Deglaciation of the Prut Valley (Chornohora, Ukraine) in the light of geomorphological and sedimentological research

Abstract

High mountain areas are characterized by very specific relief, which is determined by a number of factors - including geological structure, vertical variation of the environment, high energy of the relief. The high activity of morphogenetic processes is also the main reason for researchers' interest in high mountains specifically. Especially interesting is the study of forms above the upper forest boundary because conditions there were conducive to the transformation of older relief. The high mountains are a very sensitive indicator of environmental changes, they record any changes in the climate that occurred in the past. Chornohora, located in the Carpathians (Figure 1), is a high mountain range, in which we can analyze the influence of glacial, periglacial and nival morphogenesis.

The field research was conducted in the upper section of the Prut valley. This area was chosen based on the analysis of the numerical terrain model and satellite images covering the entire Chornohora and because of the geological structure - a flysch area in which the record of glaciation is very well visible. The study area is about 23 square km and the highest peak is Howerla (2061 m a.s.l.). The main goal of the research is to determine the course of the deglaciation of the Prut Valley in Chornohora based on the morphostratigraphic relations, the degree of weathering moraine cover using the Schmidt's hammer test.