Glaciation in the highest parts of the Ukrainian Carpathians (Chornohora and Svydovets massifs) during the local last glacial maximum

Abstract

The Chornohora and Svydovets massifs represent the highest part of the Ukrainian Carpathians (2061 m a.s.l.) and the north-eastmostmountain area in Europe, which was subject to mountain glaciation during the Quaternary. This region represents one of the least explored areas in terms of glacial geomorphology in Europe, which is crucial for validating the inferred zonal/meridional mode of atmospheric circulation on the continent during glacial stages. Based on new mapping of glacial landforms and sediments, we reconstruct the extent and ice-surface geometry as well as establish equilibrium line altitudes (ELAs) using the Area-Altitude-Balance-Ratio method for 40 palaeo-glaciers in the study area during the local Last Glacial Maximum (LLGM). Additionally, we list the inventory and morphometric characteristics of glacial cirques in the studied massifs (n = 77), which together with the local ELA pattern are discussed in the context of palaeo-wind directions and dominant precipitation patterns during the LGM. ELA values for the Svydovets (1401 m a.s.l.) and Chornohora (1516 m a.s.l.) massifs were much lower than those for the Rodna Mountains (1697 m) in the Northern Romanian Carpathians located 80 km to the southeast, and for the Tatra Mountains (1580 m) located 350 km to the northwest. In the Ukrainian Carpathians both glacier ELA and cirque elevations show a rising trend towards the southeast of 4 m km−1 controlled by preferential moisture transport from the northwest. This suggests that the dominant W-NW precipitation regime in effect during the LGM was similar to present-day conditions. This supports a previous glacial-geomorphologic reconstruction from the Rodna Mountains in Northern Romania and is in line with both model simulations and regional palaeo-wind proxies that show an enhanced mid-latitude North Atlantic zonal circulation pattern over central Europe during the LGM.