The Features of the Hydrological Regime of the Lake-River
Systems of the Byrranga Mountains (by the Example of the
Levinson-Lessing Lake)
V.P. Zimichev 1 , D.Yu. Bolshyanov 1 , V.G. Mesheryakov 1 and D. Gintz2
(1) State Research Center - Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, 38 Bering St., 199226 St. Petersburg,
Russia
(2) Martin-Luther-Universitiit Halle-Wittenberg, Domstrasse 5, D 06108 Halle, Germany
Received 3 March 1997 and accepted in revised form 25 March 1998
Abstract - Based on the hydrological and meteorological studies of the joint RussianGerman Expedition "Taimyr-Severnaya Zemlya" in the Levinson-Lessing Lake basin, a
first attempt is made to estimate the water balance, sediment load balance and the regime of
the lake-river systems of the Glavnaya ridge of the Byrranga mountains.
Introduction
The water systems of the mountainous Taimyr peninsula have previously not been investigated
with respect to the dynamics of water balance components and the mechanism of solid transport
discharged into the lake's basin. In order to collect quantitative evidence on typical natural water
bodies, special comprehensive observations of the regime of water balance characteristics in the
lake-river system of the Levinson-Lessing-Lake were carried out in the framework of the joint
Russian-German comprehensive Expedition "Taimyr-Severnaya Zemlya" (Siegert and
Bolshiyanov, 1995).
Study site
The lake-river systems of the Byrranga mountains show a number of common morphogenetic
features indicating the hydrological regime, sedimentation conditions and water exchange. The
network of streams and rivers in the basin reflects the mountainous topography. The
investigated lake-river system is typical for the Central Taimyr mountains. Therefore it can be
used to estimate the main hydrological characteristics of a lake-river system in this region.
The drainage basin of the Levinson-Lessing-Lake is located about 50 km west of the Taimyr
Lake in the southwestern part of the Byrranga Mountains (Figure I; 72° 28' Nand 98° 37' E in
the centre of the lake). The basin is a Quaternary tectonic depression with numerous deeply
entrenched valleys between more ancient relicts of pediments and slopes of low fault block
mountains. The lake trough is a deep fold which is still active.
The drainage basin comprises 496,4 km 2 , including the lake itself with 24.55 km2. There are
approximately 50 tributaries of different stream orders flowing into the Levinson-Lessing-Lake.
The water leaves the lake via the Protochny river in the south (Figure I).
The Krasnaya river, coming from the north, is the largest tributary of the Levinson-LessingLake. It drains more than 70% of the total catchment, and supplies the main sediment input.
One factor controlling the runoff dynamics of the Krasnaya is the Krasnoye lake, the source of
the Krasnaya.
In the upper reaches, the river presents a typical mountainous pattern in a trough-shaped
narrow valley. Downstream, the Krasnaya crosses a flat tectonic depression, and between the
In: Kassens. H., H.A. Bauch, I. Dmitrenko, H. Eicken, H.-W. Hubberten, M. Melles, J. Thiede and L. Timokhov (eds.)
Land-Ocean Systems in the Siberian Arctic: Dynamics and History. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1999,353-360.
Systems of the Byrranga Mountains (by the Example of the
Levinson-Lessing Lake)
V.P. Zimichev 1 , D.Yu. Bolshyanov 1 , V.G. Mesheryakov 1 and D. Gintz2
(1) State Research Center - Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, 38 Bering St., 199226 St. Petersburg,
Russia
(2) Martin-Luther-Universitiit Halle-Wittenberg, Domstrasse 5, D 06108 Halle, Germany
Received 3 March 1997 and accepted in revised form 25 March 1998
Abstract - Based on the hydrological and meteorological studies of the joint RussianGerman Expedition "Taimyr-Severnaya Zemlya" in the Levinson-Lessing Lake basin, a
first attempt is made to estimate the water balance, sediment load balance and the regime of
the lake-river systems of the Glavnaya ridge of the Byrranga mountains.
Introduction
The water systems of the mountainous Taimyr peninsula have previously not been investigated
with respect to the dynamics of water balance components and the mechanism of solid transport
discharged into the lake's basin. In order to collect quantitative evidence on typical natural water
bodies, special comprehensive observations of the regime of water balance characteristics in the
lake-river system of the Levinson-Lessing-Lake were carried out in the framework of the joint
Russian-German comprehensive Expedition "Taimyr-Severnaya Zemlya" (Siegert and
Bolshiyanov, 1995).
Study site
The lake-river systems of the Byrranga mountains show a number of common morphogenetic
features indicating the hydrological regime, sedimentation conditions and water exchange. The
network of streams and rivers in the basin reflects the mountainous topography. The
investigated lake-river system is typical for the Central Taimyr mountains. Therefore it can be
used to estimate the main hydrological characteristics of a lake-river system in this region.
The drainage basin of the Levinson-Lessing-Lake is located about 50 km west of the Taimyr
Lake in the southwestern part of the Byrranga Mountains (Figure I; 72° 28' Nand 98° 37' E in
the centre of the lake). The basin is a Quaternary tectonic depression with numerous deeply
entrenched valleys between more ancient relicts of pediments and slopes of low fault block
mountains. The lake trough is a deep fold which is still active.
The drainage basin comprises 496,4 km 2 , including the lake itself with 24.55 km2. There are
approximately 50 tributaries of different stream orders flowing into the Levinson-Lessing-Lake.
The water leaves the lake via the Protochny river in the south (Figure I).
The Krasnaya river, coming from the north, is the largest tributary of the Levinson-LessingLake. It drains more than 70% of the total catchment, and supplies the main sediment input.
One factor controlling the runoff dynamics of the Krasnaya is the Krasnoye lake, the source of
the Krasnaya.
In the upper reaches, the river presents a typical mountainous pattern in a trough-shaped
narrow valley. Downstream, the Krasnaya crosses a flat tectonic depression, and between the
In: Kassens. H., H.A. Bauch, I. Dmitrenko, H. Eicken, H.-W. Hubberten, M. Melles, J. Thiede and L. Timokhov (eds.)
Land-Ocean Systems in the Siberian Arctic: Dynamics and History. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1999,353-360.