The Western World Daily Readings on Geography Chapter 85 Russian Domain Physical Geography I

CHAPTER 85 Russian Domain Physical Geography I Siberian Rivers by Noun Water rolls downhill . We all know that . Rivers flow downward . Of course . In America , the mighty Mississippi flows southward from Minnesota to Louisiana and into the Gulf of Mexico . Somehow this last fact subconsciously has prompted many Americans to feel intuitively that rivers progress southward . That intuition is incorrect . In Siberia , most rivers flow downward . Of course . However , in Siberia downward generally is to the north . Three of the four giant rivers of Siberia drain northwards . 412

RUSSIAN DOMAIN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY I 413 Starting in western Siberia and the Ural Federal District of Russia , there is the Ob River . Note the spelling of the word Ob is a feature of the Cyrillic alphabet . In the Mountains , the smaller streams of the and Katun Rivers begin , later to merge to become the Ob River . The significant River forms in China also in the Mountains and then roughly parallels the Ob , usually over 100 miles to the west . When the two rivers join , near the city , the surviving name is Ob . This is a bit curious , given that up to that juncture , the River is longer than the Ob River . The length of the Ob is 2270 miles , but the combined River system is measured as the seventh longest . Eventually , the stream widens into Gulf of Ob when it reaches the Kara Sea , a portion of the Arctic Ocean . The Gulf of Ob is the world largest estuary . In the Eastern Federal District of Russia , there is the next huge river of Siberia the . The combined system is considered the world fifth longest . The source of the is in the mountains of northern , its major tributary , the River , flows from Lake . Both the Ob and the have major hydroelectric dams built across their southern tracts , respectively in and . The Reservoir is Siberia largest artificial lake . Ob River . Cartography by Steve . In the Far East Federal District of Russia , the Lena River begins in the mountains along the western side of Lake . The Lena River ( na ) is the giant stream of Siberia , stretching 2734 miles . Huge on global standards as well , the Lena is the river and draws from the world watershed , including from its biggest tributary , the River . Mammoth in a variety of dimensions , the Lena reaches a width of twenty miles across and at the Sea creates a delta over 250 miles wide . The Lena River and its tributaries are entirely within the borders of Russia , unlike the Ob and . River . Cartography by Steve .

414 JOEL QUAM AND SCOTT CAMPBELL Siberia in general and the region of the Lena River as well is a , treasure trove of natural resources and a setting of scarce I population distribution . The primary city along the Lena River is with approximately people . During tsarist times in Russia , after Cossack adventurers reached the Lena River in 1623 , for many years political and criminal exiles were sent to this region ( as well as to many other locations in Siberia and in the Far North ) This pattern was followed and expanded during the Soviet period , in particular in the years of Stalin rule . In addition , workers were enticed to come to the region to develop the region resources ( gold , diamonds , even mammoth tusks , and more ) Workers were paid double or triple wages and even remote locations were developed with infrastructure , transportation links , and social and cultural subsidies . Now in and oligarchic capitalist Russia , these economic infusions have been eliminated , leaving towns and villages along the Lena to diminish in population but increase in social problems and structural ruin . An ironic consequence is that many in the region feel that communism gave them a better life , in some views even better under the terror of Stalin times . The influx of Russian migrants , by exile or voluntary migration , eventually outnumbered the small populations of native people . The people , or as the Russians named them , are the largest group , with and even the Even making up small shares . For the natives , Russian or Soviet influence and domination brought social change both in terms of urbanization and alcoholism , dramatically reducing original culture and ways of life . Lena River . Cartography by Steve . River . False satellite imagery . NASA .

DOMAIN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY I 415 Siberia is the home to a multitude of rivers , from those that sweep vast territories to hundreds of small streams . The overall pattern is that these rivers flow from south to north exiting into any of four major seas ( from west to east Barents , Kara , and East Siberian ) that are subsets of the Arctic Ocean . Given the legendary cold of Siberia , rivers such as the Lena are frozen for many weeks annually . Naturally , the southern portions of the river thaw first , sending its . liquid flowing into the still frozen northern sections . I I . This results in yearly flooding . Abrupt or exaggerated . un , um breakup of caused by this flooding can results in large sections of ice being pushed across land , sometimes devastating towns and villages . Eventually , and again from south to north , the river thaws completely , including the extensive delta which is frozen about seven months of every year . Flooded lowlands become sources of breeding for vast numbers of mosquitoes , horseflies , and other insects . The West Siberian Lowland , the world largest section of continuously flat land , is bisected by the Ob River and is extensively flooded most every spring . I am Main . um . Siberian Rivers . Cartography by Steve . Did You Know ?

The unusual physical and biogeography of the Lena delta has caused it to become a protected area within Russia and to be nominated as a Heritage Site . Pioneer of Soviet communism and the Soviet Union first leader , Vladimir Lenin was born Vladimir , but took the pseudonym Lenin from the Lena River , drawing inferences from the power and magnitude of the river . In the language , the word ob means river . For 38 photos , often spectacular , of the River , its lands , and its peoples , go to Check Your Understanding

416 AND SCOTT CAMPBELL An interactive or media element has been excluded from this version of the text . You can View it online here ?

CITED AND ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Administrator , NASA Content . 2015 . Siberia Lena NASA . April 21 , Jeffrey . 2013 . River of No Reprieve Descending Waterway of Exile , Death , and Destiny . Boston , Mass . Taylor , Alan . 2013 . A Year on the River The Atlantic . August 23 , Steve . Siberian College of GIS class . River . College of GIS class . Lena College of GIS Class . Ob River . College of GIS class .