The Verkhoyansk Mountains are the easternmost mountain system on the northern Eurasian continent still receiving precipitation from the Atlantic Ocean. Due to this more or less unique situation late Quaternary glaciations in the region are influenced by local and regional climate changes but also by changes on the vast Eurasian continent to the west.
The remote area is characterized by harsh climate conditions being not far from the so called “cold-pole” of the earth in the village of Oimjakon. Therefore, only few studies have been undertaken, especially when compared to other areas in Eurasia like Tibet.
On the western flank of the Verkhoyansk Mountains, five large terminal moraines have been identified. Based on infrared stimulated luminescence dating, their ages range from 135ka for the outermost and up to 55ka for the innermost terminal moraine, the latter indicating the youngest and smallest glaciation. However, no glacial landforms can be attributed to the global last glacial maximum (gLGM). Climate conditions in the Verkhoyansk Mountains during that time have been less favorable for the development of valley glaciers than during previous times. Despite low temperatures the scarcity of moisture hindered the development of glaciers. The large Eurasian ice sheets, especially in Scandinavia, blocked the moisture transport in the direction of the Verkhoyansk Mountains. A principal moisture source from the west during previous glaciations is indicated by the distribution of terminal moraines on the eastern and western side of the Verkhoyansk Mountains and by the arrangement of cirques. Eastwards of the Mountains gLGM glaciations have been developed due to a moisture source situated in the Pacific Ocean.