Tsetserleg (city)

Not to be confused with Tsetserleg, Arkhangai a district (sum) in the northern parts of Arkhangai Province.
Tsetserleg
Цэцэрлэг
ᠴᠡᠴᠡᠷᠯᠢᠭ
District
Erdenebulgan District
Эрдэнэбулган сум
ᠡᠷᠳᠡᠨᠢᠪᠤᠯᠠᠭᠠᠨᠰᠤᠮᠤ

Lama monastery in Tsetserleg
Tsetserleg
Coordinates: 47°28′37″N 101°27′01″E / 47.47694°N 101.45028°E
Country Mongolia
Province Arkhangai Province
Founded ~1631
Elevation 1,691 m (5,548 ft)
Population (2010)
 • Total 21,091
Time zone UTC + 8 (UTC+8)
Area code(s) +976 (0)133
Vehicle registration АР_ ( _ variable)

Tsetserleg (Mongolian: Цэцэрлэг, garden) is the capital of Arkhangai Aimag (province) in Mongolia. It lies on the northeastern slopes of the Khangai Mountains, 360 miles (600 km) southwest of Ulaanbaatar. It has a population of 16,553 (2000 census, with Erdenebulgan sum rural territories population was 18,519), 16,618 (2003 est.), 16,300 (2006 est.).[1]

Tsetserleg is geographically located in the Bulgan sum in the south of the aimag. It is not to be confused with Tsetserleg sum in the north. In 1992 Tsetserleg was designated as Erdenebulgan sum, which has area of 536 km².

History

Tsetserleg from the south

Tsetserleg is an ancient cultural and commercial centre. It was once the seat of a monastery, built by the First Khalkh Zaya Pandita, Luvsanperenlei (1642–1715) (who should not be confused with Zaya Pandita Namkhaijantsan (1599–1662)). It consisted of the main Guden Süm, the Right, or Summer Semchin Temple, and the Left, or Winter Semchin Temple, all built in the early 1680s. The sixth Zaya Pandita, Jambatseren, was killed by the Communists in 1932, and the main Guden temple was turned into a museum. There is a seventh Zaya Pandita, but he mostly lives in Ulan Bator and visits only occasionally.

Facilities

Tsetserleg has an airport, with regular connections from and to Ulan Bator, a theatre, hotel, hospital, and an agricultural college. The main industry is food processing.

Market in Tsetserleg

Famous people

Climate

Tsetserleg has a borderline humid continental climate (Dwb). It is part of a microclimate in the center of Mongolia which experiences the most mild weather in the country, not too hot in the summer and not too cold in the winter. Wind speed is also relatively calm on average. In the coldest month of winter, January, it is often the warmest place in the country and temperatures rarely plummet below -30°C, often hovering at around -15°C to -25°C during nighttime and 5°C to -15°C during daytime. In January of 2014 and 2015 the coldest temperature was -26°C (each during a short cold snap) while average minimum temperature was -16°C which was 12 degrees warmer than the Ulaanbaatar average minimum of -28.5°C (January 2014 and 2015) and identical to the Hohhot average minimum of -16°C (January 2014 and 2015).[2] The average maximum temperature in January 2015 was 0°C or the same as Hohhot while overall average January temperature was -9°C again the same as Hohhot. The warmest temperature of the 10 days above 0°C in January 2015 was 7°C which was warmer than Hohhot in which the warmest of the 8 days above 0°C in January 2015 was 6°C. Dalanzadgad and Arvaikheer, two other 'mild' cities of Mongolia, experienced identical temperatures although average minimum was marginally warmer at -15°C each while Dalanzadgad's warmest January day was marginally warmer at 8°C. Tsetserleg belongs to USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 5.[3][4]


Climate data for Tsetserleg
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 6.9
(44.4)		 11.9
(53.4)		 17.1
(62.8)		 25.8
(78.4)		 28.7
(83.7)		 31.3
(88.3)		 30.1
(86.2)		 31.3
(88.3)		 26.8
(80.2)		 22.8
(73)		 15.8
(60.4)		 11.1
(52)		 31.3
(88.3)
Average high °C (°F) −8.1
(17.4)		 −6.4
(20.5)		 0.2
(32.4)		 8.1
(46.6)		 16.0
(60.8)		 20.1
(68.2)		 20.5
(68.9)		 19.3
(66.7)		 15.1
(59.2)		 8.0
(46.4)		 −1.0
(30.2)		 −6.5
(20.3)		 7.11
(44.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) −14.8
(5.4)		 −13.5
(7.7)		 −6.8
(19.8)		 1.0
(33.8)		 8.7
(47.7)		 13.0
(55.4)		 14.3
(57.7)		 12.8
(55)		 7.5
(45.5)		 0.3
(32.5)		 −7.5
(18.5)		 −12.9
(8.8)		 0.17
(32.32)
Average low °C (°F) −20.4
(−4.7)		 −19.3
(−2.7)		 −13.0
(8.6)		 −4.5
(23.9)		 1.7
(35.1)		 6.5
(43.7)		 8.7
(47.7)		 6.8
(44.2)		 1.5
(34.7)		 −5.2
(22.6)		 −13.1
(8.4)		 −18.2
(−0.8)		 −5.71
(21.73)
Record low °C (°F) −36.3
(−33.3)		 −35.1
(−31.2)		 −30.9
(−23.6)		 −21.2
(−6.2)		 −11.6
(11.1)		 −6.5
(20.3)		 0.0
(32)		 −1.4
(29.5)		 −9.6
(14.7)		 −23.6
(−10.5)		 −28.2
(−18.8)		 −35.4
(−31.7)		 −36.3
(−33.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 1.9
(0.075)		 2.7
(0.106)		 5.8
(0.228)		 16.3
(0.642)		 32.6
(1.283)		 63.1
(2.484)		 75.4
(2.969)		 66.9
(2.634)		 26.7
(1.051)		 13.4
(0.528)		 5.8
(0.228)		 2.6
(0.102)		 313.2
(12.33)
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 0.7 0.9 2.0 4.3 5.8 9.9 13.5 11.8 5.0 3.3 1.9 1.1 60.2
Mean monthly sunshine hours 185.7 197.2 250.2 245.6 279.6 275.4 265.2 260.5 254.0 232.5 186.6 172.6 2,805.1
Source: NOAA (1961-1990) [5]

Sister cities

City State / Region Country Year Sources
Bellingham  Washington  United States 2011 [6][7]

References

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Tsetserleg.
  1. ↑ Rural Poverty Reduction Programme
  2. ↑ # Jan 2015 Climate History for Tsetserleg, Mongolia. Weather Underground.
  3. ↑ Arkhangai Meteorological Department.
  4. ↑ # Climate History for Tsetserleg, Mongolia. Weather Underground.
  5. ↑ "Tsetserleg Climate Normals 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Our Sister Cities". Bellingham Sister Cities Association. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  7. ↑ "Interactive City Directory". Sister Cities International. Retrieved 20 January 2015.