Tibet Facts

Tibet Autonomous Region, Zang for short, is located in the southwest of China, the main part of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and one of the five autonomous regions for ethnic minority in China. Lhasa is the capital of Tibet Autonomous region. It borders on Sichuan and Yunnan provinces to the east, Qinghai and Xinjiang to the north.  It Neighbors Burma, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Kashmir as well as other countries and regions, the land boundary of more than 4000 kilometers, is an important gateway to the southwest border of China. Famous for the “Roof of the World”, the region has an average elevation of more than 4,000 meters with various complex landforms, such as: high and steep mountains, deep valleys, glaciers, bare rocks and Gobi deserts. It is bitterly hot in summer, with a distinct difference in temperature between day and night.

History Fact

Tibet is an inalienable part of Chinese territory. Since the Yuan Dynasty, the central government has exercised effective jurisdiction over Tibet all the time. The Tibetan people are an important member of the great family of the Chinese nation. Tibet was called “Tubo(吐蕃)” in Tang and Song dynasties, “Wusizang” in Yuan and Ming dynasties, and “Tangut(唐古特)” and “Toubert(图伯特)” in Qing Dynasty. Since the reign of Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, Tibet has been known as “Tibet” until today. on May 23, 1951, Tibet was peacefully liberated. After the rebellion in Tibet was calmed down in 1959, the central government began to exercise full and direct jurisdiction over Tibet. On September 9, 1965, the Tibet Autonomous region was officially established. Tibet is famous for its magnificent and magical natural scenery. It is vast, spectacular and rich in resources. Since ancient times, people on this land have created rich and splendid ethnic culture.

Basic Information

Geography

The Tibet Autonomous region, located in the southwest border of the people’s Republic of China, spans between 26°50- 36°53′ north latitude and 78°25- 99°06′ east longitude, covering an area of 1.202189 million square kilometers, accounting for about 1/8 of the total land area of China, second only to Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous region, equivalent to the sum of the area of Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the latest, largest and highest plateau in the world, so it is called the “roof of the world” and is regarded as the “third pole of the earth” outside the Antarctic and Arctic. The Tibetan Plateau is located in the main area of the Tibetan Plateau. The landforms can be divided into Himalayan region, southern Tibetan valley, northern Tibetan plateau and mountain canyon area of eastern Tibet.

1. Himalayan Region喜马拉雅高山地区

The Himalayan alpine region, in southern Tibet, consists of several roughly east-west mountain ranges, with an average elevation of about 6000 meters. Located on the border between China and Nepal, Mount Everest in Dingri County, Tibet, is 8844.43 meters above sea level, the highest in the world. The top of the Himalayas is covered with snow and ice all the year round, and the climate and geomorphology on both sides of the Himalayas vary greatly.

2. Southern Tibetan Valley藏南谷地

The southern Tibetan valley lies between the Gangdise Mountains and the Himalayas, that is the region through which the Yarlung Zangbo River and its tributaries flow. There are many river valley plains and lake basin valleys in this area. With flat terrain, fertile soil, it is Tibet’s main agricultural region.

3. Northern Tibetan Plateau藏北高原

Northern Tibetan Plateau, located between the Kunlun Mountains, Tanggula Mountain and Gangdise Mountains, Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains, about two-thirds of the total area of the autonomous region. Composed of a series of round and gentle hills with many basins between them, it is the main pastoral area of Tibet.

4. Mountain Canyon Area of Eastern Tibet藏东高山峡谷区

Eastern Tibet mountain canyon area, that is, the famous Hengduan Mountains. Located roughly in the east of Nagqu, it is a series of mountains and deep valleys with east-west trend gradually turning to the north and south, during which there are three major rivers, the Nujiang River, the Lancang River and the Jinsha River. The everlasting snow on the top of the mountain, the dense forest on the hillside and the evergreen pastoral garden at the foot of the mountain make up the magnificent landscape of the three parallel rivers in the canyon area.

Climate

Tibet’s climate is unique and complex due to the effects of topography, geomorphology and atmospheric circulation. The climate has the characteristics of cold and dry in the northwest, warm and humid in the southeast. Therefore, the climatic types from southeast to northwest are: tropical, subtropical, plateau temperate, plateau Subfrigid zone, plateau cold zone and so on. Three-dimensional climate is obvious.

Under the alternating control of winter westerly and summer southwest monsoon, the dry season and rainy season in Tibet are very obvious, generally, dry season is from October to the following April, rainy season is from May to September, and the rainfall in rainy season usually accounts for about 90% of the precipitation in the whole year. Precipitation in various regions is also severely uneven, the annual precipitation from the southeastern lowlands of 5000 mm, gradually decreased to 50 mm in the northwest.

The climate of the south and north of Tibet is very different. The southern Tibetan valley is influenced by Indian Ocean warm and humid air flow. The annual average temperature is 8℃, the lowest monthly average temperature is -16 ℃, and the maximum monthly average temperature is above 16℃. The northern Tibetan Plateau is a typical continental climate. The annual mean temperature is below 0℃, the freezing period is up to half a year, the hottest July is less than 10℃, the June to August is warmer. In terms of climate, it is more suitable to travel to Tibet from March to October, the best time to visit is June to September.