The himalayas some of the highest mountains in the world

CA CS CIMA Prakash Somani (Landmark Group) (23502 Points)

31 October 2012  

 

The Himalayas

Some of the highest mountains in the world are located in northern India. These are part of the Himalaya mountains. Being the world's highest mountain chain, the Himalayas is characterized by its great height, complex geologic structure, snowcapped peaks, large valley glaciers, deep river gorges, and rich vegetation.
They were given the name Himalaya which means "home of snow", because snow never melts on their high peaks.

The Himalayas form the planet's highest mountain region, containing 9 of the 10 highest peaks in the world. Among these peaks are the world's highest mountain, Mount Everest (8848 m), which is on the Nepal-Tibet border; the second highest peak, K2 or Mount Godwin Austen (8,611 m), located on the border between China and Jammu and Kashmir, the third highest peak, Kanchanjunga (8,598 m) on the Nepal-India border.

The Himalayas can be classified in a variety of ways. From south to north, the mountains can be grouped into four parallel, longitudinal mountain belts,

  
Himalaya Mountains, Northern India and Nepal



Shivaliks (Outer Himalayas or Sub-Himalayas) 
Himachal ( Lower Himalayas) 
Himadri ( Higher Himalayas) 
Trans-Himalayas (Tibetan Himalayas)

From west to east the Himalayas are divided broadly into three mountainous regions - the Western Himalayas, the Central Himalayas and the Eastern Himalayas.

Major Himalayan Hill Stations include Gulmarg, Sonamarg, Dharamsala, Ladakh, Simla, Nainital, Kullu, Manali, Dalhousie, Mussoorie, Rishikesh, Amarnath, Gangtok, Kailas Mansarovar, Vaishno Devi, Patni Top etc.
 

The Himalayas is the world's highest mountain range comprising all top ten of the world's highest peaks. In fact, the Himalayas includes 14 peaks more than 8,000 meters high and some 200 more than 6000 meters.