An international research expedition was held in Tajikistan from June 19 to August 23 this year, during which 3 automatic meteorological and glaciological stations were installed at altitudes from 4,000 to 5,500 meters. This is reported by Khovar with reference to the head of the Tajik part of the expedition, Abdulhamid Kayumov.
The expedition "Vanjakh (Fedchenko) – 2025" took place in very risky conditions, with a lack of oxygen and extreme cold. Scientists from Tajikistan, Germany and France worked. With the help of local climbers, stations were delivered and installed at heights of 4,500, 4,800 and 5,280 m, which will now accumulate data all year round. And in the summer of 2026, scientists will return to extract information about the state of the Pamir cryosphere.
The stations were installed on the Tahmuras glacier, the area of the glacier of the Academy of Sciences and on the Yazgulomsky pass.
"GPR scanning of snow and ice strata was carried out to assess their volume and structure, unique samples of snow and ice were selected for isotopic and chemical analysis, which will allow us to reconstruct the history of the climate over the past decades.
The transfer of heavy equipment to a height of over 5,000 meters was carried out solely by human forces. With the support of local climbers, the scientists pulled loads through icefalls, cracks and steep passes. Every step was fraught with risk, but the mission was accomplished," the Glacier Research Center said.
As Abdulhamid Kayumov noted, "it is important to have time to read the pages of the book of the Fedchenko glacier, which melt every year."
According to Professor Christoph Mayer, who led the field work, the expedition turned out to be not just a scientific project, but a real test of strength in front of the mountain itself. Experts have already called the creation of high-altitude stations in such extreme conditions a global achievement.
The expedition was carried out thanks to the RECAP project (Research on Climate and Cryosphere in the Pamirs).
The largest glaciers in the region
Tajikistan has the largest glaciers (glaciers) in the Central Asian region. According to the Glacier Research Center of Tajikistan, glaciers originating on the slopes of Somoni Peak reach an altitude of 7,400 meters above sea level, and in the basins of the Surkhob and Kafirnigan rivers they usually do not exceed 4,500-5,000 meters above sea level.
Tajikistan's largest glaciers belong to the glaciation node at the junction of the highest ridges: Academy of Sciences, Darvazsky, Peter 1, Vanchsky, Yazgulomsky.
The largest glacier in Central Asia, Vanjakh (Fedchenko), is located here. In total, there are about 13 thousand glaciers in the republic, the main part of which is concentrated in the east of the country.
