the Chatkal Range and in the Ugam-Pskem region of the Western Tien Shan in mountain valleys protected from north side from the cold air masses along the high mountain ridges, magnificent forests of walnut (Juglans regia, J. fallax), sometimes with an admixture of maple (Acer turkestanicum), with cherry plum, honeysuckle, buckthorn, apple tree (Malus kirghisorum) in the undergrowth grow. In dense forests, there are almost no grasses and the soil surface is covered with a layer of litter from half-rotten litter of leaves and branches. Mountain forest brown unsaturated soils are developed here.

On the northern ranges of the Tien Shan, walnut is replaced by aspen; There are many wild fruit trees in these aspen forests. In the forest-steppe of the northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau there are wild apple trees and apricots; in the forests, in addition to aspen, there are hawthorn, apple, Tien Shan rowan, willow, honeysuckle, etc. Tigers lived here in the middle of the last century. In the belt with deciduous forests there are badgers (Meles meles, various subspecies) and wild boars (Sus scrofa nigripes).

In the upper zone of the forest-meadow-steppe zone (from 1700 m and above) coniferous forests of Tien Shan spruce grow, to which Semenov fir is mixed in the Western Tien Shan. At first, forests appear mainly in the depths of gorges and on slopes of northern exposure. The southern-facing slopes in the lower part of the belt are covered with mountain-steppe vegetation and shrubs. Higher up, however, spruce also grows on the southern slopes and, finally, remains only on the southern slopes, while on the northern slopes the spruce forests are already replaced by subalpine meadows.

Tien Shan spruce is a tall, slender tree with a narrow crown. Rowan and currants grow in the lower tree layer and undergrowth of the forests it forms. Under the shady crowns of spruce, a moss cover is developed and typical representatives of the boreal forest flora are found - wintergreen, bluegrass, chickweed, fireweed, etc., or the soil is covered with pine needle litter.

Under forests of Tien Shan spruce, peculiar mountain-forest dark-colored soils are developed. Despite the significant amount of precipitation (up to 800 mm/year or more) and the general similarity of the landscape to the mountain taiga, these soils, especially on the northern slope of the Terskey-Ala-Too ridge and in the Inner Tien Shan, have nothing in common with podzolic soils. The abundance of humus and their acidity are as if they had developed on carbonate rocks, although these soils are often formed on non-carbonate colluvium. M.A. Glazovskaya showed that the characteristics of mountain-forest dark-colored soils are associated with chemical composition Tien Shan spruce needles: it contains 44% CaO (in needle litter - up to 50% CaO), while ordinary spruce needles - only 12%.

Forests of Tien Shan spruce exist not only on the marginal ridges of the Northern and Western Tien Shan, but also on the internal ones, in particular, they are widespread on the northern slope of the Terskey-Ala-Too ridge within altitudes of 2100-3000 m. Massifs of these forests are found in Internal and Central Tien Shan; in the eastern part of this area of ​​their distribution they are found higher (from 2600-2800 m), mainly in shady gorges. On drier slopes in the zone of coniferous forests there are thickets of juniper (Juniperus turkestanica, etc.), which are even higher than spruce. In the southern regions of the Western Tien Shan and on the western slopes of the Fergana Range, juniper forests sometimes replace spruce forests, located above walnut forests. The coniferous forests of the Tien Shan are inhabited by the Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus), lynx (Lynx lynx) and birds - nutcracker, feeding on Tien Shan spruce seeds, crossbill (Loxia curvirostra tianschanica), juniper grosbeak, feeding on juniper seeds.

Zvezdochka glacier

The next landscape zone (starts from 2600-2800 m) is a zone of high-mountain meadows and meadow steppes, in places with creeping juniper, corresponding to the altitudinal distribution zone of ancient glacial cirques and cirques, the bottoms and sides of trough valleys at the ends of modern glaciers. There are three zones: subalpine, alpine and subnival.

The transition from the forest-meadow-steppe zone to the subalpine belt of the zone of high-mountain meadows and meadow steppes is very unclear. Subalpine meadows begin in the spruce forest belt, in its upper part. The spruce forests of the Tien Shan were generally referred to as the subalpine zone, but later they began to distinguish the forest-meadow-steppe belt with spruce forests, which we considered as the upper belt of the forest-meadow-steppe zone.

Under the mountain meadows of the subalpine belt, mountain-meadow chernozem-like and mountain-meadow typical soils are developed, and under meadow-steppe vegetation - mountain-meadow-steppe soils.

The subalpine meadows of the Tien Shan are tall grass; their species composition is rich and diverse. In addition to cereals (sheep - Helictotrichon asiaticum, foxtail - Alopecurus songoricus, red fescue Festuca rubra) they have a lot of variegated, beautifully flowering forbs (geranium - Geranium saxatile, G. albiflorum, buttercup - Ranunculus grandifolius, anemone, cinquefoil, etc.). Dense and lush, these meadows serve as excellent summer pastures - jailau. Among the meadows there are frequent thickets of creeping juniper (Juniperus turkestanica), which also extends into the alpine belt.

The Alpine belt, whose meadows also serve as good summer pastures, begins at an altitude of 3000 m and rises to an average of 3400 m (higher in the Inner and Central Tien Shan). The soil and vegetation cover here is mosaic, broken by screes and rocky rock outcrops; the soils are thin and skeletal; the grass stand is dense and low. Depending on the degree of moisture in the soil and vegetation cover, differences are observed. In wetter areas under sedge-grass vegetation with an admixture of variegated colorful herbs (buttercups - Ranunculus alberti, etc., primroses - Primula algida, gentians - Gentiana falcata, G. aurea, etc., forget-me-nots, anemones, poppies, etc.) develop mountain meadow peaty soils; under heathland meadows with a vegetation cover of cobresias (Kobresia capilliformis, etc.) with an admixture of variegated alpine herbs - mountain meadow semi-peaty dark brown soils; under meadow-steppe vegetation of fescue (Festuca kryloviana, etc.), tonkonogo, sedge and alpine forbs - mountain-meadow-steppe semi-peaty brown soils. In places of increased soil-ground moisture near springs, mountain streams and rivers, swampy meadows develop - saz with peaty saz-meadow soils.

valley of the Chon-Uzen river

Low-growing meadow alpine vegetation rises to the eternal snow. The upper zone, transitional to the nival zone, where the soil and vegetation cover is extremely fragmented, can be distinguished as subnival. Here there are only small turf areas or even isolated specimens of alpine plants, nestled among stones and in rock cracks.

The zone of high-mountain meadows and meadow steppes and partly the highlands of the Syrt region (see below) are characterized by the Central Asian argali sheep (Ovis ammon poloi), teke mountain goat (Capra sibirica sakeen), snow leopard (Felis uncia), Tien Shan bear (Ursus arctos leuconyx ), which is also found in forests, the pika (senostavets); Marmots and the narrow-skulled vole (Microtus gregalis) are very numerous, causing enormous damage to mountain pastures. Among the birds that live here are the Himalayan mountain turkey (sular - Tetraogallus himalayensis), the alpine jackdaw (Pyrrhocorax graculus), the red-billed jackdaw (p. pyrrhocorax), the horned alpine lark (Eremophila alpestris), and finches. There are many waterfowl on the lakes. Among the animals of the Tien Shan highlands there are many Central Asian, in particular Tibetan, species.

The uppermost landscape zone is glacial-nival (from 3600-3800 m on the marginal ridges, from the same heights and above 4000 m in the Inner and Central Tien Shan) with eternal snow, glaciers, rocks and screes on steep slopes. The processes of physical (temperature and frost) weathering are intense here. Algae and lithophilic lichens settle on stones and rocks, under the influence of which the processes of biochemical weathering and primary soil formation occur. On the fine earth prepared by these processes, higher species settle in cracks in rocks. alpine plants, the upper limit of distribution of which is about 4000 m.

The snowy ridge of the Trans-Ili Alatau and moraines of ancient glaciers in the mountain-meadow altitude zone in the foreground. Photo by N. Gvozdetsky

In the internal valleys and basins of the Tien Shan, due to the continentality and dry climate, the altitudinal zonation of the landscapes is obscured and modified. At an altitude of more than 1500 m in the valleys and basins of the Inner Tien Shan, unique rocky deserts are common, which are “the most western formations of the widespread and Central Asian rocky ranges” 1 (on the outer slopes of the marginal chains of the Tien Shan at the same altitude among the meadow steppes and bush thickets and forest areas are already found). The salt-bearing and gypsum-bearing variegated Paleogene-Neogene strata are associated with highly dissected desert lowlands, on which only rare gypsophyte bushes grow.

Chomoy pass

Along with deserts, in the dry intermontane depressions of the Inner Tien Shan, lying at an altitude of 1500-2500 m, landscapes of semi-deserts and dry steppes are widespread. The basis of their vegetation cover is formed by xerophytic perennial subshrubs, and features of wormwood (Artemisia compacta, etc.), as well as twig, teresken, and various saltworts. Caragana bushes (Caragana pleiophylla and C. leucophloea) are characteristic. With slightly better moisture, fescue and feather grass (Stipa caucasica, S. glareosa) appear. In areas of heavy grazing, cereals are grazed by livestock, the percentage of subshrubs increases, and the vegetation acquires a more desert character than it should be in accordance with the general physical and geographical conditions. This phenomenon can be observed, for example, in the Naryn depression, near the city of Naryn.

The semi-deserts and dry steppes of the valleys and basins of the Inner Tien Shan, as well as the rocky deserts, are close to Central Asian, namely Mongolian. According to M.A. Glazovskaya, their soils (such as light chestnut) are also similar to the soils of Mongolia. The soils are characterized by the absence of salinity, which, according to M.A. Glazovskaya, is associated with the special chemical composition of the Central Asian species of wormwood growing here (Artemisia compacta, A. tianschanica). Only 2-3% sodium was found in the ash of Tien Shan wormwood, while the ash of wormwood of the lowland dry steppes and semi-deserts of the southeast of the Russian Plain and Kazakhstan contains 10-12% sodium.

As the absolute altitude increases, species of wormwood (A. rhodantha), fescue (Festuca kryloviana) and feather grass, characteristic of the Tien Shan highlands, begin to appear. Hairy cobresia (Kobresia capilliformis), gentians, saxifrage and other plants characteristic of the Alpine highlands also appear.

Kazakhstan, Lake Tuzkol, Khan Tengri

Semi-deserts and dry steppes in places of better moisture transform into mid-mountain and high-mountain steppes with the dominance of feather grass, fescue, sheep (Helictotrichon desertorum, H. tianschanicum) and other grasses. Mountain-steppe landscapes are widespread in the valleys, basins and on the slopes of the Inner Tien Shan ranges. The forests, formed mainly by Tien Shan spruce, are interspersed into the general landscape background in separate fragments, meeting heads in shady, more humid gorges. Elfin juniper trees are widespread.

The landscape zone of high-mountain meadows and meadow steppes is also not developed everywhere in the Inner and Central Tien Shan. Sometimes its distribution is extremely fragmented. On the syrts of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, high-mountain meadows are often replaced by a very unique landscape of cold high-mountain desert. Dense crescent-shaped cushions of Sibbaldia tetrandra are scattered among the bare surface of takyr-like soil on gently sloping moraine hills; other plants - small, oppressed - hide from the cold winds in the cracks of the takyr-like soil or settle only on the southern slopes. In the depressions between areas of moraine hills, wet sedge-cobresia meadows (of Carex melanantha, Kobresia humilis, C. capilliformis) are developed, often swampy, with peaty-gley, usually carbonate, and saz soils.

Cold high-mountain desert in the syrty region of the Inner Tien Shan. The sickle-shaped cushions of Sibbaldia are visible against the background of bare takyr-like soil. Photo by N. Gvozdetsky

Permafrost is ubiquitous in the soil at a depth of 70 cm to 2 m. Throughout the year, precipitation falls mainly in solid form (snow, pellets, hail). Cold high-mountain deserts are common at altitudes of 3600-3850 m. Higher up, in the subnival belt of the Syrt region, there are almost bare rocky tundras with stone polygons, directly adjacent to snow fields and glaciers of flat peaks.

The natural resources in the Tien Shan mountains are great and varied. From mineral resources can be called ores of non-ferrous and rare metals (polymetallic deposits of the Karatau ridge, Karamazor and Sumsar - in the spurs of the Kuraminsky ridge, Bordunsky - in the Kyrgyz ridge, Aktyuz - between the Zailiysky Alatau and Kungey-Ala-Too ridges, copper deposits on the Kuraminsky ridge, etc.) , hard coal (Jirgalan - eastern Issyk-Kul, Dyungyuryo - in the Inner Tien Shan, Tash-Kumyr, Kok-Yangak, Uzgen - in eastern Fergana), brown coal (Lenger and others), oil (in the foothills of the Fergana ridge and eastern Fergana - Maili-Sai, Kochkor-Ata, etc.), rock salt (in the Inner Tien Shan, on the outskirts of the Fergana Valley), various mining chemical raw materials and building materials. Large deposits phosphorites in Karatau are provided with chemical fertilizers Agriculture Central Asia, Kazakhstan and Siberia. There are medicinal mineral springs: Saryagach - in the Kazakh part of the Western Tien Shan, Issyk-Ata - in the Kyrgyz Range, Cholpon-Ata, Dzhetyoguz and Teploklyuchenka (Aksu) - in the Issyk-Kul Basin.

The energy of rivers flowing from the Tien Shan mountains is used to create hydroelectric power stations, but the opportunities available in this regard have not yet been realized much. On the Syrdarya, the Farhad hydroelectric power station near Bekabad and the Kairakum hydroelectric power station above Leninabad were created. Hydroelectric power stations were built in Chirchik near Tashkent and upstream - the Charvak hydroelectric power station, on the irrigation canals of the Tashkent oasis (on the Bozsu ditch, etc.), on Shaarikhansay in eastern Fergana, and a hydroelectric power station is being created there in Karadarya. The Alamedin and Przhevalskaya hydroelectric power stations operate in Kyrgyzstan, and the construction of large hydroelectric power stations has begun to use the energy of the Naryn River (see section “Waters”). The capital of Kazakhstan, Almaty, receives electricity from hydroelectric power plants in the valley of the Bolshaya Almatinka River on the northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau. The energy of the Ili River is used by the Kapchagai hydroelectric station.

Tien Shan has forest and rich pasture resources. Walnut forests with valuable wood (with influxes - burls going to production) are of great importance the best varieties plywood) and tasty nutritious fruits. However, the most important functions of walnut forests, like others, are water conservation and soil protection. The problems of restoring and expanding forest areas in the forest-meadow-steppe altitudinal zone, regulating grazing on mountain pastures, increasing the productivity of meadows, and creating cultivated pastures are important. Agriculture rises high into the mountains. Rice, grapes and peaches are cultivated up to 1000 m, apple trees, apricots and plums are much higher, barley, wheat and potatoes up to 2500-2750 m. A valuable crop of medicinal poppy is cultivated on the banks of Issyk-Kul. Over the years Soviet power Major measures have been taken to expand irrigated lands in the foothills and valleys. For irrigation purposes, the Big Fergana and Big Chui canals were created, as well as the Orto-Tokoy reservoir on the Chu River and the Sokuluk reservoir in its basin, and many others.

Resorts arose near healing mineral springs. The coast of Lake Issyk-Kul is a resort area of ​​all-Union importance.

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SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND PHOTO:
Team Nomads
http://www.photosight.ru/
Wikipedia website
http://tapemark.narod.ru/
Murzaev E. M. Turkic geographical names. - M.: Eastern literature. 1996. P. 161
Chupakhin V. M. Physical geography of the Tien Shan: (Natural-geographical features, main issues of landscape mapping and complex physical-geographical zoning) / Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR, Department of Geography. - Alma-Ata: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR, 1964. - 374 p. — 1300 copies. (in translation)
http://ru.delfi.lt/

M. A. Glazovskaya. On the history of the development of modern natural landscapes of the Inner Tien Shan. — In the book: “Geographical research in the Central Tien Shan.” M., 1953, p. 62.

P. P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky. Travel to Tien Shan in 1856-1857. M., 1946, pp. 138-141.

On the borders of five countries of Central Asia there are beautiful and majestic mountains- Tien Shan. On the Eurasian mainland they are second only to the Himalayas and Pamirs, and are also one of the largest and most extensive Asian mountain systems. The Heavenly Mountains are rich not only in minerals, but also in interesting geographical facts. The description of any object is built from many points and important nuances, but only complete coverage of all directions will help to create a complete geographical image. But let's not rush, but let's dwell in detail on each section.

Figures and facts: all the most important things about the Heavenly Mountains

The name Tien Shan has Turkic roots, because the peoples of this particular language group inhabited this territory since time immemorial and still live in this region. If translated literally, the toponym will sound like Heavenly Mountains or Divine Mountains. The explanation for this is very simple, the Turks from time immemorial worshiped the sky, and if you look at the mountains, you get the impression that with their peaks they reach the very clouds, most likely that is why the geographical object received such a name. And now, some more facts about the Tien Shan.

• Where does the description of any object usually begin? Of course, from numbers. The length of the Tien Shan mountains is more than two and a half thousand kilometers. Believe me, this is a pretty impressive figure. To compare, the territory of Kazakhstan extends for 3,000 kilometers, and Russia extends for 4,000 kilometers from north to south. Imagine these objects and appreciate the scale of these mountains.
• The height of the Tien Shan mountains reaches 7000 meters. The system has 30 peaks with a height of more than 6 kilometers, while Africa and Europe cannot boast of a single such mountain.
• I would especially like to highlight the highest point of the Heavenly Mountains. Geographically, it is located on the border of Kyrgyzstan and Republic of China. There has been a very long debate around this issue, and neither side wants to give in. The highest peak of the Tien Shan mountains is the ridge with the triumphant name - Victory Peak. The height of the object is 7439 meters.

Location of one of the largest mountain systems in Central Asia

If you transfer the mountain system onto a political map, the object will fall on the territory of five states. More than 70% of the mountains are located in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China. The rest comes from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. But the highest points and massive ridges are located in the northern part. If we consider geographical position the Tien Shan mountains from the regional side, then this will be the central part of the continent of Asia.

Geographical zoning and relief

The territory of the mountains can be divided into five orographic regions. Each has its own unique topography and ridge structure. Pay attention to the photo of the Tien Shan mountains, which is located above. Agree, the grandeur and stateliness of these mountains evoke admiration. Now, let’s take a closer look at the zoning of the system:

• Northern Tien Shan. This part is almost entirely located on the territory of Kazakhstan. The main ridges are Zailiysky and Kungey Alatau. These mountains are distinguished by their average height (no more than 4000 m) and highly rugged terrain. There are many small rivers in the region that originate from glacial peaks. The region also includes the Ketmen Ridge, which Kazakhstan shares with Kyrgyzstan. On the territory of the latter, there is another ridge of the northern part - the Kyrgyz Alatau.
• Eastern Tien Shan. Of the largest parts of the mountain system, we can distinguish: Borokhoro, Bogdo-Ula, as well as medium and small ranges: Iren-Khabyrga and Sarmin-Ula. The entire eastern part of the Heavenly Mountains is located in China, mainly where the permanent settlement of the Uighurs is located; it is from this local dialect that the ranges received their names.
• Western Tien Shan. This orographic unit occupies the territories of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The largest is the Karatau ridge, and then comes the Talas Alatau, which got its name from the river of the same name. These parts of the Tien Shan mountains are quite low, the relief drops to 2000 meters. This is because this is an older region, the territory of which has not undergone repeated mountain building. Thus, the destructive power of exogenous factors did its job.
• Southwestern Tien Shan. This region is located in Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. In fact, this is the lowest part of the mountains, which consists of the Fregan ridge, framing the valley of the same name.
• Central Tien Shan. This is the highest part of the mountain system. Its ranges occupy the territory of China, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. It is in this part that almost all six-thousanders are located.

"Gloomy Giant" - the highest point of the Heavenly Mountains

As mentioned earlier, the highest point of the Tien Shan Mountains is called Victory Peak. It is easy to guess that the toponym got its name in honor of a significant event - the victory of the USSR in the most difficult and bloody war of the 20th century. Officially, the mountain is located in Kyrgyzstan, near the border with China, not far from the autonomy of the Uyghurs. However, for a long time the Chinese side did not want to recognize the ownership of the object by the Kyrgyz, and even after documenting the fact, it continues to look for ways to take possession of the desired peak.

This object is very popular among climbers; it is on the list of five seven-thousanders that must be conquered to receive the title “Snow Leopard”. Near the mountain, just 16 kilometers to the southwest, is the second highest peak of the Divine Mountains. We are talking about Khan Tengri - the highest point of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Its height is only slightly less than seven kilometers and is 6995 meters.

Centuries-old history of rocks: geology and structure

In the place where the Tien Shan Mountains are located, there is an ancient belt of increased endogenous activity; these zones are also called geosynclines. Since the system has a fairly decent height, this suggests that it was subject to secondary uplift, although it has a rather ancient origin. Research shows that the base of the Heavenly Mountains is composed of Precambrian and Lower Paleozoic rocks. The mountain strata were subjected to long-term deformations and the influence of endogenous forces, which is why the minerals are represented by metamorphosed gneisses, sandstones and typical limestone and slate.

Since much of this region was flooded during the Mesozoic, the mountain valleys are covered with lacustrine sediments (sandstone and clay). The activity of glaciers also did not pass without a trace; morainic deposits stretch from the highest peaks of the Tien Shan mountains and reach the very border of the snow line.

The repeated uplift of the mountains in the Neogene had a very significant impact on their geological structure; relatively “young” volcanic-type rocks are found in the parent basement. It is these inclusions that are the mineral and metallic minerals in which the Divine Mountains are very rich.

The lowest part of the Tien Shan, which is located in the south, has been exposed to exogenous agents for thousands of years: the sun, winds, glaciers, temperature changes, and water during flooding. All this could not but affect the structure of the rocks; nature greatly battered their slopes and “exposed” the mountains to the very parent rock. The complex geological history influenced the heterogeneity of the Tien Shan relief, which is why high snowy peaks alternate with valleys and dilapidated plateaus.

Gifts of the Heavenly Mountains: minerals

A description of the Tien Shan Mountains cannot do without mentioning mineral resources, because this system brings very good income to the states in whose territories it is located. First of all, these are complex conglomerates of polymetallic ores. Large deposits are found in all five countries. Most of the minerals in the depths of the mountains are lead and zinc, but you can find something rarer. For example, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have established antimony mining, and there are also separate deposits of molybdenum and tungsten. In the southern part of the mountains, near the Fregan Valley, coal is mined, as well as other fossil fuels: oil and gas. Rare elements found include strontium, mercury and uranium. But most of all, the territory is rich in building materials and semi-precious stones. The slopes and foothills of the mountains are strewn with small deposits of cement, sand and various types granite

However, many mineral resources are not accessible for development, because in the mountainous regions the infrastructure is very poorly developed. Production in hard to reach places requires very modern technical means and large financial investments. States are in no hurry to develop the subsoil of the Tien Shan and often transfer the initiative to the private hands of foreign investors.

Ancient and modern glaciation of the mountain system

The height of the Tien Shan mountains is several times higher than the snow line, which means it is no secret that the system is covered by a huge number of glaciers. However, the situation with glaciers is very unstable, because in the last 50 years alone, their number has decreased by almost 25% (3 thousand square kilometers). For comparison, this is even larger than the area of ​​the city of Moscow. The depletion of snow and ice cover in the Tien Shan threatens the region with a serious environmental disaster. Firstly, this natural spring feeding rivers and alpine lakes. Secondly, this is the only source of fresh water for all living things that inhabit the mountain slopes, including local peoples and settlements. If changes continue at the same pace, then by the end of the 21st century, the Tien Shan will lose more than half of its glaciers and will leave four countries without a valuable water resource.

Non-freezing lake and other water bodies

The highest mountain of the Tien Shan is located near the highest lake in Asia - Issyk-Kul. This object belongs to the state of Kyrgyzstan, and is popularly called the Unfreezing Lake. It's all about low pressure at high altitude and water temperature, thanks to which the surface of this lake never freezes. This place is the main tourist area of ​​the region; on an area of ​​more than 6 thousand square kilometers, there is a huge number of high-mountain resorts and various recreational areas.

Another picturesque water body of the Tien Shan is located in China, literally a hundred kilometers from the main trading city of Urumqi. We are talking about Lake Tienshi - this is a kind of “Pearl of the Heavenly Mountains”. The water there is so clean and transparent that it is difficult to realize the depth because it seems that you can literally reach the bottom with your hand.

In addition to lakes, the mountains are cut by a huge number of river valleys. Small rivers originate from the very tops and are fed by melted glacial waters. Many of them are lost on the mountain slopes, others unite into larger ones water bodies and carry their waters to the foot.

From picturesque meadows to icy peaks: climate and natural conditions

Where the Tien Shan Mountains are located, natural zones replace each other with height. Due to the fact that the orographic units of the system have heterogeneous relief, different parts Of the Heavenly Mountains, different natural zones can be located at the same level:

• Alpine meadows. They can be located both at an altitude of more than 2500 meters and at 3300 meters. The peculiarity of this landscape is the lush, hilly valleys that surround bare rocks.
• Forest zone. Quite rare in this region, mainly in inaccessible high mountain gorges.
• Forest-steppe. The trees in this zone are low, mostly small-leaved or coniferous. To the south, the meadow and steppe landscape is more clearly visible.
• Steppe. This natural area covers foothills and valleys. There is a huge variety of meadow grasses and steppe plants. The further south the region, the more clearly visible is the semi-desert and in some places even desert landscape.

The climate of the Heavenly Mountains is very harsh and unstable. It is influenced by opposing air masses. In summer, the Tien Shan Mountains are under the rule of the tropics, and in winter, polar currents dominate here. In general, the region can be called quite arid and sharply continental. In summer there are often dry winds and unbearable heat. In winter, temperatures can drop to record levels, and frosts often occur in the off-season. Precipitation is very unstable, with most of it occurring in April and May. It is the unstable climate that influences the reduction in the area of ​​ice sheets. Also, sudden changes in temperature and constant winds have a very negative effect on the topography of the region. The mountains are slowly but surely being destroyed.

An untouched corner of nature: animals and plants

The Tien Shan Mountains have become home to a huge number of living beings. The fauna is extremely diverse and varies significantly depending on the region. For example, the Northern part of the mountains is represented by European and Siberian types, while the Western Tien Shan is inhabited by typical representatives of the Mediterranean, African and Himalayan regions. You can also safely meet typical representatives of mountain fauna: snow leopards, snowcocks and mountain goats. The forests are inhabited by common foxes, wolves and bears.

The flora is also very diverse; fir and Mediterranean walnut can easily coexist in the region. In addition, there is a huge number of medicinal plants and valuable herbs. This is a real phyto-pantry of Central Asia.

It is very important to protect the Tien Shan from human influence; for this purpose, two reserves and one national park. There are so few places left on the planet with untouched nature, so it is important to devote every effort to preserve this wealth for posterity.

website- Over 90% of the territory of our homeland is covered with mountains, it is not for nothing that Kyrgyzstan is called the country of heavenly mountains. Their uniqueness lies in the fact that the highest peaks of seven thousand meters, small heights, and also incredibly beautiful landscapes. In total, on the territory of Kyrgyzstan there are 14 peaks over 6000 m high and 26 peaks higher than Mont Blanc (4807 m), the highest point in Europe. Our mountains belong mainly to the Tien Shan mountain range, a relatively smaller part is located in the Pamirs.

The name "Tien Shan" is translated from Chinese as "Heavenly Mountains"

The first mentions of the Tien Shan range appeared in ancient times. According to ancient writings and notes from travelers, expeditions to these places have been made since ancient times, but all of them are now more like legends than reliable facts. For the first time, the Russian explorer Pyotr Semenov spoke about the secrets of the Tien Shan in the mid-19th century, thanks to which he received his second surname, Tianshansky. The name "Tien Shan" is translated from Chinese as "Heavenly Mountains". The Tien Shan ridge is the longest ridge (2800 km) not only in Kyrgyzstan, but throughout Asia, in the central part of which the highest peaks of our country are located - Pobeda Peak (7439 m) and Khan Tengri Peak (6995 m) . In addition to them, there are 40 more peaks on the ridge with a height of more than 6000 meters.

Pobeda Peak is the highest peak of the Tien Shan

The highest point of the Tien Shan is Pobeda Peak (7439 m), discovered in 1943, the northernmost seven-thousander on the planet, located on the Kyrgyz-Chinese border, in the Kokshaal-Too ridge, east of Lake Issyk-Kul. It is called the most inaccessible, most formidable seven-thousander - this peak makes very high demands on the physical and moral preparation of climbers. The history of the conquest of Pobeda Peak is complete interesting facts. In 1936, a group of climbers climbing Khan Tengri, then considered the highest peak of the Tien Shan, noticed that another mountain rose nearby, rivaling Khan Tengri in height. Two years later, an expedition of climbers headed by the famous explorer of the Tien Shan, Professor A. A. Letavet, headed to her. The leader of the expedition’s assault group was Leonid Gutman, a participant in the ascent of Khan Tengri in 1936.

On September 19, 1938, three from the group of Professor A. A. Letavet climbed the mysterious peak and gave it the name of the peak of the 20th anniversary of the Komsomol. Experts compared photographs taken in 1938 by Gutman and in 1958 by V. Abalakov, and established that they were taken from the same place. Thus, it was possible to prove that the climbers from Gutman’s expedition were the first to conquer Pobeda Peak. This is how Pobeda Peak, the highest peak of the Tien Shan, was discovered.

Khan Tengri: “Bloody Mountain” or “Lord of the Skies”

Not far from Pobeda Peak rises Khan Tengri Peak (6995 m). Its name translated from Turkic means “Lord of the Sky” or “Lord of the Heavens”. Until recently, the height of Khan Tengri was 6995 m above sea level, but according to the latest data, the height is 7010 m, however, some people are suspicious of this. Some argue that this height is determined taking into account the thickness of the ice, others see the reason in the title of “Snow Leopard”, because in order to get it you need to conquer five peaks, not four, over 7000 meters high in Central Asia.

Buried on the peak of Khan Tengri (Kan-Too means “Bloody Mountain”) is a capsule that contains a message from previous climbers who conquered the mountain to future ones. Each new climber who climbs to a height digs up a capsule and writes his message in pencil - it is impossible to write in ink - writes his name, date of ascent and buries it again. Despite the large number of accidents, many climbers still try to climb Kan Too Peak.

Pamir-Alay - seven-thousander mountains of Kyrgyzstan

Pamir - “Roof of the World”, the highest mountain system in the entire post-Soviet space, spreads over an area of ​​60,000 square meters. km and is a highly branched network of ridges covered with eternal snow and endless intermountain valleys that make up the Pamir Highlands. However, Kyrgyzstan owns only the most extreme region - the northern slopes of the Trans-Alai Range and the northern parts of the Pamir-Alai, which includes the Alai Valley, as well as the Turkestan and Alai Ranges.

Sacred mountain Sulaiman-Too

The sacred mountain in the city of Osh, which in June 2009 became the country's first World Heritage Site. The mountain is a five-domed limestone outcrop, stretching from west to east. Its length is more than 1140 m, width - 560 m. Since ancient times it had sacred meaning, as evidenced by preserved petroglyphs. Today, Mount Sulaiman-Too is a kind of Mecca, which is the last hope for many of its visitors. The majority of whom are women. Someone asks Sulaiman-Too for well-being for the family, someone for health, someone for procreation. People believe in the magical properties of the ancient sanctuary.

Mountain peaks:

Aitmatov Peak
A mountain peak in Kyrgyzstan, located in the central part of the Kyrgyz ridge, in the area of ​​the Salyk glacier. The height of the peak is 4650 m. The mountain received its name in 2000 in honor of the outstanding Kyrgyz writer Chingiz Aitmatov. Until this moment she was nameless.

Vladimir Putin Peak
The peak is located in the Tien Shan mountain system. Located in the Chui region. Named in 2011 in honor of the second President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.

Boris Yeltsin Peak
The peak is located on the Terskey Ala-Too ridge of the Tien Shan mountain system. Located on the territory of the Issyk-Kul region. Renamed in 2002 in honor of the first President of the Russian Federation Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin.

Lenin Peak
Mountain peak located on the border of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. One of the “seven thousand meters” - the highest peaks of the former USSR. One of the highest peaks in Central Asia, located in the Pamir mountain system.

Free Korea
A peak located in the Tien Shan mountains in the Kyrgyz range, in the Chui region, on the territory of the Ala-Archa National Park. Its height, according to various sources, is 4740-4778 meters.

Semenov Peak
Mountain peak in the Central Tien Shan. The highest point of the Saryzhaz ridge (5816 m). Rising above the valley with the Northern Inylchek glacier. The peak was named after Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov, who explored the Central Tien Shan in 1857.

Corona Peak

Korona Peak (4860 m) is located on the territory of the Ala-Archa National Park. From afar, the six peaks resemble a crown, which explains their name. The mountain slopes reach a height of 600 meters, the northern slope - 900 meters.

The Tien Shan mountain system stretches from west to east in Central Asia and passes through the territory of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and China (in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region). Most mountain ranges and ridges extend in the latitudinal or sublatitudinal direction. Only in the central part of the system there is an exception - a powerful ridge, which is called the Meridional, it includes the highest peaks. The Pamir-Alai system connects the western ranges of the Tien Shan with the Pamirs. The northern border of the Western Tien Shan is considered to be the Ili, and the southern -. The limits of the Eastern Tien Shan are usually designated in the north by the Dzungarian basin, and in the south by the Tarim basin.

Determining the geological age of the Tien Shan, scientists attribute the formation of the rocks of this mountainous country to the end of the early and beginning of the middle Paleozoic (500-400 million years ago). This is evidenced by the nature of their fundamental folding: Caledonian in the north and predominantly Hercynian in other parts. Subsequently, this ancient mountain material, belonging to the Ural-Mongolian belt, turned into a plain - peneplain (very similar to the current Kazakh small hills), which again ascended to the clouds relatively recently - during the Alpine orogeny, which began 50 million years ago and continues to this day day. Local residents call the folded reliefs of the foothills quite expressively - “adyrs”, that is, “counters”. These reliefs are covered in layers above by typical Alpine folding of a later time, formed by tectonic processes. In the depths of the Tien Shan, these processes continue, and today up to 30-40 seismic events are recorded per year. Fortunately, they are all of a relatively low level of danger, but the Tashkent earthquake of 1966 shows: this is not a guarantee that this will always be the case. Almost all large and many small lakes of the Tien Shan, both in the valleys and in the highlands, are of tectonic origin. The formation of mountains and gorges was, of course, influenced by erosion processes: outcrops and removal of sedimentary rocks, erosion and displacement of river channels, accumulation of moraine deposits, etc. Mudflows in the gorges of the Tien Shan are a common occurrence, especially on the northern slopes Trans-Ili Alatau, which is why the city of Almaty (Alma-Ata) suffered more than once.
In terms of orography, which describes mountainous reliefs, the Tien Shan is most often divided into Northern, Western, Central, Internal and Eastern. Sometimes clarifying adjustments are made to this terminology, for example, how the Southwestern Tien Shan, framing the Fergana Valley, is characterized as a special structure. Within the framework of the concepts of geomorphology, some individual ridges with unique structural features are also distinguished. Plus, there is also the Gobi Tien Shan on the territory of Mongolia - two relatively low (up to 2500 m) local ridges isolated from the Greater Tien Shan.
The highest peaks - Pobeda Peak (7439 m) and Khan Tengri (6995 m) - belong to the Central Tien Shan. The ridges of the Northern and Western Tien Shan gradually decrease from east to west from 4500-5000 m to 3500-4000 m. And the Karatau ridge rises only to 2176 m. Often the ridges have an asymmetrical outline. The Inner Tien Shan is dominated by the Terskey-Ala-Too, Borkoldoy, Atbashi ridges (up to 4500-5000 m) and the southern barrier - the Kokshaal-Too ridge (Dankova peak - 5982 m). In the Eastern Tien Shan, two stripes of ridges are clearly visible, Northern and Southern, again oriented along the West-East axis. They are separated by valleys and basins. The heights of the most massive ridges of the Eastern Tien Shan - Halyktau, Sarmin-Ula, Kuruktag - 4000-5000 m. At the foot of the Eastern Tien Shan there are the Turfan depression (depth up to -154 m), the Khamiya depression; The southern zone includes Lake Bagrash-Kol in the intermountain depression.
The Tien Shan rivers have the character of turbulent mountain streams, their average slope is 6 m per kilometer. The most productive river in terms of water energy is the Naryn, which at its confluence with the Kara Darya forms the Syrdarya. The Big Fergana and Northern Fergana irrigation canals originate from Naryn. On this river there is a cascade of hydroelectric power stations: Toktogulskaya, Tash-Kumyrskaya, Uchkurganskaya, Kurpsaiskaya, Shamaldysaiskaya, new cascade hydroelectric power stations are being built.
The first explorer of the Tien Shan was the Russian geographer and traveler P.P. Semenov (1827-1914), twice, in 1856-1857, the first European to climb the glacier of the Khan Tengri peak, awarded for his discoveries an honorary title addition to the surname - Tian-Shansky. Following him, expeditions to the Tien Shan were made by I.V. Ignatiev and his other students, as well as the Hungarian zoologist L. Almásy and the German geographer G. Mörzbacher.
Although the Tien Shan is the fifth highest mountain system in the world (after the Himalayas, Karakoram, Pamir and Hindu Kush), and its glacier-covered peaks look harsh, below the snow line the Tien Shan slopes represent a colorful and diverse natural world.
In the steppes of the foothills, ephemeral and ephemeral plants predominate. They are replaced by tall forbs, including many grasses. Even higher, with increasing humidity, meadows begin that serve as high-mountain summer pastures (jailau), islands of shrubs (saxaul, conifer, kopeck, juzgun) and deciduous forests, dominated by wild fruit trees. Above 2000 m above sea level. m. coniferous tracts begin, dominated by Tien Shan spruce and fir. Behind them begins a zone of alpine and subalpine meadows; they rise to heights of 3400-3600 m, mainly on the northern slopes. Gradually they are replaced by syrts - dry rocky plains with a wavy surface and small lakes. The most common type of vegetation on syrts is the so-called cushion plants, sort of short-stemmed balls that are resistant to temperature changes and strong hairdryer winds blowing from the peaks. Here, already on takyr-like soils, vast areas of permafrost often catch the eye as harbingers of a meeting with glaciers. Well, behind them rise ridges of low slate rocks and stretch out snow fields adjacent to flat (at this level) peaks dissected by gorges.
In the valleys of the Western Tien Shan, rich in rivers and well protected from the north by high and monolithic mountain walls, mixed forests of walnut with cherry plum, buckthorn and apple trees grow in the undergrowth. The drier valleys and basins of the Inner Tien Shan at altitudes of 1500-2500 m have signs of typical rocky deserts and mountain steppes of Central Asia.
The fauna of the Tien Shan is no less rich. In the most general terms, it can be described as typical of Central Asia, and in addition, there are animals whose homeland is Siberia. Wild donkeys and goitered gazelles graze on the plains, and Altai mountain deer, wild Siberian goats and mountain sheep (argali) are often found higher up. Of other mammals, the typical inhabitants of the Tien Shan are the endemic Tien Shan (or white-clawed) Brown bear, badger, leopard, lynx, wild boar, tolai hare, wolf, fox, marten, manul. Among the rodents - gopher, jerboa, gerbil, mole vole, wood mouse, Turkestan rat. In the mountain forests there are black grouse, wood grouse, partridges, snowcocks, and pheasants. Ducks, geese, swans, cranes, and herons live in the reed thickets along the river beds. And everywhere - lark, wheatear, bustard, sandgrouse, partridge, finch, eagles and vultures. Swans appear on the lake during spring migration. Reptiles are most often represented by the viper, copperhead, and patterned snake. Lizards are scurrying everywhere. Many lakes of the Tien Shan are rich in fish (osman, chebak, marinka and other species).
More exotic animal world represented in Dzungaria, a geographical and historical region in the north of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. There you can still find a wild camel and three representatives of the one-hoofed class: the dzhigetai, the kulan and the wild Przewalski's horse, species that are almost completely exterminated in other regions of Central Asia. The tiger lives in the riverine thickets of Dzungaria, the Gobi brown bear is found in the mountains, and the red wolf is common.
As confirmed by archaeological excavations of mounds, the population of the Tien Shan, both sedentary and nomadic, bore more Caucasian than Mongoloid features until the appearance of the Huns from the east and the Sarmatians from the west in the 6th-8th centuries, the Uyghurs in the 9th century. , Mongols, starting from the 12th century. The modern ethnographic map of the Tien Shan is mosaic, it is formed by dozens of ethnic groups. Hence the large number of customs, rituals, and legends preserved since ancient times. But in general, as travelers testify, in this world there is fidelity to its roots and wise tranquility, and it is extremely interesting to get acquainted with the local foundations of people’s lives.

general information

Nationality: Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, China (Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region).

Ethnic composition: Uighurs (Kashgarians), Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Mongols, Hui (Dungans), Chinese, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Oirats (Western Mongols), etc.
Religions: Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism.
Highest Peaks: Pobeda Peak (or Tomur in Uyghur) (7439 m), Khan Tengri (7010 m with glacier, 6995 m without glacier).

Largest ridges: Meridional, Terskey Ala-Too, Kokshaal-Too, Khalaktau, Boro-Khoro.
The largest rivers: Naryn, Karadarya (both belong to the upper reaches of the river basin), Talas, Chu, Ili.

Largest lake: Issyk-Kul (area - 6236 km 2).

Other large lakes(at an altitude of more than 3000 m above sea level): Son-Kol and Chatyr-Kol.

Largest glacier: Southern Inylchek (area - 59.5 km 2).
The most important passes: Turugart (3752 m), Muzart (3602 m), Tyuz-Ashuu (3586 m), Taldyk (3541 m), Boro-Khoro (3500 m).
Nearest airports(international): Manas in Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), Tashkent South (Uzbekistan), Almaty in Almaty (Kazakhstan), Divopu in Urumqi (China).

Numbers

Length from west to east: about 2500 km.

Average length(in this case - latitude) from north to south - 300-400 km.

Total area: about 875 thousand km 2.
Number of passes: more than 300.
Number of glaciers: 7787.

Total area of ​​glaciers: 10.2 thousand km 2.

Climate and weather

In general, it is sharply continental.

The Fergana ranges (Southwestern Tien Shan) are located on the border with a subtropical climate.

Average January temperatures: in the valleys of the lower mountain belt - +4°C, in mid-altitude valleys - up to -6°C, on glaciers - up to -30°C.

Average temperatures in July: in the valleys of the lower mountain belt from +20 to +25°С, in mid-altitude valleys - from +15 to +17°С, at the foot of glaciers from +5°С and below.

The temperature drop with every 100 m rise is approximately 0.7°C in summer; 0.6°C in autumn and spring; 0.5°C in winter.

Average annual precipitation: from 200 to 300 mm on the eastern slopes and valleys of the Inner and Central Tien Shan, up to 1600 mm in mid-mountain and high-mountain zones.

Economy

Minerals: ores of various non-ferrous metals, mercury, antimony, phosphorites (Karatau), hard and brown coal. In the Fergana Valley and the Dzhungar Basin there are oil and natural gas industrial value. The Tien Shan is also rich in geothermal springs.

Agriculture: growing wheat, grapes, fruits, vegetables, sheep breeding, goat breeding, horse breeding.

Service sector: tourism.

Attractions

■ Peaks: Pobeda Peak on the border of Kyrgyzstan and China, Khan Tengri on the border of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China.
■ Lake Issyk-Kul(Kyrgyzstan).
■ High mountain lake Tianchi(“Heavenly”), China.
■ Valley of the sacred springs Manzhyly-Ata(Kyrgyzstan) - a place of Muslim pilgrimage to the mazar of the Sufi and preacher, after whom the valley is named.
■ Rock “walls” in the Lyaylyak river basin(Kyrgyzstan): Ak-Su (5355 m), Blok (5299 m), Iskander (5120 m).
■ National parks : Ugam-Chatkal (Uzbekistan), Ala-Archa (Kyrgyzstan).
■ Reserves: Issyk-Kul and biosphere Sary-Chelek in Kyrgyzstan, Alma-Ata and Aksu-Zhabaglinsky in Kazakhstan, Sary-Chatkal mountain forest in Uzbekistan, as well as a number of reserves (including in the territory of walnut-fruit forests of the South-Western Tien- Shan), the Altyntag reserve and the “landscape area” “Mountain Screen” (China).

Curious facts

■ Pobeda Peak, named so in 1946 in honor of the victory Soviet Union in Great Patriotic War, is one of the seven-thousanders for which climbers are awarded the prestigious title “snow leopard.”
■ During sunset, part of the Khan Tengri peak becomes almost scarlet, like the shadows of clouds near it. This is where its second, “folk” name comes from - Kan-Too, or Kan-Tau, meaning “bloody (or bloody) mountain” (from the Turkic “kan” - “blood”, “too” - “mountain”), In this there is a certain sacred meaning: the sharp, blade-like and inaccessible peak of Khan Tengri is associated among the indigenous inhabitants of the Tien Shan with the concepts of “homeland” and “struggle”.
■ The northern slope of Khan Tengri Peak (6995 m), its western bridge (5900 m), connecting it with Chapaev Peak (6371 m), resemble the configuration of the Himalayan ligament Chomolungma (8848 m) - its South Col (7900 m) - and the peak Lhotse (8516 m). And although the Tien Shan “understudy” is 2 km lower, climbers planning to storm highest peak world, the final stage of preparation for this expedition is carried out here.
■ In the wreath of legends about Lake Issyk-Kul there are stories that at its bottom there is a flooded Armenian monastery where the relics of the Apostle Matthew were kept. Several legends tell about Tamerlane's stay here. But most of the legends are associated with the shed hot (Turkish, “issyk”) tears of the young beauty Cholpon. She cried for so long that her tears formed a lake as beautiful as herself. In one of the legends, it is not she who cries, but the people for her. Two warriors who claimed her heart - Ulan and Santash - entered into a life-and-death battle. But their strength was equal, and all their relatives went wall to wall. Cholpon could not stop them, and then she tore her heart out of her chest. The opponents froze, and then all together they took Cholpon to a high mountain, laid her face to the sun and began to mourn her. Their tears, flowing in streams, flooded the valley between the mountains.