The largest glacier in the Tashkent region is rapidly melting

The largest glacier in the Tashkent region is rapidly melting, according to a report from the Scientific Research Institute of Hydrometeorology.

The report notes that, as part of projects by the Scientific Research Institute of Hydrometeorology, the German Earth Research Center, and the Green Central Asia initiative, a recent expedition was conducted to the Pakhtakor Glacier, the largest glacier in the Tashkent region. The first expedition to the Pakhtakor Glacier took place in the summer of 2023, during which researchers drilled a 3-meter pile into the glacier's tongue. In the current expedition, it was found that the pile had separated from the glacier, as the glacier has retreated by 20 meters in just one year, and the ice sheet has melted by up to 3 meters. Researchers also gathered valuable data from the weather station.

For context, the Pakhtakor Glacier is located between majestic mountains, 35 kilometers from the remote Oygaing avalanche meteorological station in the Tashkent region (with no buildings beyond this facility). The members of the expedition reached the glacier after a two-day trek on foot.