Eastern Siberia is part of the Asian territory of the Russian Federation. It is located from the borders of the Pacific Ocean to the Yenisei River. This zone has an extremely harsh climate and limited fauna and flora.
Geographic description
Eastern and Western Siberia occupy almost two-thirds of the territory of Russia. They are located on the plateau. The eastern zone covers an area of about 7.2 million square meters. km. Its possessions extend up to the Sayan mountain ranges. Most of the territory is represented by the tundra lowland. The mountains of Transbaikalia play a significant role in the formation of the relief.
Despite the harsh climatic conditions, there are quite a lot of large cities in Eastern Siberia. The most attractive from an economic point of view are Norilsk, Irkutsk, Chita, Achinsk, Yakutsk, Ulan-Ude, etc. The zone includes the Zabaikalsky and Krasnoyarsk Territories, the republics of Yakutia, Buryatia, Tuva and other administrative regions.
The main type of vegetation is taiga. It will be washed from Mongolia to the borders of the forest-tundra. Occupies over 5 million sq. km. Most of the taiga is represented by coniferous forests, which make up 70% of the localvegetation. Soils develop unevenly relative to natural zones. In the taiga zone the soil is favorable, stable, in the tundra zone it is rocky and frozen. However, they are much less than in the same Western Siberia. But in the eastern region, arctic deserts and deciduous plantings are often found.
Terrain characteristics
Eastern Siberia of Russia is at a high level above the sea. All the fault of the plateau, which is located in the middle part of the zone. Here the height of the platform varies from 500 to 700 meters above sea level. The relative averageness of the region is noted. The highest points are the Lena interfluve and the Vilyui plateau - up to 1700 meters.
The base of the Siberian platform is represented by a crystalline folded basement, on which there are huge sedimentary layers up to 12 kilometers thick. The north of the zone is determined by the Aldan shield and the Anabar massif. The average soil thickness is about 30 kilometers.
Today, the Siberian platform contains several main types of rocks. These are marble, and schist, and charnockite, etc. The oldest deposits date back to 4 billion years. Igneous rocks were formed as a result of eruptions. Most of these deposits are found in the Central Siberian Plateau, as well as in the Tunguska depression.
Modern relief is a combination of lowlands and uplands. Rivers flow in the valleys, swamps form, on the hills it is betterconiferous trees grow.
Features of the water area
It is generally accepted that the Far East faces the Arctic Ocean with its "facade". The eastern region borders on such seas as the Kara, Siberian and Laptev. Of the largest lakes, it is worth highlighting Baikal, Lama, Taimyr, Pyasino and Khantayskoye.
Rivers flow in deep valleys. The most significant of them are the Yenisei, Vilyui, Lena, Angara, Selenga, Kolyma, Olekma, Indigirka, Aldan, Lower Tunguska, Vitim, Yana and Khatanga. The total length of the rivers is about 1 million km. Most of the inland basin of the region belongs to the Arctic Ocean. Other external water areas include such rivers as Ingoda, Argun, Shilka and Onon.
The main source of nutrition for the inner basin of Eastern Siberia is the snow cover, which has been melting in large volumes under the influence of sunlight since the beginning of summer. The next most important role in the formation of the continental water area is played by rains and groundwater. The basin's runoff is highest in summer.
The Kolyma is considered the largest and most important river in the region. Its water area occupies more than 640 thousand square meters. km. The length is about 2.1 thousand km. The river originates in the Upper Kolyma Highlands. Water consumption exceeds 120 cubic meters per year. km.
Eastern Siberia: climate
The formation of the meteorological features of the region is determined by its territorial location. The climate of Eastern Siberia can be briefly described as continental, consistently severe. There are significant seasonalfluctuations in cloudiness, temperature, precipitation levels. The Asian anticyclone forms vast areas of high pressure in the region, especially this phenomenon occurs in winter. On the other hand, severe frost makes air circulation changeable. Because of this, temperature fluctuations at different times of the day are more significant than in the west.
The climate of North-Eastern Siberia is represented by changeable air masses. It is characterized by increased precipitation and dense snow cover. This area is dominated by continental flows, which are rapidly cooling in the ground layer. That is why in January the temperature drops to a minimum. Arctic winds prevail at this time of the year. Often in winter, you can observe air temperatures down to -60 degrees. Basically, such minima are inherent in depressions and valleys. On the plateau, the indicators do not fall below -38 degrees.
Warming is observed with the arrival of air flows from China and Central Asia to the region.
Winter climate
It is not for nothing that it is believed that Eastern Siberia has the most difficult and harsh natural conditions. The table of temperature indicators in winter is proof of this (see below). These indicators are presented as average values for the last 5 years.
| Average temperature, С | Minimum indicators, С | |
| December | - 27 | - 38 |
| January | - 42 | - 60 |
| February | -25 | - 45 |
Due to the increased dryness of the air, the constancy of the weather and the abundance of sunny days, such low rates are easier to tolerate than in a humid climate. One of the defining meteorological characteristics of winter in Eastern Siberia is the absence of wind. Most of the season there is a moderate calm, so there are practically no blizzards and snowstorms here.
Interestingly, in the middle part of Russia, a frost of -15 degrees is felt much stronger than in Siberia -35 C. Nevertheless, such low temperatures significantly worsen the living conditions and activities of local residents. All living quarters have thickened walls. Expensive fuel boilers are used to heat buildings. The weather begins to improve only with the onset of March.
Warm seasons
In fact, the spring in this region is short, as it comes late. Eastern Siberia, whose climate changes only with the arrival of warm Asian air currents, begins to wake up only by mid-April. It is then that the stability of positive temperatures during the daytime is noted. Warming comes in March, but it is insignificant. By the end of April, the weather begins to change for the better. In May, the snow cover completely melts, the vegetation blooms.
During the summer in the south of the region, the weather becomes relatively hot. This is especially true for the steppe zone of Tuva, Khakassia and Transbaikalia. In July, the temperature here rises to +25 degrees. The highest rates are observed on flat terrain. It is still cool in the valleys and highlands. If we take the whole of Eastern Siberia, then the average summer temperature here is from +12 to +18 degrees.
Climate features in autumn
Already at the end of August, the first frosts begin to envelop the Far East. They are observed mainly in the northern part of the region at night. During the day the bright sun shines, it rains with sleet, sometimes the wind intensifies. It is worth noting that the transition to winter is much faster than from spring to summer. In the taiga, this period takes about 50 days, and in the steppe area - up to 2.5 months. All these are characteristic features that distinguish Eastern Siberia from other northern zones.
The climate in autumn is also represented by an abundance of rains coming from the west. Moist Pacific winds blow most often from the east.
Precipitation levels
Relief is responsible for the circulation of the atmosphere in Eastern Siberia. Both the pressure and the speed of air mass flows depend on it. About 700 mm of precipitation falls annually in the region. The maximum indicator for the reporting period is 1000 mm, the minimum is 130 mm. Precipitation level is not clear.
On the plateau in the middle lane it rains more often. Due to this, the amount of precipitation sometimes exceeds the mark of 1000 mm. The most arid region is Yakutsk. Here the amount of precipitation varies within 200 mm. The least rain falls between February and March - up to 20 mm. The western regions of Transbaikalia are considered the optimal zones for vegetation with respect to precipitation.
Permafrost
Today, there is no place in the world that could compete in terms of continentality and meteorological anomalies with a region called Eastern Siberia. The climate in some areas is striking in its severity. In the immediate vicinity of the Arctic Circle lies the permafrost zone.
This area is characterized by little snow cover and low temperatures throughout the year. Because of this, mountain weather and the ground lose a huge amount of heat, freezing to whole meters in depth. The soils here are mostly stony. Groundwater is underdeveloped, often freezing for decades.
Vegetation of the region
The nature of Eastern Siberia is mostly represented by taiga. Such vegetation extends for hundreds of kilometers from the Lena River to the Kolyma. In the south, the taiga borders on the Sea of Okhotsk. The local possessions are untouched by man. However, due to the arid climate, the threat of large-scale fires always hangs over them. In winter, the temperature in the taiga drops to -40 degrees, but in summer the figures often rise to +20. Precipitation is moderate.
Also, the nature of Eastern Siberia is represented by the tundra zone. This zone is adjacent to the Arctic Ocean. The soils here are bare, the temperature is low, and the humidity is excessive. Flowers such as cotton grass, gravel, poppy, saxifrage grow in mountainous areas. Spruces, willows, poplars, birches, pines can be distinguished from the trees of the region.
Animal world
Almost all districtsEastern Siberia is not rich in fauna. The reasons for this are permafrost, lack of food and underdevelopment of deciduous flora.
The largest animals are the brown bear, lynx, elk and wolverine. Sometimes you can meet foxes, ferrets, stoats, badgers and weasels. Musk deer, sables, deer and bighorn sheep live in the central zone.
Due to the eternally frozen soil, only a few species of rodents are found here: squirrels, chipmunks, flying squirrels, beavers, marmots, etc. But the feathered world is extremely diverse: capercaillie, crossbill, hazel grouse, goose, crow, woodpecker, duck, nutcracker, sandpiper, etc.
