Flora and fauna of the East Siberian Sea. East-Siberian Sea. Depth, islands, resources and problems of the East Siberian Sea

The largest share of the Arctic Ocean is occupied by the Arctic basin, by the nature of its bottom, half is shelf (the underwater margin of the mainland is called the shelf). The East Siberian Sea belongs precisely to its shelf half, and this determines a lot in it. Silt at its bottom is mixed with sand, crushed small stones, occasionally boulders are witnesses of the geological history of the sea. She continues. The bottom relief is almost even, with a slight slope from the southwest to the northeast, there are no seismic and volcanic centers, significant depressions or rises. Ideally, coast maps East Siberian Sea should be adjusted every year. The main part of the coast (in the west and in the center) is a swampy tundra, seized by permafrost. In recent decades, the permafrost layer has gradually become thinner and the coastline has changed its shape. The same applies to most of the islands, whose sandy soils are covered and punctuated by layers and fragments of fossil ice.
The most general characteristics location of the East Siberian Sea - between New Siberian Islands and an island. Through the straits of Dmitry Laptev, Eterikan, Sannikov and the strait north of the island The boiler room (Anzhu archipelago) in the west is connected to the Laptev Sea, in the east - through the Long Strait - with. The conditional northern boundary coincides with the edge of the continental shelf. From the east, the boundary of the sea runs along the meridian of 180 ° east longitude to Wrangel Island, then along northwest coast this island to Cape Blossom and - along a conditional line connecting it with Cape Yakan on the Arctic coast of Chukotka. From the south, the coastal boundary of the sea extends from Cape Svyatoi Nos in the west to Cape Yakan.
Most of the year the sea is covered with ice, navigation is possible from August to October. The direction of ice drift depends on cyclonic processes in the atmosphere, which affects both the speed and direction of currents. In winter, an area of ​​high pressure develops near the pole, in addition, at western edge The seas are penetrated by cyclones from the Atlantic, although occasionally, not too often, but into its eastern regions from the Pacific Ocean, more often than the Atlantic ones. Plus, the spur of the Siberian maximum (an extensive anticyclone), which goes to the coast and carries cold air from the continent. In summer, ice drifts to the northwest at a speed of 3-8 km per day. The most ice-free space is formed by the end of summer in the western part of the sea, when the so-called Novosibirsk (named after the islands) fast ice in the eastern part melts. The ice that separates from the Ayon oceanic ice mass stays near the eastern shores of the sea, as a rule, all summer, receding to the north only near the mouths of the rivers with their warmer waters.
The sea acquired its current name only in 1935 at the suggestion of the Russian geographical society. Prior to that, it was called either Indigirsky or Kolyma. Due to the harsh climate, the flora and fauna of the sea itself and the earth's firmament in its region are not very diverse and lag behind even the neighboring seas. And yet, at the end of summer (the warmest period in the tundra), even daisies appear along the banks of the rivers. Among the ice, polar bears prey on the walruses and seals that live here, herds of reindeer roam the tundra, arctic foxes run, guillemots, gulls, and cormorants nest on the rocks. In the mouths of the rivers there are omul, whitefish, white salmon, polar smelt, salmon char and nelma, and other species. At the same time, it should be noted that the waters of the sea and the rivers flowing into it are primordially clean, pollution that is not critical for environment, are noted in the area of ​​the Pevek port, where there are no treatment facilities yet, and the Chaun Bay.

As for the history of human settlement of the shores of this sea, all the information here is based mainly on the theoretical calculation of the migration routes of the ancestors of the Evens, Evenks, Yakuts and Chukchi. Fantastic figures are called up to 3 million years ago. But another figure seems to be more reliable, supported by archaeological finds in the mainland of Yakutia - about 10 thousand years ago. Although the question is, did these people get to the ocean in prehistoric times? This is indirectly confirmed cave drawings near Pevek, but their age has not yet been determined.
Since the 17th century Kochi of Russian Cossacks went by sea. They were brave, experienced and gambling people, but also pragmatic, and they, of course, already knew something about the fur-bearing animals of these regions, and about placer deposits of gold and tin in Indigirka and Kolyma. There is a mythology that Pomors walked along " open water” off these shores as early as the 13th century, but accurate evidence of these events has not been preserved. Between the mouths of the Indigirka and the Kolyma, the Cossack Mikhailo Stadukhin was the first to sail in 1644 and founded the Nizhnekolymsky prison. In 1648, his assistant Semyon Dezhnev went from the mouth of the Kolyma and further through the Long Strait and to the Gulf of Anadyr, where he founded the city of Anadyr. The history of the discovery of the islands of the sea begins in 1712, when Mercury Vagin and Yakov Permyakov discovered the Big and Small Lyakhovsky Islands. During the Great Northern Expedition (1733-1743) the first maps of the sea were drawn up. In 1849, the Briton Henry Kellett discovered Wrangel Island (belonging to the East Siberian and Chukchi Seas) and named it after his ship - Herald. But in 1867, the American whaler Thomas Long gave him a different name: in honor of the Russian navigator Ferdinand Wrangel. Wrangel himself knew about the existence of the island from the Chukchi, but could not find it. The last of the archipelagos of the sea were the islands of de Long, as a result of the drift of the American schooner Jeannette with captain J. De Long. In 1878-1879, the Swede N. Nordenskiöld became the first navigator who, in 1875, managed to pass the Northern by sea along the entire coast of Asia (with one wintering). At the beginning of the XX century. the sea was studied by geologist K. A. Vollosovich (1900-1901) and hydrographer G. Ya. Sedov (1909), as well as the hydrographic expedition of the Northern Arctic Ocean on the icebreakers "Vaigach" and "Taimyr" (1911-1915). For the first time in one navigation sea ​​route(NSR) was passed by the expedition of O. Yu. Schmidt in 1932 on the icebreaker "Sibiryakov", transportation started in 1935 Modern period navigation is counted from 1978, from the beginning of the use of nuclear icebreakers of the Arktika series.
The first port of the East Siberian Sea was Ambarchik. In 1932, “enemies of the people”, mostly former “kulaks”, were brought here along the Kolyma from Vladivostok. In 1935, several thousand people already lived here, however, the word “lived” in this case is not entirely accurate, it was not a village, but a camp of Dalstroy, an industrial division of the Gulag. In 1935, the most important hydrometeorological station for monitoring this region of the Arctic was opened here. And a transit prison for the repressed. ... And here is the evidence of 2011. Six people live at the station, the port no longer exists, although ships sometimes anchor in the Ambarchik Bay. There are still some ruins of the Gulag era, entangled in rusty barbed wire, but the modest monument to the victims of repressions has not been abandoned. The port of Pevek was built in 1951, by the same forces, a city developed around it. But the economic cataclysms of the last 20 years have also affected him, work has become less and less, life is becoming more expensive, the city's infrastructure is getting worse. And, of course, people leave. However, Pevek still has prospects. First, it works in conjunction with the port Green Cape in Kolyma, which gives room for maneuver, secondly, it has deep-water berths, and most importantly, a program for the industrial development of Chukotka until 2020 has been adopted, and the development of significant gold deposits of Maiskoye and Kupol has begun.

general information

A sea in northeastern Russia, located entirely above the Arctic Circle, in the Arctic Basin of the Arctic Ocean.
Location: between the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island.
Major bays: Chaun Bay, Kolyma Bay, Omulyakh Bay.
Major flowing rivers: Kolyma, Indigirka, Alazeya, Big Chukochya.
Major islands: Novosibirsk, Bear, Aion Island.
The most important port: Pevek, 130 km from the mouth of the Kolyma, near the village of Chersky, is the port of Zeleny Mys.

Numbers

Area: 913,000 km2.
Volume: 49,000 km3.
Average depth: 54 m.
Water temperature in summer: from +4°С to +8°С (near river mouths), to 0°С and -1°С (in the open sea).
Water temperature in winter: from -1.2°C to -1.8°C.
Salinity: from 5-10% ° in the south to 30% ° in the north.
The area of ​​water freshened by rivers is more than 36% of total area seas.
More than 70% of the sea basin has average depths (about 50 m).
Tides - up to 0.3 m, semi-diurnal.
annual runoff river waters: about 250 km 3 .

Economy

Part of the Northern Sea Route.
Fishing in the mouths of rivers.
Fishing walrus, seal in the sea.

Climate and weather

Arctic.
average temperature January: 30°C.
July average temperature:+2°С.
Average annual rainfall: 200 mm.

Attractions

■ The Wrangel Island Nature Reserve, a World natural heritage UNESCO;
■ Pevek: Chaun district local history museum, rock paintings on the banks of the river Pegtylil;
■ Ambarchik: monument to the victims of repressions; in the bay Ambarchik - commemorative sign"Wind Rose" in honor of G.Ya. Sedov.

Curious facts

■ Kochs of Russian coast-dwellers were first described by the British in the 16th century. The bottom, as well as the cut bow and stern, saved these wooden ships from being squeezed by ice. Kochi XVI-XVII centuries. were about 20 m long and about 6 m wide on average, could carry up to 40 tons of cargo. During the day they covered 150-200 km, while the English ships - about 120 km. A small draft - up to 2 m - made it possible to transport the kochi by land or ice by dragging, to walk on them in shallow water. Design features kochey was first used by Fridtjof Nansen when creating his Fram, on which in 1893-1912. made three expeditions. Admiral S. O. Makarov, developing the design of the world's first icebreaker of the Arctic class "Ermak" in 1897, on the advice of Nansen, also applied the shipbuilding ideas of the Pomors. They are also used in modern icebreakers.
■ Passing Cape Stolbovaya on a rocky island near the Ambarchik Bay, all ships give a long horn when they see the three-meter metal sign "Wind Rose", installed in 1977 in memory of the polar explorer Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov (1877-1914). Sedov is one of the prototypes of Ivan Tatarinov in V. Kaverin's novel "Two Captains", along with Robert Scott, Georgy Brusilov and Vladimir Rusanov.
■ Pomors before going to sea always turned to him with a prayer, calling him "father". And they never talked about a comrade who died on a campaign, "drowned" or "died", only like this: "the sea took."

Already from the name of this natural reservoir it is clear that it is located in the area north coast Eastern Siberia. The boundaries of the sea are mainly represented by imaginary lines. Only in some parts it is limited to dry land. Previously, until the beginning of the 20th century, the sea had several names, including Indigirskoye and Kolyma. Now it is called East Siberian.

After reading the article, you can learn more detailed information about this body of water: characteristics, climatic conditions. It also describes the resources of the East Siberian Sea and the problems that exist today.

Location

The entire sea is located beyond the Arctic Circle. His most south point located off the coast of the Chaun Bay. All its shores belong to the territory of Russia. The sea is located in the Arctic Ocean. This is a place where the impact is almost not felt. warm waters Atlantic Ocean, and the waters of the Pacific have not yet reached it.

The East Siberian Sea is marginal. There are the New Siberian Islands (border with the Laptev Sea), Ayon, Medvezhiy and Shalaurova. The sea itself is located between the Novosibirsk Islands and Wrangel Island. It is connected by straits with the Chukchi and Laptev Seas.

Description and characteristics

In the central and western parts of the coast are sloping, and two lowlands adjoin the coast: Nizhne-Kolymskaya and Yano-Indigirskaya. The spurs of the Chukchi Highlands approach the coast of the eastern part (east of the mouth of the Kolyma). In places, rocky cliffs also formed here. On Wrangel Island, on its western coast, they reach up to 400 meters in height. In the section of the New Siberian Islands, the coastline is monotonous and low-lying. The sea bed is formed by a shelf, whose relief is mostly flat, and it is inclined slightly in a northeasterly direction.

More deep places characteristic of eastern region. The sea here has a depth of up to 54 meters, in the central and western parts - up to 20 meters, and in northern regions- up to 200 meters (isobath - the boundary of the sea). The greatest depth of the East Siberian Sea is about 915 meters, and the average is 54 meters. In other words, this body of water is completely within the continental shelf.

The water surface area is 944,600 sq. km. The waters of the sea communicate with the waters of the Arctic Ocean, in connection with this, the reservoir belongs to the type of marginal continental seas. The volume is approximately 49 thousand cubic meters. km. Almost all year round the air temperature is below zero, so the waters of the sea are always covered with drifting large ice floes several meters thick.

Salinity

The East Siberian Sea has different salinity values ​​in the eastern and western parts. Due to the river runoff in the eastern part, the salt concentration decreases. This figure here is about 10-15 ppm. At the confluence with the sea major rivers salinity almost disappears. Closer to the ice fields, the concentration increases to 30 units. There is also an increase in salinity with depth, where it can reach 32 ppm.

Relief

The coast line has large bends. In this regard, the sea in places pushes the boundaries of the land deep into the mainland, and in places, on the contrary, the land protrudes far into the sea. There are also areas with an almost flat coastline. Small meanders are mainly observed at the mouths of rivers.

The east and west coasts have very different topography. The coast, washed by the sea from the mouth of the Kolyma to the New Siberian Islands, has an almost monotonous landscape. The reservoir in these places borders on swampy tundra. The coast here is flat and low.

A more varied landscape is noted on the coast formed by east of the river Kalymy, but mountains prevail here. The sea to the island of Aion is bordered by small hills, some of which have rather steep slopes. The region of Chaun Bay is characterized by low steep banks.

A large area of ​​the sea floor is covered with a small sedimentary cover. Islands in the East Siberian Sea are not numerous. Most of of which is formed at the expense of the foundation. Based on the results of studies (aeromagnetic surveys), it was determined that the composition of the shelf sediments mainly includes sandy silt, pebbles and crushed boulders. There are suggestions that some of them are fragments of islands. They are scattered throughout the ice. To a greater extent, due to the predominance of flat terrain, the depth of the East Siberian Sea is only 20-25 meters.

Hydrology

Almost the whole year the reservoir is covered with ice. In the eastern areas, even in summer, you can see perennial floating ice. They are driven away from the coast by continental winds to the north. Ice drifts in a northwesterly direction due to the circulation of water, which is affected by anticyclones near the North Pole.

The area of ​​the cyclonic circulation increases, and perennial ice floes from the polar latitudes enter the sea after the weakening of the anticyclone. To date, the system of currents in this reservoir has not been fully studied. But it can be stated with confidence that the water circulation of these places is characterized by a cyclonic character.

This reservoir, in comparison with other representatives of the Arctic Ocean basin, is characterized by not very high river flow. The rivers of the East Siberian Sea are not numerous. The largest river flowing into the sea is the Kolyma. Its stock is approximately 132 cubic meters. km per year. The second in terms of the same characteristic is the Indigirka River, which brings in half the volume of water over the same period. All this has little effect on the general hydrological situation.

The average annual precipitation is from 100 to 200 mm. Due to the absence of trenches in the sea with great depths and due to the fact that a significant area is represented by shallow water, surface water occupy huge spaces.

Climate

IN winter period The East Siberian Sea is under the influence of south and southwest winds. Their speed is about 7 meters per second. also in winter time on the climate of the sea big influence renders the Siberian maximum. Pacific cyclones, prevailing in the southeastern parts of the sea, bring blizzards, strong winds and rather overcast weather with constantly drizzling rain or sleet.

Flora and fauna

The fauna and flora of the East Siberian Sea is similar to the fauna and flora neighboring sea Laptev, since both of them are typically arctic. The same mammals and birds, the same fish as in many other northern seas. Seals, narwhals, sea hares and walruses live here. Polar bears settled on the islands. These places are also favored by a huge number of nesting birds. You can meet here geese: white-fronted and goose. There is also a comb eider and a rather rare black goose. Large bird colonies gather: kittiwakes, gulls, guillemots.

Only locals. It should be noted that large shoals of white fish can be found here in the areas of river mouths. Phytoplankton of the sea is represented by blue-green and diatoms. Sometimes pteropods and tunicates appear. The soil abounds with polychaetes, amphipod crustaceans and isopods. Representatives of mammals are beluga whales, seals, walruses and cetaceans (especially minke whales).

The resources of the East Siberian Sea in terms of flora and fauna are relatively poor. This is primarily due to the rather harsh climate conditions. Only the most frost-resistant representatives took root in these places.

Concluding on the problems

The problems of the East Siberian Sea are similar to the problems of most northern seas. For several years, the biological resources of the region, especially whales, have been destroyed. To date, this has led to a significant reduction in the number of these mammals, as well as the extinction of some species.

The problem of a global nature is the melting of glaciers, which negatively affects local fauna. Mention should also be made of the results of human activity (development of hydrocarbon deposits), which had a negative impact on the state of the reservoir.

Already from the name it is clear that this sea is located off the northern coast. borders East Siberian Sea predominantly conditional lines are, and only in some parts it is limited by land. From the west, the boundary of the sea runs along the Kotelny and further along the eastern boundary. northern border coincides with the edge of the continental shelf. From the east, the boundary of the sea runs along the meridian of 1800 east longitude to, after - along the northwestern coast of this island to Cape Blossom and Cape Yakan, located on the mainland. From the southern part it is limited by the coastline of the mainland (from Cape Yakan to Cape Svyatoy Nos).

Water this sea they communicate well with the waters of the Arctic Ocean, therefore the East Siberian Sea belongs to the type of continental marginal seas. Within the boundaries outlined, the area of ​​this sea is 913 thousand km2. The volume of water is approximately equal to 49 thousand km 3. The average depth of the sea is 54 m, the maximum depth is 915 m.

There are very few islands in the waters of the East Siberian Sea. Coastline The sea has big curves. Thus, in some places the sea pushes the boundaries of the land inland, and in some places the land protrudes into the sea. There are also areas with almost flat coastline. Small meanders are formed mainly in the mouths of rivers. Western and east coasts The East Siberian Sea is very different. The coast, which washes the sea from to the mouth of the Kolyma, is quite monotonous. Here the sea is bordered by wetland areas. These places are characterized by low and gently sloping shores. The coast, located east of Kalyma, has a more diverse landscape, mostly mountains prevail here. As far as the island of Aion, the sea is bordered by small hills, which sometimes have steep slopes. In the area of ​​the Chaun Bay there are low but steep banks.

The underwater relief of the space that the East Siberian Sea occupies represents. This plain has a slight slope from the southwest to the northeast. The bottom of the sea is predominantly flat, without significant depressions and elevations. Most of the water expanses of the East Siberian Sea have a depth of up to 20 - 25 m. The deepest are located at the bottom of the sea in the northeastern part of the mouths of the Indigira and Kolyma rivers. There is an assumption that these trenches used to be areas of river valleys. But later these rivers were flooded with the sea. The western part of the sea is characterized by a shallow depth; this area is called the Novosibirsk Shoal. In the northeast of the sea there are quite deep places. But even here the depth does not exceed 100 m.

East-Siberian Sea

The East Siberian Sea is located in high latitudes, not far from permanent ice. The sea also borders on a wide part of the mainland. In connection with this location of the East Siberian Sea, distinguishing feature: the sea is under the influence of the Atlantic and. Cyclones formed above sometimes enter the western part of the sea. The eastern regions of the sea turn out to be available for Pacific origin. Thus, the climate of the East Siberian Sea can be characterized as polar maritime, which is greatly influenced by the continent. The peculiarity of the continental climate is significantly manifested in winter and summer. In transitional seasons, they do not significantly affect, since during these periods the processes are unstable.

In winter, the Siberian maximum has a great influence on the climate of the East Siberian Sea. This causes the predominance of southwestern and southern ones, the speed of which reaches 6 - 7 m / s. These winds move from the continent and therefore contribute to the spread of cold air. The average temperature in January is about – 28 – 30°С. In winter, the weather is mostly clear. Only sometimes cyclones break the settled calm weather for several days. Atlantic cyclones, which prevail in the western part of the sea, contribute to increased wind and increase. Pacific cyclones, which prevail in the southeastern part of the sea, bring strong winds and cloudy weather. On the coasts with a mountainous landscape, the Pacific cyclone contributes to the formation of a strong wind - foehn. As a result of this storm wind, the temperature rises, while the air becomes less.

In summer, they form over the sea, and over land - lowered. In this regard, the winds blow mainly from the north. At the beginning of the warm season, the winds are not yet gaining sufficient strength, but by the middle of summer their average speed is 6-7 m/s. By the end of summer West Side the sea turns into a zone of strong storms. At this time, this section becomes the most dangerous along the entire route of the Northern Sea Route. Very often the wind speed reaches 10 - 15 m/s. Such strong winds are not observed in the southeastern part of the sea. The wind speed here can only increase in connection with the hair dryers. The constant winds of the north and northeast directions contribute to the preservation low temperatures air. In the northern part of the sea, the average July temperature is about 0 - + 1 ° C, in coastal areas the temperature is slightly higher than +2 - 3 ° С. The influence of ice affects the decrease in the temperature of the northern part of the sea. In the southern part of the sea, proximity to a warm mainland contributes to an increase in temperature. For the East Siberian Sea in summer time cloudy is typical. Very often there are light rains, and occasionally even sleet.

East-Siberian Sea

In autumn, the influence of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans is weakened, which affects the decrease. Thus, the East Siberian Sea is characterized by a cold summer; unstable windy weather in western and eastern regions seas in the summer-autumn period and calm in the central territories.

A small amount of river water enters the East Siberian Sea. During the year, the volume is approximately 250 km3. (most big river flowing into this sea) brings about 132 km 3 per year. One more Indigirka gives 59 km3. The rest of the rivers flowing into the East Siberian Sea are small, so they discharge a small amount of water. The largest number fresh water enters southern part seas. The maximum flow occurs in the summer. Due to the small amount fresh water does not enter far into the sea, but mainly spreads near the mouths of rivers. Due to the fact that the East Siberian Sea has big sizes, river runoff does not have a significant effect on it.

The waters of the East Siberian Sea are relatively clean. Only in the bay of Pevek, slight water pollution was noted, but in Lately the environment is improving. The waters of the Chaun Bay are slightly polluted with hydrocarbons.

Already from the name it is clear that this sea is located off the northern coast of Eastern Siberia. The borders of the East Siberian Sea are mainly conditional lines, and only in some parts it is limited by land. From the west, the boundary of the sea runs along Kotelny Island and further along the eastern boundary of the Laptev Sea. The northern boundary coincides with the edge of the continental shelf. From the east, the boundary of the sea runs along the meridian of 1800 east longitude to Wrangel Island, then along the northwestern coast of this island to Cape Blossom and Cape Yakan, located on the mainland. From the southern part, the East Siberian Sea is limited by the coastline of the mainland (from Cape Yakan to Cape Svyatoy Nos).

The waters of this sea communicate well with the waters of the Arctic Ocean, therefore the East Siberian Sea belongs to the type of continental marginal seas. Within the boundaries outlined, the area of ​​this sea is 913 thousand km2. The volume of water is approximately equal to 49 thousand km3. The average depth of the sea is 54 m, the maximum depth is 915 m.

There are very few islands in the waters of the East Siberian Sea. The coastline of the sea has large bends. Thus, in some places the sea pushes the boundaries of the land inland, and in some places the land protrudes into the sea. There are also areas with almost flat coastline. Small meanders are formed mainly in the mouths of rivers. The relief of the western and eastern coasts of the East Siberian Sea is very different. The coast, which washes the sea from the New Siberian Islands to the mouth of the Kolyma, has a fairly monotonous landscape. Here the sea borders on areas of swampy tundra. These places are characterized by low and gently sloping shores. The coast, located east of Kalyma, has a more diverse landscape, mostly mountains prevail here. As far as the island of Aion, the sea is bordered by small hills, which sometimes have steep slopes. In the area of ​​the Chaun Bay there are low but steep banks.

The underwater relief of the space occupied by the East Siberian Sea is a plain. This plain has a slight slope from the southwest to the northeast. The bottom of the sea is predominantly flat, without significant depressions and elevations. Most of the water expanses of the East Siberian Sea have a depth of up to 20 - 25 m. The deepest trenches are located on the sea bottom in the northeastern part of the mouths of the Indigira and Kolyma rivers. There is an assumption that these trenches used to be areas of river valleys. But later these rivers were flooded with the sea. The western part of the sea is characterized by a shallow depth; this area is called the Novosibirsk Shoal. In the northeast of the sea there are quite deep places. But even here the depth does not exceed 100 m.

East-Siberian Sea

The East Siberian Sea is located in high latitudes, not far from the permanent ice of the Arctic Ocean. The sea also borders on a wide part of the mainland. In connection with this location, the climate of the East Siberian Sea has a distinctive feature: the sea is influenced by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In the western part of the sea, cyclones sometimes form over by the atlantic sea. The eastern regions of the sea are accessible to cyclones of Pacific origin. Thus, the climate of the East Siberian Sea can be characterized as polar maritime, which is greatly influenced by the continent. The peculiarity of the continental climate is significantly manifested in winter and summer. During the transitional seasons, they do not significantly affect, since during these periods the atmospheric processes are unstable.

In winter, the Siberian maximum has a great influence on the climate of the East Siberian Sea. This causes the predominance of southwestern and southern winds, the speed of which reaches 6 - 7 m/s. These winds move from the continent and therefore contribute to the spread of cold air. The average temperature in January is approximately - 28 - 300C. In winter, the weather is mostly clear. Only sometimes cyclones break the settled calm weather for several days. Atlantic cyclones, which prevail in the western part of the sea, contribute to increased wind and temperature rise. Pacific cyclones, which dominate the southeastern part of the sea, bring strong winds, snowstorms and cloudy weather. On the coasts with a mountainous landscape, the Pacific cyclone contributes to the formation of a strong wind - foehn. As a result of this storm wind, the temperature rises, while the humidity of the air becomes less.

In summer, high pressure zones form over the sea, and low pressure zones over land. In this regard, the winds blow mainly from the north. At the beginning of the warm season, the winds are not yet gaining sufficient strength, but by the middle of summer their average speed is 6-7 m/s. By the end of summer, the western part of the sea turns into zones of strong storms. At this time, this section becomes the most dangerous along the entire route of the Northern Sea Route. Very often the wind speed reaches 10 - 15 m/s. Such strong winds are not observed in the southeastern part of the sea. The wind speed here can only increase in connection with the hair dryers. Constant winds of northern and northeastern directions contribute to the preservation of low air temperatures. In the northern part of the sea, the average July temperature is about 0 - +10C, in coastal areas the temperature is slightly higher than +2 - 30C. The decrease in temperature in the northern part of the sea is affected by the influence of Arctic ice. In the southern part of the sea, proximity to a warm mainland contributes to an increase in temperature. Cloudy weather is typical for the East Siberian Sea in summer. Very often there are light rains, and occasionally even sleet.

East-Siberian Sea

In autumn, the influence of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans is weakened, which affects the decrease in air temperature. Thus, the East Siberian Sea is characterized by a cold summer; unstable windy weather in the western and eastern regions of the sea in the summer-autumn period and calm in the central territories.

A small amount of river water enters the East Siberian Sea. During the year, the volume of continental runoff is approximately 250 km3. Kolyma (the largest river flowing into this sea) brings about 132 km3 per year. Another large river Indigirka gives 59 km3. The rest of the rivers flowing into the East Siberian Sea are small, so they discharge a small amount of water. The largest amount of fresh water enters the southern part of the sea. The maximum flow occurs in the summer. Due to the small amount, fresh water does not enter far into the sea, but mainly spreads near the mouths of rivers. Due to the fact that the East Siberian Sea is large, river runoff does not have a significant impact on it.

The waters of the East Siberian Sea are relatively clean. Only in the bay of Pevek, slight water pollution has been noted, but recently the ecological situation has been improving here. The waters of the Chaun Bay are slightly polluted with petroleum hydrocarbons.

East-Siberian Sea- marginal sea of ​​the Arctic Ocean, located between the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island. Surface area 913,600 km². Already from the name it is clear that this sea is located off the northern coast of Eastern Siberia. The borders of the East Siberian Sea are mainly conditional lines, and only in some parts it is limited by land. The waters of this sea communicate well with the waters of the Arctic Ocean, therefore the East Siberian Sea belongs to the type of continental marginal seas. There are very few islands in the waters of the East Siberian Sea. The coastline of the sea has large bends.

seafaring

In the first half of the 17th century, the Cossacks who mastered Kolyma and Indigirka went downstream, went out to sea and went to Taimyr, where they reached the Yenisei, on the banks of which they hunted, by drag. First exploratory voyage historical era made by the Yakut Cossack Mikhailo Stadukhin in 1644. In June 1648, Stadukhin's assistant Semyon Dezhnev traveled the entire eastern part of the sea from the mouth of the Kolyma and further through the Long Strait and the Bering Strait to the Gulf of Anadyr, where he founded the city of Anadyr. Thus, in 1648 the possibility of through navigation along the entire coast of the East Siberian Sea was shown.

The mainland shores of the sea and islands were described in the first half of the 18th century by the Great Northern Expedition. All these discoveries were made not on ships, but on sleds. In 1823, Wrangel heard a story from the Chukchi about big island in the north (not yet discovered Wrangel Island), where storms sometimes carried away fishing boats. Wrangel Island was discovered in 1849 by the British frigate Herald, approaching it from the Chukchi Sea. West Coast The islands were discovered in 1867 by the American whaler Thomas Long on the schooner "Nile", whose ship passed between the mainland and the island through the strait, which is now called Long's Strait. In September 1875, Baron Adolf Eric Nordenskiöld crossed the East Siberian Sea on the sail-steam vessel "Vega" - the first navigator who managed to pass the Northern Sea Route along the entire coast of Asia. Next, the De Long Islands were discovered. In 1913, the icebreaking ships Taimyr and Vaigach discovered the island, which was named after Vilkitsky, an assistant to the head of the expedition. The last discovery was made by the next expedition of "Taimyr" and "Vaigach" on August 27, 1914, when Lieutenant Zhokhov, the watchman of the "Vaigach", noticed an island with coordinates 76 ° 10 "N 153 ° E, which received the name Zhokhov Island. After 1932 , when the icebreaker "Sibiryakov" passed the Northern Sea Route in one navigation, in the East Siberian Sea regular flights courts.

Bottom relief

The sea lies on the shelf. The underwater relief of the space occupied by the East Siberian Sea is a plain. This plain has a slight slope from the southwest to the northeast. The bottom of the sea is predominantly flat, without significant depressions and elevations. Most of the water expanses of the East Siberian Sea have a depth of up to 20 - 25 m. The deepest gutters are located on the sea bottom in the northeastern part of the mouths of the Indigirka and Kolyma rivers. There is an assumption that these trenches used to be areas of river valleys. But later these rivers were flooded with the sea. In the northeast of the sea there are quite deep places. Max Depth- 915 meters.

Climate and hydrological regime

The climate of the East Siberian Sea has a distinctive feature: the sea is influenced by the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The average temperature in January is approximately - 28 - 30 0 C. In winter, the weather is mostly clear. Only sometimes cyclones break the settled calm weather for several days. Atlantic cyclones, which prevail in the western part of the sea, contribute to increased wind and temperature rise. Pacific cyclones, which dominate the southeastern part of the sea, bring strong winds, snowstorms and cloudy weather. The average July temperature is about 0 + 4 0 C. The decrease in the temperature of the northern part of the sea is affected by the influence of Arctic ice. In the southern part of the sea, proximity to a warm mainland contributes to an increase in temperature. Cloudy weather is typical for the East Siberian Sea in summer. Very often there are light rains, and occasionally even sleet.

Temperatures sea ​​water low, in the north they are close to −1.8°C both in winter and in summer. To the south in summer the temperature rises in the upper layers to 5°C. The salinity of the sea is different in the western and eastern parts seas. River runoff leads to a decrease in salinity to 10-15‰, and in the mouths of large rivers to almost zero. With depth, salinity rises to 32‰. Almost the whole year the sea is covered with ice. In the eastern part of the sea, floating perennial ice remains even in summer.

Flora and fauna

vegetable and animal world The East Siberian Sea is poor due to severe ice conditions. But in the areas adjacent to the mouths of the rivers, there are omul, whitefish, grayling, polar smelt, navaga, polar cod and flounder, salmon - char and nelma. Of the mammals, there are walrus, seals, polar bear; birds - guillemots, gulls, cormorants.

Economic importance

The coastal zone is characterized as an area with weak economic activity. The fishing industry has local meaning. The Northern Sea Route passes through the East Siberian Sea; main port Pevek (Chaun Bay). The East Siberian Sea is a promising oil and gas region, the development of which is difficult due to harsh natural conditions.

Ecology

The waters of the East Siberian Sea are relatively clean. Only in the bay of Pevek, slight water pollution has been noted, but recently the ecological situation has been improving here. The waters of the Chaun Bay are slightly polluted with petroleum hydrocarbons.