Musala

On the summit of Musala

The Musala ( Bulgarian Мусала ), located in the Rila National Park, is the highest mountain in Bulgaria and the entire Balkan Peninsula. Its peak was reached by mountaineers for the first time in the 19th century. Located two scientific observation stations of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences On its broad summit.

Location and Naming

The Musala (also written Mussala ) offers distant views on all the mountain regions of Bulgaria with the Vitosha mountain to the northwest, the Balkan Mountains, the Rhodope Mountains in the southeast and the Pirin Mountains and of course the surrounding mountain peaks of Rila like the Little Musala ( 2,902 m) and the Iretschek ( 2,852 m).

Many centuries ago, the Bulgarians named the mountain after their sky god Tangra, whose name by the Ottomans in Musala only in the 15th century was changed ( Masallah glory of God ). The Bulgarians have still left many other traces, like several rocks which bear inscriptions with the name of God Tangra. The summit was called from 1949 to 1962 Mount Stalin, a namesake, there was also in the Pamir Mountains

Geography

The mountains to the Musala has been partially shaped by the Ice Age and its glaciers. This also mountain lakes have been left behind as the to approximately 2700 m, ie 200 meters below the summit, located 20,000 m² Musala Lake. Three of the largest rivers in Bulgaria - Iskar, Maritsa and Mesta - spring in Rila mountains near the Musalaberges.

The weather station has been around since the 19th century, on this mountain, a fire destroyed the wooden structure in 1964. In 1999, the station as an environmental observatory Musala ( Basic Environmental Observatory, BEO ) was newly built of solid material and reopened. It belongs to the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, the scientists now carry Astrophysical observations and measure air pollution and space radiation.

The mountain peak is covered with snow and ice eight to nine months of the year. On very many days envelop strong mist the dome. With a mean annual average temperature of - 3 degrees Celsius of Musala is the coldest place in the Balkans. On 14 February 2004 - measured 31.8 degrees Celsius in the 21st century, one of the lowest temperatures in Bulgaria.

Fauna and Flora

Noteworthy is the rich flora and fauna in the forests at the foot and on the slopes of the mountain. However, its summit bears no higher vegetation. For example, here are the Ponderosa Pine and Bulgarian Fir ( Abies borisii - regis) at home. Of the birds is often seen during the wallcreeper.

Ascents

The first historically documented conqueror of the mountain is King Philip II of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great. The Musala is the easiest to reach from ten kilometers northern city of Borovets. From there since the 1970s, also a cable car, which extends to the mountain hut Yastrebets to a height of 2,369 meters. In an hour the Musalahütte at 2,430 m is reached. About the Everest shoulder then the climbers arrive in about one to two hours to the summit. The ascent requires no special alpine experience and no special alpine equipment.

Name Use

A leading Bulgarian software service firm from Sofia is called Musala Soft.

On the island of Greenwich Iceland in the South Shetland Islands region in Antarctica there is a " Musala Glacier ", which is named after the Bulgarian mountain.

In the Herzegovinian city of Mostar, there is a bridge over the Neretva river, which bears the name Musala. She came from the 19th century and was destroyed in 1992 during the civil war in Bosnia Herzegovina. In 2000 the bridge was rebuilt in modern forms was inaugurated.

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