Download Russia and Central Asia

Russia and Central Asia
Physical Characteristics
Vast land area
Spans two continents, Europe and Asia
--Population concentrated on the European side
--More land on the Asian side
Covers 11 time zones
--Russia spans roughly 170 degrees of longitude (almost half the globe)
--Russia almost touches the US state of Alaska
Difficulties of governing Russia due to size and other physical features:
--communication and transportation difficulties
--different economic and cultural activities
Vast areas of:
Tundra—completely frozen; northern Siberia; no vegetation
Permafrost—ground is covered with permanent frost; little or no vegetation; most
of Siberia
Taiga—cold, but plenty of rainfall; tall trees
Steppe—large grasslands; east of Caucasus Mountains, below Ural Mountains
Varied climate regions
--tundra in far north
--mild climates (humid continental) across Northern European Plain in western
Russia and can support agricultural activity
--deserts to the east of the Caspian Sea (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, etc.)
Black earth belt
--Rich chernozem soil; rich in nutrients; great for farming
--From the Ukraine across the steppes of southern Russia below the Urals
Mountains
Caucasus
--Between Black Sea and Caspian Sea
--Rebellious Russian region of Chechnya is located here
Ural Mountains
--Divide Europe from Asia
--Mountain range runs from N Russia at the Kara Sea (Arctic Ocean) to the
steppe and desert regions above the Aral Sea
Siberia
--“the sleeping land”
--located east of the Ural Mountains
--major source of natural resources such as oil, natural gas, and minerals
--many resources are difficult and/or expensive to develop because of cold
temperatures; vast distances from civilized areas, and a lack of
transportation infrastructure
Water features
--Volga River: longest river in Europe; flows past Moscow in NW Russia to the
Caspian Sea; very polluted
--Ob River: flows north from mountains in south central Russia past the central
steppes and through Siberia into the Arctic Ocean
--Amur River: forms part of border between Russia and China; flows east into the
seas of the Pacific Ocean
--Lake Baikal: in Siberia, just above Mongolian border; fed by 336 rivers; hold
20% of world’s freshwater; deepest lake in the world; surrounded by mountains
--Caspian Sea: world’s largest landlocked sea; sometimes referred to as the
world’s largest lake; man-made canal connects it to the Black Sea; located
between Europe and Asia SW of the Urals; rich in energy resources such as oil
and natural gas
--Aral Sea: located in the desert/steppe areas below the Urals; shared by
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan; shrinking since the 1960s because of Soviet decision
to divert rivers to stimulate cotton production; very polluted because of weapons
testing and chemical runoff from farms and industries especially during the Soviet
era
--Bering Sea: located to the NE of Russia; includes Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and
the Bering Strait that separates Russia from Alaska
--Pacific Ocean: located to the east of Russia
--Arctic Ocean: located to the north of Russia; most ports on the Arctic Ocean are
frozen during parts of the year; some rivers flow north into the Arctic Ocean such
as the Ob River