Earth’s Cryosphere, 2012, Vol. XVI, No. 4, p. 42-44

“WHIMS” OF THERMOKARST

B.I. Vtyurin, S.M. Govorushko

Pacific Geographical Institute, FEB RAS, 690041, Vladivostok, Radio str., 7, Russia; sgovor@tig.dvo.ru

Thermokarst processes in the low reaches of the Indigirka River are considered. Vorontsov Yar exposure – the key section for the given territory is briefly characterized. The phenomenon of vertical and inclined arrangement of dead trees with roots up is described. The mechanism of such radical reorientation of the trees is interpreted.

Key words: Тhermokarst, wedge ice, yedoma deposits, lowers reaches of the Indigirka River, cemetery mounds, ice content.