Vanch-Yakh Glacier

The glacier follows a generally northward path to the east of the {{convert|6595|m|ft|abbr=off|adj=on}} Garmo Peak. The glacier begins at an elevation of {{convert|6200|m|ft}} and eventually melts and empties into the Balandkiik River near the border with Kyrgyzstan at an elevation of {{convert|2909|m|ft}}. Its waters eventually feed down the Muksu, Surkhob, Vakhsh, and Amu Darya rivers into the Aral Sea.

To the west is the Academy of Sciences Range, Mount Garmo, Ismoil Somoni Peak, Peak Korzhenevskaya, the headwaters of the Vanj River, and Yazgulyam River. To the south is Independence Peak and to the east Gorbunov Peak (6,025 meters). To the north is Altyn Mazar.

The glacier was discovered in 1878 and was named after Alexei Pavlovich Fedchenko, a Russian explorer (but not the discoverer of the glacier). It was not fully explored until 1928 by a German-Soviet expedition under {{Interlanguage link|Willi Rickmer Rickmers|de|3=Willi Rickmer Rickmers}}. Between 1910 and 1913 the glacier expanded and moved forward by {{convert|800|to|1000|m|yard|-1}}, blocking up the Balyandlik River the following year. It continued to recede between 1928 and 1960, stopping its inflows such as the Kosinenko, Ulugbeck, Alert and several others.{{cite web|url=http://www.meteo.tj/eng/doc/expedition-2006.pdf|title=Field research of glaciers and glacial lakes located in Karatag, Vakhsh and Zeravshan river basin.|publisher=Meteo|accessdate=13 May 2012}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

In 2023, Tajikistan officially renamed the glacier as part of a derussification program.{{Cite web |title=СМИ: крупнейший на Памире ледник Федченко переименован в "Ванджях" |date=19 August 2023 |url=https://rus.ozodi.org/a/32555126.html |access-date=2023-09-17 |language=ru}}

• List of glaciers

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.britannica.com/place/Fedchenko-Glacier "Fedchenko Glacier"]. Encyclopædia Britannica online edition. Retrieved 8 December 2005.
• [http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/natc/tainc1.pdf "The First National Communication of the Republic of Tajikistan under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change]. Republic of Tajikistan Ministry for Nature Protection. Dushanbe: 2002.
• [http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/tadjik/vitalgraphics/eng/html/uyazv.htm "Tajikistan 2002: Vital Maps and Graphics on Climate Change"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060501215122/http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/tadjik/vitalgraphics/eng/html/uyazv.htm |date=2006-05-01 }}. Tajikistan Met Service. Retrieved 18 August 2005.
• [http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/14.htm "Tajikistan - Topography and Drainage"]. U.S. Department of the Army. Published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress. Online version retrieved 8 December 2005.

• [http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/tadjik/vitalgraphics/eng/html/u4.htm Map of glaciation in the Pamir Mountains] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515083333/http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/tadjik/vitalgraphics/eng/html/u4.htm |date=2006-05-15 }}
• [https://maps.google.com/maps?q=tajikistan&ll=38.8,72.350464&spn=0.507324,2.045654&t=h&hl=en Google Maps satellite photo of Fedchenco Glacier] (solid white line running approximately vertically in center of image)
• [http://weather.cnn.com/weather/forecast.jsp?locCode=TJ05 Current weather and 5-day forecast], from CNN

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{{Coord|38.767|N|72.283|E|display=title|type:glacier_source:dewiki}}

Category:Glaciers of Tajikistan

Category:Pamir Mountains