| Area of Hindu Kush on Afghanistan and Pakistan border |
Around two-thirds of Afghanistan is covered by the Hindu Kush mountain range that stretches from the north east to the south west of the country. The Hindu Kush is a sub-range of the Himalayan Mountains that formed about 70 million years ago as the Indo-Australian Plate collided with the southern regions of the Eurasian Plate.[1]
The erosion
caused by wind and the melting of snow in the spring creates a fine clay soil
that is found in the valley floors of eastern Afghanistan. Because the average rain fall in spring is
typically less than 100 mm[4]
the snow melt and run off is the primary source of water in the Hindu Kush
region. The run-off water created by the
melting snow in spring can also cause serious damage in the form of flooding if
the temperature rises too quickly in the early spring months.
Because of
the Hindu Kush’s location near the convergence area of the Indo-Australian and
Eurasian plates it is regularly hit by large earthquakes. In recent earthquakes, damage was not only
caused by strong ground shaking and surface rupture but also from landslides
and liquefaction of the soil.[5] Two of the most recent earthquakes that have
originated from the Hindu Kush Mountains happened in March of 2002, both measuring
7.4 and 6.1 on the Richter scale with over 700 homes destroyed and more than
150 deaths.[6]
 |
| Near Tora Bora |
[1] http://epod.usra.edu/blog/2011/02/hindu-kush-mountains-of-afghanistan.html
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Afghanistan#Mountain_systems
[3] http://epod.usra.edu/blog/2011/02/hindu-kush-mountains-of-afghanistan.html
[4] https://ronna-afghan.harmonieweb.org/Pages/GeographyandClimateofAfghanistan.aspx
[5] http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2005/3038/508fs3038.html
[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Hindu_Kush_earthquakes
