Glaciers of the Kyrgyz Range
Glaciers of the Kyrgyz Ala-Too
The highlands of the Kyrgyz Range feature a deeply dissected alpine relief, which results in a variety of glacier forms. The majority of glaciers belong to the cirque and valley types, with many hanging glaciers and various transitional forms. Many glaciers over different areas are covered with debris, and almost all have powerful modern moraines. Extensive zones of fractures, icefalls, and ice dumps are often encountered. The Karamoynok Range is characterized by cirque glaciers, often "covered" by a moraine shell. Icefalls are virtually absent here, and there are generally few crevasses.
The snow line rises from the periphery into the mountain system, generally from the northwest to the southeast. It is located at altitudes of 3600 - 3800 m on the northern slopes and 3900 - 4200 m on the southern slopes. Glaciation is concentrated in the middle part of the range at altitudes up to 4700-4800 m. There are a total of 607 glaciers on the Kyrgyz Range with a total area of 530.4 km², and on its spurs, the Kara-Moynok and Jumgal-Too ranges, there are 191 glaciers with an area of 59.4 km². Almost 80% of the number of glaciers and 90% of the total area of glaciation are concentrated on the northern slope of the range. The glaciers here are significantly larger than those on the southern slope. The majority of glaciers are concentrated in the basins of the Sokuluk, Alaarcha, Alamedin, and Issyk-Ata rivers, where 9 out of 12 glaciers larger than 5 km² are also located. To the west and east of these river basins, the intensity of glaciation decreases. On the northern slope of the Kyrgyz Range, there are as many valley glaciers as cirque and hanging glaciers, but they account for 82% of the total area of glaciation. Valley and basin glaciers are usually located in the upper reaches of the main valleys, while cirque-valley glaciers are found in small side valleys. More than 25% of the surface area of all glaciers is covered by moraines. The degree of moraine coverage is highest in the western part of the range.
View of the Uchitel Glacier. Kyrgyz Ala-Too.
Some of them are completely covered by moraines. The average height of glacier ends is 3650 m, with the lowest being the Mayakovsky Glacier, which descends to 3070 m. The average height of the firn line is 3870 m, rising to 4000 - 4100 m in the eastern part of the range. The largest glacier on the northern slope of the Kyrgyz Range is located in the basin of the Nauruz River.
Its length is 6.5 km, and its area is 10 km². It has a four-chamber feeding area, and its tongue is covered by a moraine ridge. On the southern slope of the Kyrgyz Range, 72% of all glaciers have an area of 0.5 km² or less. The average height of glacier ends in the Naryn River basin is 3500 m, while in the Chu River basin it is 3760 m. The largest glacier on the southern slope is the basin glacier Geofak (Tuyuk-Suu South) (length 3.4 km, area 2.7 km²) in the upper reaches of the Bash-Alaarcha River. During the ablation period, glaciers in the Kyrgyz Range lose a layer of ice between 2 and 5 m thick. Ice movement speeds are low, ranging from 18 to 30 m/year. A general retreat of several glaciers in the Kyrgyz Range has been observed. For instance, from 1917 to 1961, the Golubina Glacier retreated by almost 1 km. The end of the Tushinsky Glacier retreated by 600 m from 1906 to 1960, but by 1964 it advanced by 34 m. In recent years, some signs of advance have also been noted on other glaciers.
