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29-879: The exact definition of the Kunlun Mountains varies over time. Older sources used Kunlun to mean the mountain belt that runs across the center of China, that is, Altyn Tagh along with the Qilian and Qin Mountains . Recent sources have the Kunlun range forming most of the south side of the Tarim Basin and then continuing east, south of the Altyn Tagh. Sima Qian ( Records of the Grand Historian , scroll 123) says that Emperor Wu of Han sent men to find

58-682: A synonym for the European term, " Old World ." The almost perfect circle (the earth is an oblate spheroid that is wider around the equator), drawn with a line, demarcating the Eastern and Western Hemispheres must be an arbitrarily decided and published convention, unlike the Equator (an imaginary line encircling Earth , equidistant from its poles ), which divides the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The prime meridian at 0° longitude and

87-657: Is Chinese for Lower Mountain . A series of mountain ranges run along the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau . In the west are the Kunlun Mountains . About halfway across the south side of the Tarim Basin , the Altyn-Tagh Range diverges northeast while the Kunluns continue directly east, forming a relatively narrow "V". Inside the "V" are a number of endorheic basins . The eastern end of

116-817: Is a mountain range in Northwestern China that separates the Eastern Tarim Basin from the Tibetan Plateau . The western third is in Xinjiang while the eastern part forms the border between Qinghai to the south and Xinjiang and Gansu to the north. Altun Shan is also the name of a 5,830 metres (19,130 ft) mountain near the eastern end of the range, the highest point in Gansu. Altyn Tag means Lower Mountain in Turkic , and A'erjin Shan ( 阿尔金山 )

145-599: Is a semi-mythical region not far from the source of the Yellow River. The Kunlun Mountains entered Chinese ideology during the Warring States period (475–221 BCE), and have become closely integrated into Chinese culture. In the Book of Mountains and Seas , the Kunlun Mountains are mentioned: Which means "The hill of Kunlun, which is the capital of the emperor, and the god of the land." Gu Jiegang divides

174-411: Is in the center of the Kunlun Mountains; its highest points are Ulugh Muztagh (6,973 m) and Bukadaban Feng (6,860 m). In the eastern Kunlun Mountains the highest peaks are Yuzhu Peak (6,224 m) and Amne Machin [also Dradullungshong] (6,282 m); the latter is the major eastern peak of the Kunlun Mountains and is thus considered as the eastern edge of the Kunlun Mountains. The mountain range formed at

203-527: Is lower in elevation, around 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). The eastern portion is higher in elevation, about 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) and consists of a group of smaller ranges oriented in a south-east to north-west trend. Along the northern side of the mountains ran the main Silk Road trade route from China proper to the Tarim Basin and westward. The Altyn-Tagh and Qilians were sometimes called

232-668: Is not listed below due to its inclusion above, though the meridian does pass Wallis and Futuna .) With the exception of the United States (due to Wake Island , Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands ), all of them are located on just one side of the International Date Line , which curves around them. The following countries and territories lie outside Europe , Asia , Africa , and Oceania and are entirely, mostly, or partially within

261-581: Is one of the chief northern ranges of the Kunlun. Its northeastern extension Qilian Shan is another main northern range of the Kunlun. In the south main extension is the Min Shan . Bayan Har Mountains , a southern branch of the Kunlun Mountains, forms the watershed between the catchment basins of China 's two longest rivers, the Yangtze River and the Yellow River . The highest mountain of

290-680: The Chinese mythology system into the Kunlun system and the Penglai system based on the eastern and western regions. He believes that the myth of Kunlun In mythology, Kunlun Mountain is the birthplace and ancestral place of the Chinese nation. In mythology, Kunlun Mountain is the center of heaven and earth. It goes up to the sky and is the staircase to the sky. The "Kunlun Mythology" system takes Kunlun Mountain as an iconic place, and mainly focuses on

319-548: The Eastern Hemisphere (after Mount Kilimanjaro ) and one of Volcanic Seven Summits by elevation. (Mount Damavand is the highest volcano in Asia, not the Kunlun cones.) The last known eruption in the volcanic group was on May 27, 1951. Legendary and mystical mountains are a long-standing aspect of Chinese civilization. Kunlun is originally the name of a mythical mountain believed to be a Taoist paradise . Kunlun

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348-643: The Jade Palace of the Yellow Emperor , the mythical originator of Chinese culture, and met Hsi Wang Mu (Xi Wang Mu, the 'Spirit Mother of the West' usually called the ' Queen Mother of the West ') who also had her mythical abode in these mountains. She was the object of a traditional religious cult which reached its peak in the Han dynasty . Altyn Tagh Altyn-Tagh (also Lower Mountains or Altyn )

377-697: The Nan Shan ('south mountains') because they were south of the main route. Near the east end of the Altyn-Shan, the Gansu or Hexi Corridor ends and the Silk Road splits. One branch follows the Altyn-Tagh along the south side of the Tarim Basin while the other follows the north side. The southwestern part of the Altyn-Tagh range reaches snowy peaks of up to 6,245 metres (20,489 ft), although it descends to an average of 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in

406-551: The antimeridian (which crosses the Pacific Ocean and relatively little land from pole to pole). It is also used to refer to Afro-Eurasia ( Africa and Eurasia ) and Australia , in contrast with the Western Hemisphere , which includes mainly North and South America . The Eastern Hemisphere may also be called the " Oriental Hemisphere ", and may in addition be used in a cultural or geopolitical sense as

435-665: The antimeridian , at 180° longitude, are the conventionally accepted boundaries, since they divide eastern longitudes from western longitudes. This convention was established in 1884 at the International Meridian Conference held in Washington, D.C. where the standard time concepts of Canadian railroad engineer Sir Sandford Fleming were adopted. The Hemispheres agreed do not correspond with exact continents. Portions of Western Europe , West Africa , Oceania , and extreme northeastern Russia are in

464-669: The Altyn-Shan is near the Dangjin Pass on the Dunhuang - Golmud road in far western Gansu . East of the Altyn-Tagh the border range rises to the Qilian Mountains . The range separates the Tarim Basin, to the north, and Lake Ayakkum , to the south. The range can be divided into three portions. The southwest portion borders the Kunlun Mountains and is very rugged, with peaks reaching more than 6,100 metres (20,000 ft) and many perennial snow fields. The central portion

493-704: The Altyn-Tagh and the main Kunlun range (which in this area is called Arka-Tagh ) a number of endorheic basins are located. Within southeastern Xinjiang, the main of these basins is the Kumkol Basin ( Chinese : 库木库里盆地 ; pinyin : Kùmùkùlǐ Péndì ) The two main lakes in this basin are the saline Lake Aqqikkol (also Ajig Kum Kul, Achak-kum; Chinese : 阿其克库勒湖 ; pinyin : Āqíkèkùlè Hú ; 37°05′N, 88°25′E, 4,250 metres (13,940 ft) elevation) and Lake Ayakum ( Chinese : 阿牙克库木湖 ; pinyin : Āyákèkùmù hú ; 37°30′N, 89°30′E; elevation 3,876 metres (12,717 ft)). These lakes are two of

522-432: The Altyn-Tagh on its way between Qinghai and Xinjiang. The Golmud-Korla Railway crosses the Altyn-Tagh as well. The project, involving the construction of the 13.195 km-long Altyn-Tagh Tunnel ( 阿尔金山隧道 ), was completed in 2020. Eastern Hemisphere The Eastern Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth which is east of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich , London , United Kingdom ) and west of

551-693: The Eastern Hemisphere is larger than that of the Western Hemisphere and has a wide variety of habitats . Below is a list of the sovereign states in both the Western and Eastern hemispheres on the IERS Reference Meridian , in order from north to south: Below is a list of additional sovereign states which are in both the Western and Eastern hemispheres along the 180th meridian , in order from north to south. (France

580-573: The Kunlun Mountains is the Kunlun Goddess Peak (7,167 m) in the Keriya area of the western Kunlun Mountains. Some authorities claim that the Kunlun extends further northwest-wards as far as Kongur Tagh (7,649 m) and the famous Muztagh Ata (7,546 m). But these mountains are physically much more closely linked to the Pamir group (ancient Mount Imeon ). The Arka Tagh (Arch Mountain)

609-523: The Kunlun Volcanic Group. They are not volcanic mountains, but cones. As such, they are not counted among the world volcanic mountain peaks. The group, however, musters the heights of 5,808 metres (19,055 ft) above sea level ( 35°30′N 80°12′E  /  35.5°N 80.2°E  / 35.5; 80.2 ). If they were considered volcanic mountains, they would constitute the highest volcano in Asia and China and second highest in

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638-578: The Western Hemisphere, divorcing it from the continents which form the touchstone for most geopolitical constructs of "the East" and "the West". Consequently, meridians of 20°W and the diametrically opposed 160°E are often used outside of matters of physics and navigation, which includes all of the European and African mainlands, but also includes a small portion of northeast Greenland (typically reckoned as part of North America ) and excludes more of eastern Russia and Oceania (e.g., New Zealand ). Prior to

667-805: The few noticeable bodies of water in this extremely arid area; the area around them is officially protected as the Altun Shan Nature Reserve . Farther east, in northwestern Qinghai , the much larger Qaidam Basin starts between the Altyn-Tagh and the Kunlun and extends almost to the east side of the plateau; the Altyn-Tagh separates the west side of this basin from the Kumtagh Desert . The four highest peaks are Sulamutag Feng (6,245 metres (20,489 ft)), Yusupu Aleketag Shan (6,065 metres (19,898 ft)), Altun Shan (5,830 metres (19,130 ft)) and Kogantag (4,800 metres (15,700 ft)). China National Highway 315 crosses

696-627: The global adoption of standard time, numerous prime meridians were decreed by various countries where time was defined by local noon (thereby, local). The centre of the Eastern Hemisphere is located in the Indian Ocean at the intersection of the equator and the 90th meridian east , 910 km west of Indonesia in the Ninety East Ridge . The nearest land is Simeulue Island at 2°35′N 96°05′E  /  2.583°N 96.083°E  / 2.583; 96.083 . The land mass of

725-737: The infamous Taklamakan desert, and the Gobi Desert . A number of important rivers flow from the range including the Karakash River ('Black Jade River') and the Yurungkash River ('White Jade River'), which flow through the Khotan Oasis into the Taklamakan Desert . To the south of the Kunlun is the sparsely populated Changtang region, which forms part of the Tibetan Plateau . Altyn-Tagh or Altun Range

754-552: The myths and stories of related characters such as the Yellow Emperor and the Queen Mother of the West ( Xi Wang Mu ). Stories such as Kuafu chasing the sun, Gonggong's anger touching Buzhou Mountain, and Chang'e flying to the moon all originate from Kunlun mythology. Mao Dun pointed out: According to legend, King Mu (976–922 BCE, Zhou dynasty ) was the first to visit this paradise. There he supposedly found

783-531: The narrow middle and eventually rises up to average 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) as it meets the Qilian Mountains. There are a dearth of rivers and streams in these mountains, due to the aridity of the region. The western portion has some small streams that either head north into the desert or south into Lake Ayakkum. The remainder of the range is lacking in rivers. Inside the V-shaped area between

812-640: The northern edges of the Cimmerian Plate during its collision, in the Late Triassic , with Siberia , which resulted in the closing of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean . The range has very few roads and in its 3,000 km length is crossed by only two. In the west, Highway 219 traverses the range en route from Yecheng, Xinjiang to Lhatse, Tibet. Further east, Highway 109 crosses between Lhasa and Golmud . Over 70 volcanic cones form

841-464: The source of the Yellow River and gave the name Kunlun to the mountains at its source. The name seems to have originated as a semi-mythical location in the classical Chinese text Classic of Mountains and Seas . From the Pamirs of Tajikistan , the Kunlun Mountains run east through southern Xinjiang to Qinghai province. They stretch along the southern edge of what is now called the Tarim Basin ,

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