ИСТИНА

Snezhnaya cave system, located in the alpine karst Khipsta massif, is the largest cavern in the Caucasus (total length 41 km, amplitude 1760 m, volume 2.7·106 m3). The hydrological network of the cave includes two main separate rivers. We present the results of the analysis of monitoring data for water level and temperature and air temperature in 2015-2019 on the both rivers in the bottom galleries of the cave system. Seasonal changes in water and temperature regimes in the cave are investigated. The correlations between air and water temperatures in both parts of the cave system were studied. The regimes of flashfloods are considered in detail. Based on the data of the 3D map of the cave and changes in water volume at the end of single flashfloods, a water balance model was reconstructed for both rivers in the approximation of Bernoulli's principle for a perfect fluid. The water discharges at the entrances to the bottom galleries of the cave system and at the exits from it was estimated. The results indicate the existence of two separate hydrological and climatic systems with significant differences in the morphology and catchment area of the two parts of the cave system.