Hanhowuz, also known as Khauz-Khan, is a reservoir in
Ahal Province of southeastern
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
. The
M37 highway passes nearby and the village of
Hanhowuz stands on the northwestern shore, with the city of
Tejen
Tejen (older spellings: Tedzhen, Tejend, Tejent) is an oasis city with district status in the Karakum Desert, in Ahal Province of Turkmenistan. It lies along the M37 highway, between Dushak and Mary, by road southeast of Ashgabat. It has a p ...
not too far away in that direction.
Hanhowuz Reservoir is a component of the
Kara Kum Canal system and it was created to attempt to control the erratic
Tejen River
The Hari River ( or prs, هری رود, translit=Harī Rōd; ps, د هري سیند) or Herat River is a river flowing from the mountains of central Afghanistan to Turkmenistan, where it forms the Tejend oasis and disappears in the Karakum Des ...
. It plays an important role in agriculture in the region. The reservoir is named after the legendary khan
Oguz Han.
Hanhowuz (Khauzkhan) Reservoir was constructed in a natural depression to capture winter runoff and overflow from the canal for use later during the driest periods of summer.
Phytoplankton thrive in the warm waters, as do many commercial fish—including
Aral barbel
The Aral barbel (''Luciobarbus brachycephalus'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus '' Luciobarbus''. It is found in the Aral basin, Chu drainage and southern and western Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland bo ...
,
asp and
catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive ...
.
In the satellite image,
Garagum Canal is the brown ribbon dropping down from the upper right corner and heading south and east from the reservoir. A portion of the canal is diverted, and can be seen the brown sediment-laden water entering the reservoir from the east and dropping its load of suspended sediments. The water that leaves is turquoise and travels west to irrigate the Tedjen Oasis. Roughly rectilinear farmlands appear on either side of that section of the canal.
Hanhowuz Reservoir
at NASA Earth Observatory
NASA Earth Observatory is an online publishing outlet for NASA which was created in 1999. It is the principal source of satellite imagery and other scientific information pertaining to the climate and the environment which are being provided by NA ...
See also
*
References
Lakes of Turkmenistan
Mary Region
Canals in Turkmenistan
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