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$Unique_ID{COW02553}
$Pretitle{235D}
$Title{Nepal
Chapter 3B. Climate}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{George L. Harris}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{tarai
katmandu
valley
nepal
miles
area
feet
areas
population
villages}
$Date{1973}
$Log{Table 1.*0255301.tab
}
Country: Nepal
Book: Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim, An Area Study: Nepal
Author: George L. Harris
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date: 1973
Chapter 3B. Climate
Comprehensive information about the highly varied climate is lacking. The
latitude of Nepal is about that of Florida, but great differences in altitude
within the relatively small area of the country and the monsoonal alternation
of wet and dry seasons make for sharp climatic contrasts between neighboring
localities. Within a space of 100 miles from north to south are approximated
most of the world's climatic zones, from Arctic Tundras in the northern
portions of the Eastern and Western Mountains and the high deserts in the
extreme northwest to the tropical jungles in the lowlands along the Indian
boundary.
The complex arrangement of the mountain ridges, resulting in differences
in exposure to sunlight and to the moisture-laden monsoon winds, also produces
significant climatic differences in adjacent areas. In general, however,
annual temperatures decrease with increases in altitude, and annual rainfall
decreases from east to west. Violent thunderstorms and destructive hailstorms
are common, particularly in the foothills and in the mountain areas. Since
elevations are highest in the north and progressively decline southward, the
country can be divided from north to south into four climatic zones: the
Mountains, the Foothills the Katmandu Valley and the Tarai.
The Mountains
The Mountain zone includes the upper part of the Himalayan range, with
altitudes varying from 10,000 to 29,000 feet. Winters are long and severe;
summers are short and cool; and permanent frosts prevail. The snowline is
between 12,000 and 14,000 feet and may be higher in dry regions. The tree line
is at about the same altitude but is lower in the dry areas. Precipitation
varies markedly from one place to another but reportedly averages about 20
inches annually.
The Foothills
The Foothills zone include the Mahabharat Lekh range and high-lying
valleys up to 10,000 feet. Rainfall and temperature data are not available,
but the climate may be classified as temperate, with warm, rainy summers and
winters ranging from moderately cool to severe.
Katmandu Valley
The Katmandu Valley has a distinctive climate, which may be divided
roughly into three seasons: rainy, hot and cold-the latter two being
relatively dry. Rains usually begin in June and last through September, with
the average annual fall approximating 60 inches. The cold season is from
mid-October to mid-April, with temperatures in January, the coldest month,
ranging between a daily average minimum of 36F. and a maximum of 64F. Snow
and freezing temperatures are rare. In the hot months, May and June, the
temperature seldom exceeds 90F. at noon.
The Tarai
The Tarai zone includes the plains area along the boundary with India and
the lower hills up to about 4,000 feet. The climate is usually hot and humid,
during the period of heaviest rainfall from June to mid-October. From
mid-October through February the climate is moderately cool with scattered
showers. In the dry season, from March through June, the vegetation turns
brown under a scorching sun. About 80 percent of the precipitation occurs
between mid-June and mid-September. Average summer temperatures range from
approximately 80F. in the east to 90F. in the west, and winter temperature
from 60F. in the east to 55F. in the west.
Soil, Minerals, Vegetation and Animal Life
Soils
The soils are diverse in composition and distribution. Scientific soil
studies are lacking, but an analysis of samples from various parts of the
country indicates, in general, a high iron content and a deficiency in humus,
nitrogen and phosphate.
The alluvial soils of the Tarai are quite fertile except for occasional
pockets of infertile sand and gravel. Composed mainly of brown clays and loam
permeated with limestone, they respond readily to fertilizer and, if provided
with a dependable water supply, are well suited to intensive agriculture.
In the Mahabharat Lekh and Siwalik ranges, soils are generally less
fertile than those of the Tarai plains to the south. Brown or gray varieties
appear in the conifer forests at the temperate higher altitudes, while shallow
red and yellow soils prevail under the damp, subtropical vegetation at lower
elevations. Among the southern base of these ranges a belt of sand, gravel
and boulders deposited during the monsoon freshets averages about 8 miles in
width. This belt, called the Bhabar, is of special importance because its soil
supports a forest cover which collects the detritus washed down the mountain
slopes, thus protecting the Tarai lowlands from an annual cover of infertile
sand and gravel. In many places water from mountain streams disappears in this
porous material and emerges again as springs in the Tarai.
In the Mountain Region, the soils at lower elevations are thin and stony
in most places. However, soils suitable for sustaining meadows and forests
appear in the valley beds and on the more moderate slopes. At higher altitudes
much of the surface consists of naked rock, and the scanty soils consist
mainly of sandstone, clay and limestone formed from basic parent material.
Soil erosion is widespread. Even in the cultivated plains of the Tarai,
vast areas of croplands are lost or damaged annually by the monsoon floods.
In eastern Nepal, particularly in the valleys of the Tamur, Arun and Sun
Kodi Rivers, much forest land has been cleared for farming. Although the major
portion of the area is still covered by forests, they are being depleted by
erosion, indiscriminate cutting or burning, and by excessive grazing. Erosion
accelerates as they retreat.
Minerals
Deposits of various minerals, among them coal, cobalt, copper, gold,
iron, lignite, limestone, marble and mica, have been found. Their discovery,
however, has been largely accidental, and the area covered by systematic
geological surveys is very small (see ch. 19, Industry and Trade).
Coal outcroppings have been found along the Sapt Kosi River in Eastern
Tarai and just north of the Midwestern Tarai near the base of the Mahabharat
Lekh range. Cobalt deposits, some relatively large, are present in the
Baglung-Gulmi area about 140 miles west of Katmandu and 50 miles north of the
Indian border. Deposits also have been found in eastern Nepal near Dhankuta in
the Tamur River valley.
Copper ore has been mined on a small scale in an area some 60 miles west
of Katmandu, near the confluence of the Kali Gandaki and Narayani Rivers.
Deposits of undetermined importance have also been worked at several other
sites, such as Sikpasor Khani (khani means mine in Nepali), Wapsa Khani and
Jantra Khani, all some 50 to 80 miles eastward from Nepal Valley, along the
northern tributaries of the Sun Kosi River.
Gold is present some 20 to 60 miles west of Katmandu in the gravels of
streambeds in the Kali Gandaki and Trisuli River valleys. Alluvial deposits
also have been found west of the Dhaulagiri massif, along the upper reaches
of the Bheri River. Some geologists believe that the source lodes are near
the Tibetan border, particularly near Mustang in the upper Kali Gandaki
Valley.
Iron ore deposits have been noted at various places in Katmandu Valley.
Those southwest of Katmandu have been investigated by geologists attached to
the United States Agency for International Development Mission in Nepal, but
the geological structure of the area indicates that quantities are small.
Deposits have been noted also in the Western Mountains near Nuwakot, south
of Pokhara; in the Rapti Valley about 45 miles southwest of Katma