Issyk River
Encyclopedia
The Issyk River is a river in Kazakhstan
that crosses the Issyk Lake
(not to be confused with the much greater Issyk Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan
) and the town of Esik
.
One of the largest rivers on the northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau
, its headwaters come from 32 active glaciers that cover an area of 43 km². The largest glaciers are the Zharsai (its exposed length is 3.8 km and area 6.37 km²), the Grigoriev (3.6 km long, area 5.86 km²), and the Pal'gov (3.8 km long, 6.95 km²}, come down from the crest of the main divide whose average absolute height is over 4,000 m. Within the mountains the river is 22 km long, the gradient at its longitudinal profile is 102 m in 1 km, and the basin area is 210 km².
In its upper reaches the river flows down a very steep slope (10-15°) over the deposits of a moraine overgrown with some vegetation and forms a deep (as much as 70 m) canyon; then, in front of the terminal vegetation-free moraine of the Pal'gov glacier, its longitudinal profile flattens out abruptly_ Here the river forms numerous branches over an outwash plain. Below Lake Akkul' (its absolute elevation is 3,140 m), the longitudinal profile undergoes another sharp drop because a large mountainous obstruction damming the lake and, perhaps, because of moraines buried under the obstruction.
In 1963, the overspill of Issyk Lake
caused a large flood
.
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
that crosses the Issyk Lake
Issyk Lake
Issyk Lake is a lake in Kazakhstan fed by the Issyk River. It is different from Issyk-Kul Lake.The lake is mostly famous for the way it was created , destroyed , and re-created .-External...
(not to be confused with the much greater Issyk Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
) and the town of Esik
Esik
Esik is a town in the Almaty Province of Kazakhstan, the administrative center of Enbekshikazakh District. It is located on the Issyk River, at the foot of the Tian Shan, 53 km east of Almaty and 112 km over the mountains from Issyk Kul Lake. It was founded by Cossacks in 1858 as...
.
One of the largest rivers on the northern slope of the Trans-Ili Alatau
Trans-Ili Alatau
Trans-Ili Alatau , , also spelt as Zailiyski Alatau, Zailiysk Alatau, etc., is a part of the Northern Tian Shan mountain system in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. It is the northernmost mountain range of Tian Shan stretching for about 350 km with maximal elevation of 4,973m . The term "Alatau" refers...
, its headwaters come from 32 active glaciers that cover an area of 43 km². The largest glaciers are the Zharsai (its exposed length is 3.8 km and area 6.37 km²), the Grigoriev (3.6 km long, area 5.86 km²), and the Pal'gov (3.8 km long, 6.95 km²}, come down from the crest of the main divide whose average absolute height is over 4,000 m. Within the mountains the river is 22 km long, the gradient at its longitudinal profile is 102 m in 1 km, and the basin area is 210 km².
In its upper reaches the river flows down a very steep slope (10-15°) over the deposits of a moraine overgrown with some vegetation and forms a deep (as much as 70 m) canyon; then, in front of the terminal vegetation-free moraine of the Pal'gov glacier, its longitudinal profile flattens out abruptly_ Here the river forms numerous branches over an outwash plain. Below Lake Akkul' (its absolute elevation is 3,140 m), the longitudinal profile undergoes another sharp drop because a large mountainous obstruction damming the lake and, perhaps, because of moraines buried under the obstruction.
In 1963, the overspill of Issyk Lake
Issyk Lake
Issyk Lake is a lake in Kazakhstan fed by the Issyk River. It is different from Issyk-Kul Lake.The lake is mostly famous for the way it was created , destroyed , and re-created .-External...
caused a large flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
.