Tatra (redirected from Tartra)

Tatra (tä`trə) or Tatras (–trəz), Pol. and Slovak Tatry, highest group of the Carpathian mountain system, in E central Europe. The High Tatra (Slovak Vysoké Tatry, Pol. Tatry Wysokie) extends c.40 mi (60 km) along the Polish-Slovakian border; its highest peak, Gerlachovský (8,711 ft/2,655 m) is in Slovakia. The Low Tatra, Slovak Nízké Tatry, lies entirely in Slovakia; it rises to 6,702 ft (2,043 m) in the Dumbier. The extensively glaciated mountains have numerous lakes, moraines, and hanging valleys. Tatra National Park (est. 1948) extends on both sides of the international border. The region's scenic beauty and excellent ski slopes have made it a year-round resort area. Vysoké Tatry, in Slovakia, and Zakopane, Poland, are the chief resort centers.

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Tatra 

or High Tatra (in Polish, Tatry Wysokie; in Czech, Vysoké Tatry), a mountain range in Poland and Czechoslovakia, the highest in the Carpathian Mountains.

The Tatra Mountains are 65 km long and have elevations to 2,655 m, at Gerlachovský Śtít. They are composed mainly of granites, granodiorites, and limestones. The alpine landforms show traces of ancient glaciation, including cirques and mountain lakes. There are karst caves, such as Belanská and Alabastrová. On the slopes, at elevations up to 1,500 m, are spruce forests with admixtures of beech, fir, pine, and larch; at higher elevations there is a belt of Krummholz (up to 1,900 m) and subalpine and alpine meadows (up to 2,250 m). The highest meteorological observatory in the Carpathians is located in the Tatra Mountains, on Lomnický Śtít (2,632 m).

Mountain climatic resorts in the Tatra Mountains include Zakopane in Poland and Štrbské Pleso and Starý Smokovec in Czechoslovakia. The Tatra Mountains are popular with mountain climbers, tourists, and skiers; a ropeway has been constructed to the crest. The Tatra People’s Park is located in the mountains, and Poronin, which has a V. I. Lenin house-museum, is at the northern foot of the range.

The Tatra Range is often considered a system of mountain ranges, including the Tatra proper and the Low Tatra.

N. N. RYBIN