In the context of global warming, the vulnerability of one of the most important sources of drinking water - glaciers - is increasing. Accordingly, they are becoming the focus of closer attention from scientists.
However, until recently, Tajikistan did not have a clear picture or data about the glaciers that would help determine further actions, said Abdulhamid Kayumov, director of the State Scientific Institution "Center for Glacier Studies" of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan. Now all the information is available and can be used by both domestic and foreign scientists.
The "Center for Glacier Studies" has published 27 scientific works that contain information on the state of glaciers from 1981 to 2021. Work on the "Comprehensive Volume of the Glacier Catalog of Tajikistan," which contains exhaustive information on the state of the glaciers, has also been completed. This volume covers glaciers of all river basins in the republic, including the Pyandzh, Vakhsh, Zeravshan, and Kafirnigan.
Glaciers in Tajikistan cover an area of no less than 9,000 km², which is almost 6% of the total area of the republic. In the west, in the high mountains, there are vast reserves of snow and ice. There, the climatic boundary of eternal snow rises to altitudes of 3,500–3,600 meters, while in the eastern part of the country it reaches heights of 5,800 meters. The area of the Pamir-Darvaz glaciers and firn fields covers almost 6% of the country’s territory, where 9,139 glaciers are located, containing 559 km³ of ice.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
July 15, 2024