New Tibet

Author: Xu Lei / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-09-01
Features: Tibet – A comprehensive documentary television series that fully reflects the social changes in Tibet since the Peaceful Liberation. Two hundred million years ago, the rolling snow-capped mountains on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau were once a vast ocean, which geologists called the "Tethys Sea." Later, gradual plate tectonic movements gradually piled up towering mountain ranges. Several million years ago, the Himalayas began to rise, and the Tethys Sea gradually disappeared, transforming the sea into land and creating the Roof of the World – the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the highest step in China's geographical landscape, with an average elevation exceeding 4,000 meters. Its western part is the main body of the plateau, which primarily falls within the administrative region of the Tibet Autonomous Region in China. The Tibet Autonomous Region covers an area of 1.2284 million square kilometers, accounting for about 1/8 of China's total area. It spans approximately 1,000 kilometers from north to south and extends up to 2,000 kilometers from east to west. Tibet borders the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to the north, Qinghai Province to the northeast, Sichuan Province to the east, Yunnan Province to the southeast, and Myanmar, India, Bhutan, and Nepal to the south and west, with a border length of about 4,000 kilometers. It serves as a vital gateway in China's southwestern frontier.
The Himalayas, winding along the southern side of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, stretch over 2,400 kilometers and are a vast ocean of mountains. Here, there are five peaks exceeding 8,000 meters in elevation and more than 40 exceeding 7,000 meters. Among these peaks, Mount Everest, with an elevation of 8,848 meters, is the highest point on Earth, where snow and ice reign eternal. Cool, slender meltwater from the snow-capped mountains flows through the valleys, gradually merging into vast rivers. The roaring Jinsha River, Lancang River, and Nujiang River have carved deep gorges and sheer cliffs through the rugged mountains in eastern Tibet. The Yarlung Tsangpo River, known as the "Mother River" by the Tibetan people, is China's fifth-longest river, originating from the Jema Yangzong Glacier on the northern slope of the Himalayas. It flows eastward across the southern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau like a silver dragon. The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, with its unique scenery, is the deepest canyon on Earth. The meltwater from the snow-capped mountains nourishes this magical land. In the western and northern regions of Tibet, countless endorheic rivers and seasonal rivers converge on the plateau, forming a starry array of alpine lakes. Between these vast alpine lakes stretch extensive fertile grasslands, which serve as the home of nomads and a paradise for many wild animals. In the southeastern part of Tibet, the scenery takes on the characteristics of subtropical and tropical regions, with snow-capped mountains, deep valleys, forests, and ribbon-like plains, creating beautiful landscapes. Most of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is cold, arid, and has thin air, posing a severe challenge to human survival. However, as early as 50,000 years ago, humans had already left their footprints here. Over the millennia, life has continuously thrived, and culture has gradually accumulated and been passed down from generation to generation. P2-3