The bay, called Anadyr, is the largest in the Bering Sea, which is located in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. It lies between two capes called Navarin and Chukotsky. It has many small bays and coves and two large ones. These are the Anadyr Estuary and the Gulf of the Cross, located in the depths of the Anadyr Gulf.
Discovery history
The Gulf of Anadyr, also called the Anadyr Bay, was discovered by the famous Russian navigator Semyon Dezhnev in 1648. He founded the Anadyr prison, which later grew into the city of Anadyr. The first map of the Gulf of Anadyr was drawn in 1665 by the Yenisei Cossack, explorer Kurbat Ivanov, the compiler of maps of the Far East and the discoverer of Lake Baikal. Ivanov served in the Anadyr prison. Together with a group of industrialists, in 1660, in the spring, he sailed across the bay to Cape Chukotsky.
Geographic location, description
As you can see on the map, the Gulf of Anadyr is located south of the Chukchipeninsulas. Its geographic coordinates are 64◦ s. w and 178◦ w. e.
The width of the bay at the entrance to it is 400 kilometers. The length is about 280 kilometers, the greatest recorded depth is 105 meters. Several rivers, more or less large, flow into the bay, including Kanchalan, Tumanskaya, Velikaya, Anadyr.
Anadyr Estuary
Directly into the Anadyr estuary, in which several components are also distinguished, the rivers Kanchalan (into the Kanchalan estuary), Anadyr and Velikaya (into Onemen Bay), Avtatkuul and the Third River flow. It is on its shore that the city of Anadyr is located, the easternmost in Russia, which is the administrative center of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The distance from it to the capital of the state is 6192 kilometers. The time here differs from Moscow by +9 hours (Kamchatka time zone).
On the other side of the estuary, in the village of Coal Mines, lies Anadyr Airport. Airplanes fly from here to the settlements of Chukotka, as well as to Khabarovsk and Moscow. The seaport of the city is the largest in the region. Navigation here lasts only four months: it starts on July 1 and ends on November 1. The estuary is separated from the Gulf of Anadyr by two spits: Gek Land and Russian Cat.
Bay Cross
The bay is located off the southern coast of the Chukchi Peninsula. It was opened by Semyon Dezhnev. Mapped also by Kurbat Ivanov (originally named Nochan). It was renamed in honor of the feast of the Holy Life-Giving Cross of the Lord by Vitus Bering in 1728year.
The depth of the sea in the bay is about 70 meters. It crashes into land for 102 kilometers. At the entrance it is narrower than in the middle part: 25 and 43 kilometers respectively.
Natural conditions, flora and fauna
The climate here, as expected, is very severe, subarctic, maritime. The average temperature in July is +11 degrees, in January - 22 below zero. The average annual air temperature is about 7 degrees below zero. Almost the entire year in the Bering Sea, the Gulf of Anadyr (after whom the sea is named, it is clear without explanation) is covered with ice.
Anadyr is located in the permafrost zone, and most of its buildings are built on piles. Summer here is very short: in May and October the air temperature is often below zero. However, winter indicators are still less severe than in other territories of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, located inland, due to the proximity of the sea.
Precipitation in this region falls mainly in summer (about 350 mmHg per year). Water in August warms up to an average of 12 degrees above zero, the recorded absolute maximum is 16.9 degrees above zero.
The waters of the bay are rich in fish. These are flounder, and salmon, and cod, and capelin. The main commercial species is chum salmon. Bowhead and gray whales live in the bay. You can also see polar bears here. Seven species of mammals living in the bay are listed in the Red Book.
The shores of the Gulf of Anadyr are marshy or mountainous tundra. Plants here are predominantly stunted: arctic willow,skinny birch, from berries - blueberries, cranberries. Shrubs grow in river valleys. Most of all here are mosses and lichens, the most unpretentious and hardy representatives of the flora.
Interesting fact
In 2011 and 2012, in the region of Anadyr and Mount Dionisia, respectively, scientists discovered the remains of fossil forests of the Paleocene era. The discovery was surprising, since there was no evidence of forests growing here in ancient times. The plants found in the area of Mount Dionisia were subsequently identified as the so-called Temlyan flora (Temlyan is the name of the mountain in the Chukchi language). Among them are flowering, coniferous plants.
