Glaciers to be monitored using unmanned aerial vehicles in Georgia

Georgia’s National Environment Agency and Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University are launching a new project to monitor glaciers using unmanned aerial vehicles.

Within the project, glaciers in the basin of two rivers, Enguri and Rioni, will be monitored.

Specialists from the Agency and scientists from the University will study the glaciers through the information obtained by the new system. This information will be used to assess the situation and prevent possible natural disasters.

Contemporary glaciers are mainly concentrated in the Enguri, Rioni, Kodori and Tergi River basins in Georgia. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge

Within the project, high resolution images of ice tongues will be created. These visual materials will be compared to historic maps to identify the dynamic of changes on the glaciers.

According to the data of 2015, there are 637 glaciers in Georgia with a total area of 355.80 km2. Contemporary glaciers are mainly concentrated in the Enguri, Rioni, Kodori and Tergi River basins, where there are the peaks of 4500 m and higher.