Tarim

Course

The Tarim River and most of its tributaries originate in the Karakorum and Kunlun Mountains. The name Tarim is applied to the river formed by the union of the Aksu River, flowing from the north, and Yarkand River, coming from the southwest, near the Aral City in western Xinjiang. A third river, the Khotan River, comes to the same junction area from the south but it is usually dry at this location, having crossed the Taklamakan Desert to get here. Another river of western Xinjiang is the Kashgar River, which flows into the Yarkand River during the rainy season about 37 kilometres (23 mi) upstream from the Yarkand's confluence with the Aksu.

The main source is the Yarkand River, which originates from the southeastern foot of Mount Telim Kanli in the Karakoram Mountains.

Geography and climate

The total length of the Yarkand-Tarim river system is 2,030 kilometres (1,260 mi), although, as the Tarim frequently changes its channel, the length tends to vary over the years.

The river is shallow, unsuitable for navigation, and because of its heavy silt load, forms a braided stream near its terminus. The area of the Tarim River Basin is about 557,000 square kilometres (215,000 mi2). A considerable part of the Tarim's course follows no clearly defined riverbed. The water volume of the lower course of the river diminishes as a result of extensive evaporation and water-diversion schemes.

The Tarim River Basin belongs to the inland river basin, which originates from the inland rivers in the mountains around the Tarim Basin and flows into the basin, forming a centripetal water system.

History

Some Chinese originally considered the Tarim to be the upper course of the Yellow River but, by the time of the Former Han dynasty (125 BCE–23 CE), it was known that it drains into Lop Nur, a series of salt lakes.