Musala ( ); from

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

through

Ottoman Turkish Ottoman Turkish (, ; ) was the standardized register of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed extensively, in all aspects, from Arabic and Persian. It was written in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. ...

: from '' Musalla'', "near God" or "place for prayer" is the highest peak in the Rila Mountains, as well as in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

and the entire

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

, standing at . With a topographic prominence of , Musala is also the 6th highest peak by

topographic prominence In topography, prominence or relative height (also referred to as autonomous height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contour line encircling ...

mainland Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by so ...

. It is also the 3rd most topographically isolated major peak in

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

. Musala is situated within the

Rila National Park Rila National Park () is the largest national park in Bulgaria spanning an area of in the Rila mountain range in the south-west of the country. History It was established on 24 February 1992 to protect several ecosystems of national importanc ...

, which is noted for its rich

flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...

, including species such as Macedonian Pine and Bulgarian Fir in the forests on its middle slopes, and

fauna Fauna (: faunae or faunas) is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding terms for plants and fungi are ''flora'' and '' funga'', respectively. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively ...

; it is one of the easiest places in Europe to see the wallcreeper. All major mountain ranges of Bulgaria can be seen from the top; these include

Vitosha Vitosha ( ), the ancient ''Scomius'' or ''Scombrus'', is a mountain massif, on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Vitosha is one of the symbols of Sofia and the closest site for hiking, alpinism and skiing. Convenient bus lines and ...

to the northwest,

Sredna Gora Sredna Gora ( ) is a mountain range in central Bulgaria, situated south of and parallel to the Balkan Mountains and extending from the river Iskar (river), Iskar to the west and the elbow of river Tundzha north of the city of Yambol to the east. ...

towards the northeast, the

Balkan Mountains The Balkan mountain range is located in the eastern part of the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border between Bulgaria and Serbia. It then runs f ...

along most of the northern horizon behind Vitosha and Sredna Gora, the Rhodope Mountains to the southeast, Pirin to the south, Osogovo and Ruy Mountain to the west, and of course, the rest of

Rila Rila (, ) is the highest mountain range of Bulgaria, the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, and Southeast Europe. It is situated in southwestern Bulgaria and forms part of the Rila–Rhodope Mountains, Rhodope Massif. The highest summit is Musala at an e ...

. A cosmic ray station was built on the peak in 1960 with cooperation from the Hungarian Academy of Science. The station conducted scientific experiments using a muon telescope. The station was destroyed by an electrical fire on October 29, 1983. With an average annual temperature of -2.2 °C, Musala is the coldest place in Bulgaria and the entire Balkan Peninsula. Temperatures stay below 0 °C for about 8 months each year. Due to this, about 45% of the annual precipitation on Musala is snow, and snow cover lasts for about 200 days (more than six months). Three of the main rivers of Bulgaria, the

Iskar Iskar may refer to: ;Bulgaria * Iskar (river), a river in western Bulgaria * Iskar Reservoir, situated on the Iskar River * Iskar (town), a town in the Iskar Municipality of the Pleven Province * Iskar Municipality * Iskar, Sofia, one of 24 munici ...

Maritsa Maritsa or Maritza ( ), also known as Evros ( ) and Meriç ( ), is a river that runs through the Balkans in Southeast Europe. With a length of ,

and Mesta have their sources near Musala. The next highest peaks in the vicinity of Musala are Malka (Little) Musala () and Irechek ().

Climate

Musala has an alpine climate with long, cold winters and short, cool summers. Usually, through winter, the temperatures do not exceed the freezing point for months. Snow cover lasts for about 8–9 months. Through the summer, temperatures rarely go above 14-15C. The summer season only lasts for 2 months, and snowfalls are possible. For the period 1931–2013, the highest recorded temperature was , and the lowest - . The average annual temperature is , which makes the peak the coldest place in Bulgaria.

Namesakes

Musala Glacier on Greenwich Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Musala Peak.

Gallery

Image:BASA-131K-1-47-10-Musala, Rila.jpeg Image:Bulgaria - Rila - Musala april 2006.jpg, Hikers near the summit of Musala. The pyramid in the background is the Everest shelter Image:Pirinfrommusala.JPG, The Pirin Mountains can be seen from Musala Image:Maritsaorigin2.JPG, The origin of the

Maritsa Maritsa or Maritza ( ), also known as Evros ( ) and Meriç ( ), is a river that runs through the Balkans in Southeast Europe. With a length of ,

River seen from Musala Image:Musala.JPG, Musala as seen from Yastrebets. The chalet Musala and the Everest shelter can be seen as well.

References

External links

Musala – controllable web camera

Musala climb on youtube
{{Highest points of Europe Geography of Europe Highest points of countries Two-thousanders of Bulgaria Landforms of Sofia Province Samokov Municipality Mountains of Rila De-Stalinization

Climate

Namesakes

Gallery

See also

References

External links