Home – Home – Jornals – Geography and Natural Resources 2026 number 2

An analysis of spatial variability of the runoff duration and its relationship with catchment area, river streamflow, and climatic and landscape factors was carried out for freezing rivers of Central Yakutia based on daily water discharge data from 23 operating and closed hydrological gauges. It was found that rivers in northeastern Central Yakutia are characterized by a later onset of the runoff period in spring and its earlier end, the presence of summer drying-up, and high interannual variability in the runoff duration. It was revealed that the length of the runoff period depends to a greater extent on its end date, which varies widely across the rivers of the territory, than on its onset date. One of the key factors determining the runoff duration and its cessation date is the size of the catchment, which serves as an indirect indicator of the proportion of groundwater recharge of streams. The duration of periods without runoff is significantly influenced by temperature conditions, affecting the freezing regime of soils, which prevents underground recharge of rivers, and the intensity of evaporation, reducing the moisture reserves in the catchment area, which can lead to summer drying-up and an earlier end of the runoff period. Precipitation has a weak effect on the runoff duration. It was also found that winter precipitation has a stronger impact on the annual river runoff depth than summer precipitation. An analysis of the relationship with landscape factors revealed that the prevalence of watershed-eluvial and slope deluvial-solifluction terrain types in the catchment area contributes to an increase in the runoff duration, while alas and inter-alas types reduce it.