Gar Tsangpo
Gar Tsangpo (Tibetan: སྒར་གཙང་པོ, Wylie: sgar gtsang po; Chinese: 噶尔藏布; pinyin: Găěr Zàngbù), also called Gartang or Gar River, is a headwater of the Indus River in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet, China. It merges with other headwater, Sênggê Zangbo, near the village of Tashigang to form the Indus River. The combined river flows in the same valley and in the same direction as Gar Tsangpo. Thus by physical geography, Gar Tsangpo is the "Indus River". The Tibetans however regard Sênggê Zangbo as the main Indus River, and treat Gar Tsangpo as a tributary.
| Gar Tsangpo Gartang | |
|---|---|
Gar Tsangpo near the Ngari Gunsa Airport | |
Confluence of Gar Tsangpo and Sênggê Zangbo | |
| Native name | སྒར་གཙང་པོ (Standard Tibetan) |
| Location | |
| Country | China |
| State | Tibet Autonomous Region |
| Region | Ngari Prefecture |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Kailas Range |
| • coordinates | 31.3836°N 80.7254°E |
| • elevation | 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Sengge Zangbo, Gar Valley |
• coordinates | 32.4409°N 79.7121°E |
• elevation | 4,300 metres (14,100 ft) |
| Length | 130 km (81 mi) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Indus River |
Gartok, the former administrative headquarters of Ngari is in the Gar Valley. The present headquarters, under PRC administration, is at Shiquanhe in the Sênggê Zangbo valley, close to the point of confluence of the two rivers.