Expedition on the Multinsky Lakes
In July 2020, according to the project of the Russian Science Foundation 20-17-00110, an expedition to the Lower and Middle Multinsky lakes took place. Expedition leader N.A. Rudaya. This is the first time that short cores have been taken from these lakes in the southern region of the Altai Republic. The purpose of the trip was to take short cores with the detection of annual layers (varves) and calculate the sedimentation rate. In the future, it is planned to take a longer sediment core from the ice.
The lakes are located on the northern slope of the Katunsky ridge, in the Ust-Koksinsky region of the Altai Republic. The origin of the lakes is glacial-dammed. A narrow isthmus 30 m high between the Lower and Middle lakes, called Noises, is formed by a glacial moraine.
Bathymetric survey revealed the greatest depths for Lake Lower - 20.7 m and for Middle Lake - 18 m. Bottom sediment cores were taken at these points. Two cores NM-02 and NM-03, 45 cm and 156 cm, were taken from the Lower Multinskoye Lake. The SM-01 core (30 cm) was taken at the deepest point of the Middle Multinskoye Lake. The pH at the coring points was 8.6 for Lake Lower and 8.7 for Middle Lake.
At present, the cores are in the PaleoData laboratory of the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography SB RAS for sampling and dating. To calculate the sedimentation rate, it is planned to determine the content of the short-lived isotopes 210Pb and 137Cs at the IGM SB RAS; radiocarbon dating of cores in the Alsotopes laboratory of the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography SB RAS will become the basis for constructing age models for further studies of lake sediments.