Between the West Siberian and East European plains stretches a geographic region of Russia called the Urals. It is he who divides the mainland of Eurasia into two conditional parts: Europe and Asia. The area is divided into 5 components: Northern and Southern, Middle, Polar and Subpolar Urals. Sometimes spur regions are distinguished: Pai-Khoi and Mugodzhary. The climate of the Urals will be discussed in this article.
Small feature
The mountain range stretched from north to south, more than 2 thousand km long. The Ural Mountains are relatively low: average heights of peaks reach from 300 to 1200 m. The highest point is Narodnaya, its height is 1895 m. Administratively, the mountains of this region belong to the Ural Federal District, and in the south they cover part of Kazakhstan.
Due to the fact that the peaks have a narrow width, and the height of the hills is small, there is no pronounced weather for such areas of the territory. The climate of the Urals has its own distinctivefeatures. Mountains have a significant influence on the distribution of air masses due to the fact that they are elongated meridionally. They can be called a barrier that does not let the western air masses inland. For this reason, the amount of precipitation in the territory also varies: the eastern slopes receive less precipitation - 400-550 mm / year; western - 600-800 mm / year. Also, the latter are more susceptible to the influence of air masses, the climate here is humid, temperate. But the eastern slope is located in a drier continental belt.
Climatic zones
The territory covers two climatic zones: in the far north of the Ural Mountains, the subarctic zone, the rest lies within the temperate climate.
It should be remembered that the weather of the Ural Mountains obeys the law of latitudinal zoning, and it is here that it is especially pronounced.
Pai Hoi
This old mountain range is located in the far north of the Ural Mountains. The highest point of this area is the city of Moreiz (height 423 m). The linear upland of Pai-Khoi is not a mountain range, but separate hilly uplands. The climate of the Urals in this area is pronounced subarctic, altitudinal zonality is not observed. This is a region of permafrost, winter dominates here for most of the year, and the average air temperature in January is 20 ° C below zero, in July - + 6 ° C. The minimum marks in winter can reach -40°C. Due to the peculiarities of the climate, the natural tundra zone is expressed on Pai-Khoi.
Polar Urals
Northern part of the Ural ridge. Conditional borders. Konstantinov stone in the north and r. Khulga in the south. The region stretches for 400 km, the width is from 25 to 125 km. Mount Payer (1499 m) is the highest elevation. Cold and snowy winters, strong winds, high rainfall are the features of the weather in this region. We can say that the climate of the Urals is quite severe here. It has the characteristic features of a sharply continental one. The minimum air temperature in winter is -50°С. Summer and spring are short, several days a year the mark can rise to + 30 ° C, but it can only last a few hours.
Subpolar Urals (climate)
Conditional borders of the region - r. Khulga in the north and Telposiz in the south. This is the highest part of the Ural Mountains. Here is the most distinctive peak - Narodnaya. Glaciers can be found on the tops. Also, in the Subpolar Urals, the largest amount of snow falls than in other regions. Average air temperatures in winter are minus 22°C, summers are warmer than in the Polar Urals, the atmosphere warms up to +12°C. Summer lasts here only 1.5 months. The maximum amount of precipitation can exceed 1000 mm/year. Therefore, the Subpolar Urals, whose climate does not entirely please heat-loving people, is not recommended for families.
North Urals
The conditional border from the mountain range, called the Kosvinsky stone, in the south to the city of Telposiz. The peculiarity of the region is that it extends over several parallel ridges, between which there are ridges up to 60 km wide. At the foot of the mountains there are impenetrable forests and swamps. Because of this, this region is very difficult, difficult to pass and poorly studied.
The climate of the Northern Urals is harsh. On the tops of the mountains, snowfields lie all year round. In some places, small perpetual glaciers have also been found. The height of the snow cover in the mountains is 1.5-2 m. The climate of the Northern Urals is considered quite dangerous. After all, it is in this region that the impassable Dyatlov Pass is located, which became known after the tragic events of 1959. A group of student tourists died in this place under unclear circumstances.
Middle Urals
Conditional borders: Kosvinsky stone in the north and the city of Yurma in the south. The length is 400 km, a well-defined geographical feature: the region resembles an arc. This is the area with the lowest elevations. The climate of the Middle Urals has a pronounced continental affiliation. The average mark in January is minus 18°С, and the temperature in July often reaches +18°С. Maximum frosts can reach -50°С, winter lasts steadily from November to April. The rest of the seasons are short with sharply changeable weather. The climate of the Middle Urals, unfortunately, can only please you with cool, windy and rainy summers.
Mugodzhary
Row of low stone hills, southern spur of the Ural Mountains. The entire territory is located on the border of Kazakhstan. Small heights of 300-400 m, in connection with this, the territory has a continental dry climate. There is no snow cover, freezing temperatures are rare, as is precipitation.
South Ural
Lengthregion 550 km, stretches from the river. Ural in the south to the river. Ufa in the north. The widest part of the Ural Mountains. The climate of the Southern Urals is continental, most correctly expressed: cold winters give way to hot summers. Coolness is brought here by the Asian anticyclone, and hot weather is determined by tropical winds coming from Asia. A frequent occurrence in winter is snowstorms and snowstorms. The snow cover is stable and lasts 170 days. Average temperatures: January – -22°С, July – +19°С. Therefore, the climate of the Southern Urals can be confidently called one of the most stable.
