Dr Zulfiyor Bakhtiyorov
Dr Zulfiyor Bakhtiyorov is a dendrochronologist and climate scientist whose research uses tree-ring records to reconstruct past climate and hydrological variability, particularly across Central Asia and the Caucasus. He is currently a Researcher in the Tree-Ring Unit, Department of Geography, at the University of Cambridge, working in collaboration with Professor Ulf Büntgen. His research combines field sampling, dendrochronological analysis, climate reconstruction, and the development of computational tools for tree-ring science.
Over more than a decade, he has developed an international research programme spanning Tajikistan, China, Georgia, Russia, and the United Kingdom. His work has produced multi-century reconstructions of river flow and temperature in regions where long instrumental records are scarce. Among his principal contributions are a reconstruction of Kafirnigan River streamflow in Tajikistan back to 1568 CE, a reconstruction of Kura River streamflow in Georgia from 1720 to 2021, and a tree-ring blue-intensity reconstruction of Greater Caucasus temperatures since 1780.
He is also developing open-source analytical tools, including RWLApp, to make advanced dendrochronological methods more accessible, and is an inventor on two patents for tree-ring sampling equipment. His longer-term research aims to extend high-resolution palaeoclimate records in Central Asia to millennial timescales and connect them more directly with questions of water security and climate attribution.
Select publications
- Bakhtiyorov, Z., Arzac, A., Kadioglu, A.K., Norman, C., Bebchuk, T., Santarius, P., Buermann, E., Habibulloev, S., Tao, H., Chen, F., Krusic, P.J., Kirdyanov, A.V., & Büntgen, U. (2026). An integrated workflow App for advanced tree-ring analyses: RWLApp. Dendrochronologia, 98, 126550. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dendro.2026.126550
- Bakhtiyorov, Z., Chen, F., Chen, Y., Wang, S., Zhang, H., Hu, M., Yue, W., Habibulloev, S., Kavtaradze, G., & Gurskaya, M. (2024). Historical drivers and future streamflow variations of the Kura River, Western Transcaucasia, Georgia: tree-ring chronologies from 1720 to 2021 CE. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 112529. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2024.112529
- Bakhtiyorov, Z., Chen, F., Chen, Y., Wang, S., Zhang, H., Hu, M., Yue, W., Habibulloev, S., Kavtaradze, G., & Rahmonov, O. (2025). Tree-ring blue-intensity reconstruction of the April–September maximum temperature in the Greater Caucasus region of Georgia since 1780 CE. International Journal of Biometeorology, 1–16.
- Wu, X., Tang, W., Chen, F., Wang, S., Bakhtiyorov, Z., et al. (2025). Attribution and risk projections of hydrological drought over water-scarce Central Asia. Earth’s Future, 13, e2024EF005243. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EF005243
- Khan, A., Chen, F., Saleem, S., Chen, Y., Zhang, H., & Bakhtiyorov, Z. (2024). Tree-ring maximum latewood density reveals unprecedented warming in the upper Indus Basin, northern Pakistan. Science of the Total Environment, 177393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177393
- Chen, Y., Opała-Owczarek, M., Chen, F., Owczarek, P., Zhang, H., Wang, S., Hu, M., Satylkanov, R., Ermenbaev, B., & Bakhtiyorov, Z. (2023). Tree-ring perspective on past and future mass balance of the Tuyuksu Glacier, Kazakhstan. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 111696. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2023.111696
- Chen, F., Chen, Y., Bakhtiyorov, Z., Zhang, H., Man, W., & Chen, F. (2020). Central Asian river streamflows have not continued to increase during the recent warming hiatus. Atmospheric Research, 246, 105124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2020.105124
- Yue, W., Chen, F., Solomina, O., Esper, J., Davi, N.K., Büntgen, U., … Bakhtiyorov, Z., … & Chen, F. (2025). Drought facilitated the westward expansion of the Mongol Empire in the 1230s. Fundamental Research.
Select awards
- Outstanding International Graduate Award, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences — 2018
- Best Paper Award, International Forum for Graduate Students on Resources & Environment, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences — 2017
Further links
https://www.geog.cam.ac.uk/people/bakhtiyorov/
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7658-6536
