An expedition of the French Speleology Federation worked in Turkmenistan for more than 20 days to explore the caves of Koytendag.

As the publication “Turkmenistan: Golden Age” reports, 17 French scientists representing various fields of speleology carried out high-tech measurements of karst cavities with the participation of specialists from the Koytendag State Nature Reserve.

These studies will complement the work carried out by Russian speleologists in the second half of the last century. As is known, the topographic map drawn up in the twentieth century includes more than 60 linear kilometers of explored halls, passages, manholes, galleries and cavities located on several levels.

In general, the results of the work of French scientists will be provided to the Turkmen side for use in environmental work, and also as an addition to the UNESCO nomination dossier for Koytendag, work on which began in 2012.

Such a contribution will be enriched with professional photographs and film. Photography of the expedition was carried out by Philippe Crochet and Annie Guiro with the assistance of Brigitte Meyer-Berto. Their work will form the basis of a book about Koytendag.

Speleologists worked in the caves: Geophysical, Hashim-Oyuk, Vertical, Tash-Yurak, Kaptarana, Intermediate and Cap-Kutan. Caves that provide access to underground rivers were checked, since there are corresponding outlets of surface watercourses from south to north of the massif. These studies will enrich the understanding of the hydrological system of the massif and will become important information for studying the water resources of the region.

The connections between gypsum cavities and high karst were also studied in order to substantiate the special nature of Koytendag karstology, the source notes.