russia and the former soviet republics ch. 15-1: physical geography
TRANSCRIPT
Russia and the Former Soviet Republics
Ch. 15-1: Physical Geography
Western Republics Belarus Estonia Latvia Lithuania Moldova Ukraine
Central Asian
Republics Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan
Former Soviet RepublicsTranscaucasia Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia
Physical Geography:
The Caspian Sea Ural Mountains Caucasus Mountains Turan Plain The Kara Kum Northern European Plain West Siberian Plain Black Sea Lake Baikal Aral Sea
Caspian Sea largest inland lake
covering 143,630 square miles
Bordered by Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan
Caspian Sea - Kazakhstan
Ural Mountains•run north-south separating Russia into a European section and an Asian section
•old range of rounded peaks
•contain rich mineral resources.
Caucasus Mountains Separate the
Caspian Sea from the Black Sea.
Mt. Elbrus – tallest peak, 18,510 ft
Khinalug settlement in Azerbaijan has a history of 5,000 years and is among the most ancient places in the world.
View of a gorge in the Caucasus Mountains in Chechnya
The Turan Plain and Kara Kum Desert
The Kara Kum is one of central Asia’s largest deserts covering the country of Turkmenistan.
Turan Plain-lowland between Caspian Sea and mountains
The Northern European Plain: Black Earth Belt
Chernozem-black earth, abundant on this plain
Agricultural center
75% of people in the region live here
Northern European Plain
Ural Mountains
The West Siberian Plain The Urals separate The
West Siberian Plains from the Northern European Plain.
worlds largest flat region.
Covered with swamps and marshes, the area is too flat to drain well.
Black Sea Coast A mild climate and beautiful scenery make
the Black Sea coast a popular vacation spot.
Lake Baikal Deepest lake in the
world. The lake stretches
400 miles from north to south.
It holds nearly 20% of the world’s fresh water.
Aral Sea
Armenia In a seismic region earthquakes occur
often. Between Black
and Caspian Seas
Azerbaijan The capital,
Baku, lies in one of the world’s major producing areas.
The major source of wealth for the economy is oil.
Russia
largest country in the world
covers 1/3 of the continent of Europe and ½ of the continent of Asia.
Russia’s Famous Caviar Comes from sturgeon
caught in the Caspian Sea.
Caviar is salted sturgeon eggs!