Water levels and temperatures in moulins, and other hydrological observations at Bashkara Glacier in Caucasus, Russia, in September 2005

In order to investigate hydrology and, in particular, drainage systems of glaciers, measurements of water temperatures and water levels in moulins, water temperatures along glacial surface water streams, and other glacio-speleological observations were carried out at Bashkara Glacier in Caucasus, Russia, from 10 to 14 September, 2005. Extremely high amplitude of water level oscillations in moulins demonstrates plausibility of the approach, when a channel consists of a wide vertical part (moulin) and narrower subhorizontal part deep in a glacier. Water temperature measurements in one of the moulins revealed mat it grows with the distance from the glacier surface, but much quicker than estimated by the loss of potential energy. It probably means that the heat exchange with the air is much more significant than was expected.