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72-577: As a young military officer, Filchner gained an early reputation for dash and daring, following his travel exploits in Russia and the Pamir Mountains range. After further technical studies, he developed expertise in geography and geophysics , before leading a major scientific survey in Tibet and western China in 1903–05. In 1909 he was appointed to organise and lead the forthcoming German expedition to

144-644: A range of mountains between Central Asia and South Asia . They are located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan , Karakoram , Kunlun , Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world's highest mountains . Much of the Pamir Mountains lie in the Gorno-Badakhshan region of Tajikistan . Spanning the border parts of four countries, to

216-705: A Court of Honour largely exonerated Filchner from blame for the debacle, but the experience had wearied him of the Antarctic, and he never returned. Instead, he decided he would resume his original field of work, in Central and East Asia. During the First World War , Filchner served in the German army, mainly in military intelligence; in 1916 he was director of the marine interrogation service in Bergen , Norway. In

288-675: A Jew, Henriette Müller. They lived at first in his parents' house in the Hasenbergsteige in Stuttgart. Brdyal was engaged as a servant. In 1914 he was appointed to a professorship of geography in Karlsruhe, but was unable to take up the post as he was appointed to join the fourth German Turfan Expedition under Albert von Le Coq , the noted archaeologist and explorer of Central Asia in Berlin. His task would be to conduct excavations in

360-497: A boy, Wilhelm showed considerable artistic and musical talent, drawing inspiration from, amongst others, Franz von Lenbach , Franz Stuck , and Siegfried Wagner . He might have made his life in the arts, but family traditions drew him towards a military career, and at the age of 15 he was enrolled in the Prussian Military Academy . As a young officer in 1898, Filchner was given leave from the army to undertake

432-680: A break in Buenos Aires , the expedition departed for South Georgia , arriving late in October. While the ship was reprovisioned, Filchner conducted a survey of the island's coasts. On 11 December 1911 the heavily laden Deutschland began its journey south, to the Weddell Sea. From the outset, progress was slow and uncertain. Brief periods of clear water were interspersed with spells of thick ice that impeded and sometimes prevented movement. However, by 29 January Deutschland had penetrated

504-804: A collegial approach. Filchner's work was recognised in 1937 by his award of the German National Prize. He received honorary doctorates from the University of Königsberg (1911) and the Technical University of Munich (1938), and was appointed to an honorary professorship at the University of Berlin. He is commemorated in the various Antarctic features that bear his name: the Filchner Rocks in South Georgia;

576-619: A daring traveller. Back in Germany, Filcher developed his knowledge of geography and geophysics through courses at the Technical University of Munich and other institutions. Between 1900 and 1903, he formed contacts with some of the leading travelling scientists of the day, including the Swede Sven Hedin , and Ferdinand von Richthofen from the University of Berlin . In 1903, with von Richthofen's recommendation,

648-715: A leader and ended his polar career. After service in the First World War he resumed his travels in Asia. He conducted two lengthy single-handed magnetic surveys in China and Tibet, often in difficult and sometimes dangerous conditions, and was continuing this work when the Second World War began, leaving him stranded in India. After years of internment, he returned to Europe and retired to Zürich , where he died in 1957. During his lifetime he received numerous honours, including

720-587: A limited extent. When the war ended, he lived in Poona before returning to Europe in 1949, settling in the Swiss city of Zürich . In Zürich he maintained his academic interests through contacts at ETH Zürich and the German Geodetic Commission at Munich . In 1956 he broke his long silence concerning the events of the Antarctic expedition, and prepared an exposé, Feststellungen ("Findings"),

792-642: A number of non-Russians including Ney Elias , George Littledale , the Earl of Dunmore , Wilhelm Filchner and Lord Curzon who was probably the first to reach the Wakhan source of the Oxus River . In 1891 the Russians informed Francis Younghusband that he was on their territory and later escorted a Lieutenant Davidson out of the area ('Pamir Incident'). In 1892 a battalion of Russians under Mikhail Ionov entered

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864-404: A relatively straightforward account of its activities and achievements. In the absence of rebuttal, criticisms from his enemies citing his lack of leadership and deficient exploring ability would continue, unanswered, for decades. In 1924 Filchner published a book, Sturm über Asien: Erlebnisse eines diplomatischen Geheimagenten ("Storm over Asia: Experiences of a Secret Diplomatic Agent"), covering

936-479: A response to his long-time critics. This revealed for the first time details of the expedition's travails, but at Filchner's insistence, remained unpublished until 1985. Filchner continued to live in Zurich until his death, on 7 May 1957, at the age of 79. Despite his outward formality of manner, Filchner demonstrated an imaginative and adventurous approach in the planning and execution of his various expeditions. In

1008-592: A seven-week journey in Russia, but had to leave that country when he was suspected of acting as a spy. Two years later he made an expedition to the Pamir Mountains , which included a well-publicised horseback ride, travelling from Osh in the Fergana Valley to Murghab in Tajikistan , and returning by way of Kashgar in Sinkiang . During these travels, Filchner observed much Russian activity and noted

1080-746: A small grant from the German Foreign Office, he set out in January of that year. After many delays and obstructions, he reached the Kumbum Monastery on the China–Tibetan border, where he spent the winter of 1926–27 in conditions of ill-health and poverty, while awaiting further funds and permission to proceed. In April 1927 he received letters of commendation allowing him to travel into Tibet, and in June he set out, his destination being

1152-471: Is a flat plateau or U-shaped valley surrounded by mountains. It forms when a glacier or ice field melts leaving a rocky plain. A pamir lasts until erosion forms soil and cuts down normal valleys. This type of terrain is found in the east and north of the Wakhan , and the east and south of Gorno-Badakhshan, as opposed to the valleys and gorges of the west. Pamirs are used for summer pasture. The Great Pamir

1224-523: Is around Lake Zorkul . The Little Pamir is east of this in the far east of Wakhan. The Taghdumbash Pamir is between Tashkurgan and the Wakhan west of the Karakoram Highway . The Alichur Pamir is around Yashil Kul on the Gunt River . The Sarez Pamir is around the town of Murghab, Tajikistan . The Khargush Pamir is south of Lake Karakul . There are several others. The Pamir River

1296-583: Is in the south-west of the Pamirs. The three highest mountains in the Pamirs core are Ismoil Somoni Peak (known from 1932 to 1962 as Stalin Peak, and from 1962 to 1998 as Communism Peak), 7,495 m (24,590 ft); Ibn Sina Peak (still unofficially known as Lenin Peak), 7,134 m (23,406 ft); and Peak Korzhenevskaya ( Russian : Пик Корженевской , Pik Korzhenevskoi ), 7,105 m (23,310 ft). In

1368-622: Is named after the wild onions growing in the region; In the Dungan dialect of Mandarin , it is written Памир / Цунлин in the Cyrillic alphabet , and in Xiao'erjing it is written پَامِعَر / ڞوْلٍْ . The name "Pamir" is used more commonly in Modern Chinese and loaned as 帕米尔 / 帕米爾 Pàmǐ'ěr . According to Middleton and Thomas, "pamir" is also a geological term. A pamir

1440-519: Is the isolated region's main supply route. The Great Silk Road crossed a number of Pamir Mountain ranges. In December 2009, the New York Times featured articles on the possibilities for tourism in the Pamir area of Tajikistan. 2013 proved to be the most successful year ever for tourism in the region and tourism development continues to be the fastest growing economic sector. Historically,

1512-557: The German National Prize for Art and Science in 1937, and several honorary doctorates . He is also commemorated in the Antarctic, where a number of geographical features bear his name. Wilhelm Filchner was born on 13 September 1877, the son of Eduard and Rosine Filchner. Sources place his birth variously at Munich or Bayreuth ; it appears that the family moved from Munich to Bayreuth shortly after Wilhelm's birth, but returned to Munich after his father's early death. As

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1584-587: The German National Prize for Art and Science . Filchner described this expedition in his book Bismillah (1938), translated into English as A Scientist in Tartary: From the Hoang-ho to the Indus (1939). In 1939 he planned to travel to Afghanistan and Northern Iran, to carry out magnetic work there, but decided instead to go to Nepal. He conducted magnetic surveys in the western and south-eastern regions of

1656-625: The Gobi Desert on behalf of the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin. The young couple had moved to Berlin-Charlottenburg where their children were born: Eleonore (Elinor) on 1 July 1910 and Albert Tobias (Toby) on 20 May 1913. Brdyal again moved with them. In Berlin Albert busied himself with drawing out his maps, cataloguing his collections and making preparations for his new journey to the far east, due to start in 1914. This

1728-759: The Kunlun Mountains . Since the Victorian era , they have been known as the " Roof of the World ", presumably a translation from Persian . The Pamir region is home to several different cultures, peoples and languages. In some of these languages, the Pamir Mountains are referred by different names. In Indo-European languages , they are called: In Turkic languages , they are called: In Chinese , they are referred as "Onion Range" ( simplified Chinese : 葱岭 ; traditional Chinese : 蔥嶺 ; pinyin : Cōnglǐng ; Wade–Giles : Ts'ung-ling ), which

1800-684: The province of Kokonor and the Qaidam Basin – a desert region in the north of the Tibetan Plateau in the Chinese province of Qinghai. He explored the Nanshan Mountains and visited the monastery of Kumbum Champa Ling , where he met the thirteenth Dalai Lama , Thubten Gyatsho. On his return in 1908 he brought back a considerable collection of geological and ethnological specimens. The mineral and animal collections are held by

1872-585: The 20th century, these mountains have been the setting for the Tajikistan Civil War , border disputes between China and the Soviet Union , establishment of military bases by the US, Russia, and India, and renewed interest in trade development and resource exploration. The Chinese government says it has resolved most of the disputes it had with Central Asian countries. Some researchers identify

1944-617: The 77 km (48 mi) long Fedchenko Glacier , the longest in the former USSR and the longest glacier outside the polar regions . Approximately 12,500 km (ca. 10%) of the Pamirs are glaciated. Glaciers in the Southern Pamirs are retreating rapidly. Ten percent of annual runoff is supposed to originate from retreating glaciers in the Southern Pamirs. In the North-Western Pamirs, glaciers have almost stable mass balances . Covered in snow during most of

2016-823: The Antarctic was sparked by the theories of Albrecht Penck of the University of Berlin, who considered that the then largely unexplored Antarctic continent comprised two separate landmasses, East and West Antarctica, divided by a strait connecting the Weddell and Ross Seas. Filchner wished to investigate this question, and in 1909, with the support of the Berlin Geographical Society , began preparations for an Antarctic expedition. He would not only test Penck's theory, but would combine geographical discovery with scientific inquiry. Filchner's original plan envisaged two ships, with shore parties advancing inland respectively from Weddell and Ross Sea bases, to meet in

2088-556: The Antarctic, with both scientific and geographical objectives involving extensive exploration of the continent's interior. During the expedition his ship became trapped in the Weddell Sea ice, drifting for eight months and preventing Filchner from establishing a land base, thus failing in its main objective. Although important scientific results were obtained, the expedition was disrupted by serious interpersonal disagreements and lasting animosities, which harmed Filchner's reputation as

2160-582: The British and Russians agreed to an Afghan frontier along the Panj River. From 1871 to around 1893 several Russian military-scientific expeditions mapped out most of the Pamirs ( Alexei Pavlovich Fedchenko , Nikolai Severtzov , Captain Dmitry Putyata and others. Later came Nikolai Korzhenevskiy ). Several local groups asked for Russian protection from Afghan raiders. The Russians were followed by

2232-573: The Eastern Pamirs, China's Kongur Tagh is the highest at 7,649 m (25,095 ft). Among the significant peaks of the Pamir Mountains are the following: Remark : The summits of the Kongur and Muztagata Group are in some sources counted as part of the Kunlun , which would make Pik Ismoil Somoni the highest summit of the Pamir. There are many glaciers in the Pamir Mountains, including

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2304-772: The Filchner Mountains in Queen Maud Land ; Cape Filchner; the Filchner Trench in the Weddell Sea; and the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf. The Filchner Station operated as a German scientific base on Berkner Island between 1982 and 1999. As well as many volumes of scientific results and books of maps, derived from his various travels, Filchner published popular travel books and expedition accounts. These works included A Scientist in Tartary: from

2376-573: The German naval flag, placing Deutschland and himself under naval regulations that gave the captain supreme decision-making authority on the ship. This created a situation of divided command, with serious consequences for Filchner's authority on the expedition. Deutschland sailed from Bremerhaven in early May 1911. The first stage involved a comprehensive oceanographic study of the Atlantic , covering more than 10,000 nautical miles (12,000 mi; 19,000 km) and extending over four months. After

2448-669: The Hoang Ho to the Indus (English translation 1939); a memoir, Ein Forscherleben ("A Researcher's Life") (1950); and, with Erich Przybyllok , Route-mapping and position-locating in unexplored regions (English translation 1957). An English translation by William Barr of Filchner's 1922 account of the 1911–13 Antarctic expedition, To the Sixth Continent , together with the 1985 exposé, was published in 1994. WorldCat Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are

2520-584: The Jews. This occasion gave Albert the opportunity to revisit some of the locations of his earlier travels using more modern means. It was during this period in China that he once more fell ill with a tumour on the liver. At the beginning of 1935 he returned to Germany by ship. Any treatment came too late, and he died on 19 April 1935 in hospital in Heidelberg after a further operation. Between 1903 and 1908 Tafel undertook several journeys to Asia, particularly in

2592-490: The Northern Indian town of Leh . Despite further privations and hold-ups, he reached Leh on 5 March 1928, before completing his journey at Dehradun . His programme of work for the journey included the first major contribution to the magnetic survey of northern Tibet. He made many topographical measurements and produced detailed maps which transformed geographical knowledge of this region. To this information he added what he termed "cultural-political observations". Much of his work

2664-427: The Pamir Mountains were considered a strategic trade route between Kashgar and Kokand on the Northern Silk Road , a prehistoric trackway, and have been subject to numerous territorial conquests. The Northern Silk Road (about 2,600 km (1,616 mi) in length) connected the ancient Chinese capital Chang'an with Kashgar over the Pamir Mountains towards the west, and from there continued to ancient Parthia . In

2736-417: The Pamirs with the Mount Meru or Sumeru. The Mount Meru is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Buddhist and Jain , and is considered to be the center of all the physical , metaphysical and spiritual universes. Albert Tafel Albert Tafel (6 November 1876 in Stuttgart – 19 April 1935 in Heidelberg ) was a German geographer, medical doctor and explorer. Prof. Dr. med. Albert Tafel

2808-402: The Wakhan River. There are various Arab and Chinese reports. Marco Polo may have travelled along the Panj River . In 1602 Bento de Goes travelled from Kabul to Yarkand and left a meager report on the Pamirs. In 1838 Lieutenant John Wood reached the headwaters of the Pamir River . From about 1868 to 1880, a number of Indians in the British service secretly explored the Panj area. In 1873

2880-432: The Weddell Sea beyond James Weddell's most southerly point, reached in 1823, and the next day observed an ice-covered coast to the east. Filcher named this "Prinzregent Luitpold Land" (or "Luitpold Coast"), after the expedition's principal patron. Following the coastline, on 31 January, at 77°48'S, Deutschland reached a vast ice barrier , marking the southernmost extent of the Weddell Sea. After much prevarication from

2952-412: The area and camped near the present Murghab . In 1893 they built a proper fort there ( Pamirskiy Post ). In 1895 their base was moved to Khorog facing the Afghans. In 1928 the last blank areas around the Fedchenko Glacier were mapped by a German-Soviet expedition under Willi Rickmer Rickmers. In the early 1980s, a deposit of gemstone -quality clinohumite was discovered in the Pamir Mountains. It

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3024-471: The army gave him leave to assume the leadership of a major scientific survey in Tibet and western China, extending to the upper reaches of the Hwang Ho river. This was a potentially dangerous enterprise, and Filchner found it necessary at times to conceal his activities by disguising himself as a Muslim priest. Filchner's principal scientific assistant on this journey was the geographer Albert Tafel , with whom relations were difficult and often strained. After

3096-416: The berg containing the base and floated it away. A desperate salvage exercise saved all the personnel and most of the equipment and provisions, though some items were lost. Thereafter, Filchner tried for several more days to re-establish the base, but these efforts proved unavailing. Deutschland began its return journey, intending to try again the following season. By 15 March, the ship was firmly beset in

3168-423: The captain, Filchner agreed to establish his shore base in a small inlet which he christened Vahsel Bay . The site chosen by the captain was a berg attached to the barrier edge; Filchner was dubious, but Vahsel assured him that his ice pilot, Paul Björvik, had approved the site; Björvik would later deny giving any such advice. By 18 February building was nearly complete, but that night a violent tidal surge detached

3240-410: The costs of the expedition were met by the German government. Filchner was required to link his new measurements with those of the earlier journey. There may have been national and commercial dimensions to this second trip; the airline Deutsche Luft Hansa was planning to extend its services in the region. To navigate successfully, pilots would require accurate magnetic data in an area largely devoid of

3312-415: The country, although the British in India were suspicious of his presence there. When the Second World War broke out in September 1939, Filchner decided to remain in Nepal, but in December 1940 his health failed, requiring him to seek medical treatment in India, where he was promptly interned. The circumstances of his confinement in India were not harsh, and he was allowed to continue working and to travel to

3384-516: The course of his journeys he made important and lasting contributions to the cartography and magnetic measurements of Central Asia, and his Antarctic expedition, despite its circumstances, produced significant scientific and geographical results. Filchner's background and military training had instilled a somewhat inflexible attitude, not conducive to successful teamwork, and created difficulties with interpersonal relationships. These were exemplified by his falling-out with Tafel, and by his poor handling of

3456-449: The differences between the Russians and the English in their interactions with the indigenous people: "The Russians manage, in their dealings with Asiatic peoples, to reach out to their hearts, whereas the English, in their relations with natives, make a show of their cultural superiority". Through these adventures, which he recounted in a popular book, Ein Ritt über den Pamir ("A Ride over the Pamirs"), Filchner gained an early reputation as

3528-489: The effects of syphilis) but the poisonous atmosphere continued under his replacement, first officer Wilhelm Lorenzen. The ship was not freed until 26 November 1912, and when she finally arrived in South Georgia on 19 December, the expedition disintegrated. The opposing factions were kept apart before being transferred back to Germany separately. Filchner hoped that the expedition could be reconstituted for another attempt, but his backers in Germany summoned him home. In Germany

3600-417: The glacier snowline (ELA ) as altitude limit between glacier nourishing area and ablation zone, was about 820 to 1250 metres lower than it is today. Under the condition of comparable proportions of precipitation there results from this a glacial depression of temperature of at least 5 to 7.5 °C. Coal is mined in the west, though sheep herding in upper meadowlands is the primary source of income for

3672-417: The history of Central Asia since the beginning of the 20th century. This is not an account of personal experiences; it is a semi-fictionalised life of Zerempil, a Buryat monk from Urga . Filchner reissued the book in revised form in 1928, under the title Wetterleuchten im Osten ("Weather Lights in the East"). In 1926, Filchner resumed his prewar survey and observational work in Central Asia. Assisted by

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3744-462: The ice, drifting slowly northwards, and clearly trapped for the winter. By this time the expedition's morale had largely collapsed as a result of the Vahsel Bay fiasco; the party had broken into factions, and hostility, recrimination and drunkenness, with threats of violence, became the norms. Nevertheless, Filchner still sought to continue the scientific work, in stations set up on the ice. On 10 August Vahsel died (of heart failure likely aggravated by

3816-487: The journey, Tafel missed few opportunities for insulting Filchner and undermining his authority as a leader, accusing him of cowardice and questioning the accuracy of his maps. Filchner's military background and formal manner contributed to the problem; as Cornelia Lüdecke puts it in a biographical essay on Filchner, as an officer he was "trained to command and not to discuss". This was a trait that would also be apparent in Filchner's later expeditions. Filchner's interest in

3888-427: The natural geographical features that would enable navigation by sight. It is possible that Filchner was paid by the airline for this purpose. In the course of his travels, Filchner crossed the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts, and arrived at Hotan in Xinjiang in December 1936. It was unsafe territory, with a civil war raging. Filcher did not possess the necessary papers; he was arrested and his passport confiscated. He

3960-441: The north of Tibet. He took part among others in Wilhelm Filchner's expedition through north China, and the eastern and north-eastern regions of Tibet, where his principal interest lay in ascertaining the hitherto uncertain course of the Yellow River . In January [1904?] he left the main expedition to seek out the course of several tributaries, as well as the upper reaches of the Yellow River . Thus he explored parts of Inner Mongolia,

4032-427: The north-east through the Gez valley up to c.1850 m asl (meters above sea level) and thus as far as to the margin of the Tarim basin. This outlet glacier received inflow from the Kaiayayilak glacier from the Kongur north flank. From the north-adjacent Kara Bak Tor (Chakragil, c. 6800 or 6694 m) massif, the Oytag valley glacier in the same exposition flowed also down up to c. 1850 m asl. At glacial times

4104-605: The party's doctor. It was on this expedition that a severe disagreement arose between the two, which led to a lifelong antipathy, chronicled at length by Filchner in his Feststellungen (publ. 1985). After Filchner's return to Europe, Tafel made further journeys through north China and north-east Tibet, researching in particular the frequently uncertain course of the Yellow River . On his return to Stuttgart in January 1908, he brought back with him extensive geological and ethnological collections as well as his interpreter and Tibetan companion Brdyal Lango. In August 1909 Albert Tafel married

4176-404: The region. The lapis lazuli found in Egyptian tombs is thought to come from the Pamir area in Badakhshan province of Afghanistan. About 138 BCE Zhang Qian reached the Fergana Valley northwest of the Pamirs. Ptolemy vaguely describes a trade route through the area. From about 600 CE, Buddhist pilgrims travelled on both sides of the Pamirs to reach India from China. In 747 a Tang army was on

4248-416: The situation of divided command that arose on the Deutschland . Murphy describes Filchner as "a bit stiff, something of a cold fish", and lacking the sense of humour and common touch which marked leaders such as Shackleton. Lüdecke points out the marked successes of his later expeditions, which gained lavish praise from the Royal Geographical Society , when he worked alone without the constraint of maintaining

4320-400: The south, they border the Hindu Kush mountains along Afghanistan 's Wakhan Corridor in Badakhshan Province , Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan regions of Pakistan . To the north, they join the Tian Shan mountains along the Alay Valley of Kyrgyzstan . To the east, they extend to the range that includes China 's Kongur Tagh , in the "Eastern Pamirs", separated by the Yarkand valley from

4392-514: The student Corps Rhenania and was enrolled the following February. In 1903 he graduated Dr. med. In the course of his studies he travelled to Crete , Albania and Persia , made numerous excursions to the mountains, skiing on the Zugspitze and in the Bernese Oberland on his own home-made skis. After his final medical exams in 1903, Albert Tafel pursued further courses in geography under Profs. Penk and von Richthofen , subsequently joining Wilhelm Filchner's 1904 expedition to China and Tibet as

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4464-510: The vicinity of the Pole. This proved too costly, so Filchner had to adopt a more modest, single-ship strategy, confining his operations to the Weddell Sea area. A ship, the Norwegian whaler Bjorn was acquired, and her name changed to Deutschland . Her captain was to be a naval officer, Richard Vahsel , who had previous Antarctic experience, but was by reputation a somewhat difficult and truculent character, "greedy for power and an out-and-out schemer". Unwisely, Filchner agreed to sail under

4536-432: The war the retired cavalry captain, doctor and geographer saw no possibility of retaining the lifestyle to which he had been accustomed before it and so decided to move to the Netherlands Indies as a doctor, working in Batavia and Timor and subsequently as a doctor in the mines of Pulau Laut . After the sudden death of his wife on 10 April 1928 Albert returned to Stuttgart. His home in Berlin had already been given up before

4608-515: The war. In 1931 he underwent an operation for stomach cancer – The obituary in the newsletter of his student fraternity the Corps Rhenania refers to an operation in Tübingen surgical hospital to remove a 'malignant tumour'. By 1933 however Albert felt well enough to make another trip to China (Tientsin/ Tianjin ) to prepare for further expeditions to augment his collections. This time he took his children with him: Eleonore (Elinor) and Albert Tobias (Toby) in order to shield them from Hitler's persecution of

4680-515: The western margin of the Tarim Basin an east–west extension of c. 200 km. Its north–south extension from King Ata Tagh up to the northwest Kunlun foothills amounts to c.170 km. Whilst the up to 21 km long current valley glaciers are restricted to mountain massifs exceeding 5600 m in height, during the last glacial period the glacier ice covered the high plateau with its set-up highland relief, continuing west of Mustagh Ata and Kongur. From this glacier area an outlet glacier has flowed down to

4752-455: The year, the Pamirs have long and bitterly cold winters , and short, cool summers , which equals an ET (tundra climate) according to Köppen climate classification ( EF above the snow line). Annual precipitation is about 130 mm (5 in), which supports grasslands but few trees . The East-Pamir, in the centre of which the massifs of Mustagh Ata (7620 m) and Kongur Tagh (Qungur Shan, 7578, 7628 or 7830 m) are situated, shows from

4824-409: The years immediately following the war he devoted himself to writing. In 1922 he published his account of the Antarctic expedition, Zum sechsten Erdteil: Die zweite deutsche Südpolar-Expedition ("To the Sixth Continent: The Second German South Polar Expedition"). In this book Filchner barely mentions the interpersonal difficulties that marred and ultimately overwhelmed the expedition, instead producing

4896-459: Was carried out in secret, to avoid the attention of suspicious authorities. The journey became the subject of a film, Mönche, Tänzer und Soldaten ("Monks, Dancers and Soldiers"), a valuable documentary of monastic and other life of that time. In the years 1934 to 1938, Filchner returned to the same region, this time following a route across northern Tibet from Lanzhou to Leh. Whereas on the earlier journey he had largely paid his own way, this time

4968-404: Was detained by the warlord Ma Hushan , in harsh conditions for seven months, before his passport was returned and he was allowed to proceed. He then had to navigate the so-called "route of death" over the Karakoram range. He arrived in Leh in September 1937, finishing his 3,500 km (2,175 miles) journey a month later in Srinigar . On his return, he learned that Adolf Hitler had awarded him

5040-426: Was frustrated by the outbreak of the First World War, and instead he rejoined his regiment of dragoons as Lieutenant. He was initially deployed on the Western Front in France, then in Romania and subsequently in 1916 with von der Goltz's army in Mesopotamia . In spite of bouts of malaria and blood- poisoning he remained on active service with Arab and Persian auxiliaries against the British Expeditionary Force. After

5112-410: Was the only such deposit known until the discovery of gem-quality material in the Taymyr region of Siberia , in 2000. The earliest known evidence of human cannabis use was found in tombs at the Jirzankal Cemetery. The Pamir Highway , the world's second highest international road, runs from Dushanbe in Tajikistan to Osh in Kyrgyzstan through the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province , and

5184-892: Was the son of Emil Otto Tafel, architect (Oberbaurat) and Professor at the School of Architecture (Baugewerbeschule) in Stuttgart, and his wife Lina, née Reuchlin. Following graduation from Dillmann's Modern School he took a journey on foot through the Balkans to Constantinople and Troy . In 1896/7 he served a year in the 26th regiment of the 'yellow dragoons' (gelbe Dragoner) – so called because of their yellow collars and cuffs – in Ludwigsburg. The years 1898–1902 were spent studying medicine in Tübingen , Berlin and Freiburg im Breisgau . Arriving in Tübingen in autumn 1898 he applied to join

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