Rapidly receding ice in the high Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan has revealed the remains of circular stone structures identified as 2,500-year-old astronomical observatories used by the Saka culture. These sites, located at altitudes exceeding 4,000 meters, contain stone alignments precisely oriented toward the winter solstice and the rising of the Pleiades.
The find provides the first physical evidence of a sophisticated archaeoastronomical tradition among the Iron Age nomadic tribes of Central Asia. Researchers are currently using high-resolution photogrammetry to document the site before further environmental exposure damages the fragile stone foundations.