Chinese Qinghai Hu or Ch'ing-hai Hu
Lake, Qinghai province, China.
The largest drainless mountain lake of Central Asia, it is 65 mi (105 km) long and 40 mi (64 km) wide; its surface area fluctuates seasonally between 1,600 and 2,300 sq mi (4,2006,000 sq km). It is located in the Qilian Mountains at an elevation of 10,515 ft (3,205 m). Formed by melting glaciers during the late Pleistocene Epoch, the lake today receives the waters of some two dozen rivers and streams.