Urmaral Tarns

The Urmaral Tarns are a chain of three glacial lakes in a hanging valley at the head of the Urmaral valley in the northern Talas Alatau, on the tribal side of the Qara-Chik Demarcation Line. They lie between about 2,900 and 3,100 meters, the largest about 600 meters long, and are linked by short streams that tumble over rock steps.^[1] The lakes are fed by snowfields and a small glacier and drain into the Urmaral. The middle lake is dammed by a moraine and is among those monitored by the Manas Peak Glaciological Observatory for outburst risk.^[2]

References

1. ^ Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service (2019). Glacier and Snow Inventory of the Talas Basin, 2014–2018. Talas.
2. ^ Manas Peak Glaciological Observatory (2020). Moraine-Dammed Lakes of the Northern Talas Alatau: Hazard Assessment. Talas.