Abstract
The global environmental crisis of the Aral Sea has garnered the attention of researchers in recent decades, leading to an increase in studies on changes in the water area and its environmental impact. While most research on the Aral Sea focuses on the past fifty years, there is a lack of information on quantitative changes from its inception to becoming an environmental disaster. Our aim is to utilize historical maps to examine the Aral Sea's area in different years and trace its evolution before the environmental crisis. By reviewing scientific papers and maps using international search engines and electronic resources, we analyzed the area of the Aral Sea on historical maps with the ArсGIS 10.4.1 GIS program. The data from 1716 to 1967 reveals that the area was 10 320 km2 in 1716, expanding to 20 538 km2 in 1742 and reaching a peak of 71 009 km2 in 1848-1849. Subsequently, the area decreased slightly to 63 691 km2 by 1907 before rising again to 66 836 km2 by 1967. It is worth noting that pre-1848-1849 historical maps may have more inaccuracies due to limited scientific knowledge and mapping techniques.