Geography
- Area: 13,300 km²
- Elevation: 1,600 m above sea level
- China's northwest geographical center
- More than 20 square kilometres (7.7 sq mi) of urbanisation along the southern banks of the Yellow River.
- Zonary basin
- Mountains are located on the south and north sides of the city:
- Qilian Ranges, Mt. Pingliang and Mt. Kongtong (the most noted in Taoism)
- River:
- The Yellow River flows through from west to east.
Lanzhou is situated on the upper reaches of the Yellow River where it emerges from the mountains and has been a center since early times, being at the southern end of the route leading via the Hexi Corridor across Central Asia. It commands the approaches to the ancient capital area of Chang'an (modern Xi'an) in Shaanxi province from both the west and the northwest, as well as the area of Qinghai Lake via the upper waters of the Yellow River and its tributaries.
Read more about this topic: Lanzhou
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