Which countries are washed by the Caspian Sea. The outer sea has direct access to the ocean. International status of the Caspian Sea

, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran , Azerbaijan

Geographical position

Caspian Sea - view from space.

The Caspian Sea is located at the junction of two parts of the Eurasian continent - Europe and Asia. The length of the Caspian Sea from north to south is approximately 1200 kilometers (36°34 "-47°13" N), from west to east - from 195 to 435 kilometers, on average 310-320 kilometers (46°-56° v. d.).

The Caspian Sea is conditionally divided according to physical and geographical conditions into 3 parts - the North Caspian, the Middle Caspian and the South Caspian. The conditional border between the North and Middle Caspian runs along the line of about. Chechnya - Cape Tyub-Karagansky, between the Middle and South Caspian - along the line of about. Residential - Cape Gan-Gulu. The area of ​​the Northern, Middle and Southern Caspian is 25, 36, 39 percent respectively.

Coast of the Caspian Sea

Coast of the Caspian Sea in Turkmenistan

The territory adjacent to the Caspian Sea is called the Caspian Sea.

Peninsulas of the Caspian Sea

• Ashur-Ada
• Garasu
• Zyanbil
• Hara Zira
• Sengi-Mugan
• Chygyl

Bays of the Caspian Sea

• Russia (Dagestan, Kalmykia and Astrakhan region) - in the west and north-west, the length of the coastline is about 1930 kilometers
• Kazakhstan - in the north, northeast and east, the length of the coastline is about 2320 kilometers
• Turkmenistan - in the southeast, the length of the coastline is about 650 kilometers
• Iran - in the south, the length of the coastline is about 1000 kilometers
• Azerbaijan - in the southwest, the length of the coastline is about 800 kilometers

Cities on the coast of the Caspian Sea

On Russian coast the cities are located - Lagan, Makhachkala, Kaspiysk, Izberbash and the most Southern City Russian Derbent. Astrakhan is also considered a port city of the Caspian Sea, which, however, is not located on the shores of the Caspian Sea, but in the Volga Delta, 60 kilometers from north coast Caspian Sea.

Physiography

Area, depth, volume of water

The area and volume of water in the Caspian Sea varies significantly depending on fluctuations in water levels. At a water level of -26.75 m, the area is approximately 371,000 square kilometers, the volume of water is 78,648 cubic kilometers, which is approximately 44% of the world's lake water reserves. The maximum depth of the Caspian Sea is in the South Caspian depression, 1025 meters from its surface level. In terms of maximum depth, the Caspian Sea is second only to Baikal (1620 m) and Tanganyika (1435 m). The average depth of the Caspian Sea, calculated from the bathygraphic curve, is 208 meters. At the same time, the northern part of the Caspian Sea is shallow, its maximum depth does not exceed 25 meters, and average depth- 4 meters.

Water level fluctuations

Vegetable world

The flora of the Caspian Sea and its coast is represented by 728 species. Of the plants in the Caspian Sea, algae predominate - blue-green, diatoms, red, brown, char and others, of flowering - zoster and ruppia. By origin, the flora belongs mainly to the Neogene age, however, some plants were brought into the Caspian Sea by man either consciously or on the bottoms of ships.

History of the Caspian Sea

Origin of the Caspian Sea

Anthropological and cultural history of the Caspian Sea

Finds in Huto Cave south coast The Caspian Sea testifies that a person lived in these parts about 75 thousand years ago. The first mention of the Caspian Sea and the tribes living on its coast are found in Herodotus. Approximately in the V-II centuries. BC e. Saka tribes lived on the coast of the Caspian Sea. Later, during the period of the settlement of the Turks, in the period of the 4th-5th centuries. n. e. Talysh tribes (Talysh) lived here. According to ancient Armenian and Iranian manuscripts, the Russians sailed the Caspian Sea from the 9th-10th centuries.

Exploration of the Caspian Sea

The exploration of the Caspian Sea was started by Peter the Great, when, on his orders, an expedition was organized in 1714-1715 under the leadership of A. Bekovich-Cherkassky. In the 1720s, hydrographic studies were continued by the expedition of Karl von Werden and F.I. Soymonov, later by I.V. Tokmachev, M.I. Voinovich and other researchers. At the beginning of the 19th century, instrumental surveying of the banks was carried out by I.F. Kolodkin, in the middle of the 19th century. - instrumental geographic survey under the guidance of N. A. Ivashintsev. Since 1866, for more than 50 years, expeditionary research on the hydrology and hydrobiology of the Caspian Sea has been carried out under the leadership of N. M. Knipovich. In 1897, the Astrakhan Research Station was founded. In the first decades of Soviet power in the Caspian Sea, geological research by I. M. Gubkin and other Soviet geologists was actively carried out, mainly aimed at finding oil, as well as research on the study of the water balance and fluctuations in the level of the Caspian Sea.

Economy of the Caspian Sea

Mining of oil and gas

Many oil and gas fields are being developed in the Caspian Sea. The proven oil resources in the Caspian Sea are about 10 billion tons, the total resources of oil and gas condensate are estimated at 18-20 billion tons.

Oil production in the Caspian Sea began in 1820, when the first oil well was drilled on the Absheron shelf near Baku. In the second half of the 19th century, oil production began on an industrial scale on the Absheron Peninsula, and then on other territories.

Shipping

Shipping is developed in the Caspian Sea. On the Caspian Sea ferry crossings, in particular, Baku - Turkmenbashi, Baku - Aktau, Makhachkala - Aktau. The Caspian Sea has a navigable connection with the Sea of ​​Azov through the Volga and Don rivers and the Volga-Don Canal.

Fishing and seafood

Fishing (sturgeon, bream, carp, pike perch, sprat), caviar, and seal fishing. More than 90 percent of the world's sturgeon catch is carried out in the Caspian Sea. In addition to industrial production, illegal production of sturgeon and their caviar flourishes in the Caspian Sea.

Recreational resources

The natural environment of the Caspian coast with sandy beaches, mineral waters and therapeutic mud in the coastal zone creates good conditions for rest and treatment. At the same time, according to the degree of development of resorts and the tourism industry Caspian coast noticeably loses to the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. However, in last years the tourism industry is actively developing on the coast of Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Russian Dagestan. Azerbaijan is actively developing resort area in the Baku region. At the moment, a world-class resort has been created in Amburan, another modern tourist complex is being built near the village of Nardaran, recreation in the sanatoriums of the villages of Bilgah and Zagulba is very popular. A resort area is also being developed in Nabran, in the north of Azerbaijan. However high prices, in general, the low level of service and the lack of advertising lead to the fact that on Caspian resorts almost no foreign tourists. The development of the tourism industry in Turkmenistan is hampered by a long policy of isolation, in Iran - by Sharia law, due to which the mass vacation of foreign tourists on the Caspian coast of Iran is impossible.

Ecological problems

The environmental problems of the Caspian Sea are associated with water pollution as a result of oil production and transportation on the continental shelf, the flow of pollutants from the Volga and other rivers flowing into the Caspian Sea, the vital activity of coastal cities, as well as the flooding of individual objects due to the rise in the level of the Caspian Sea. Predatory harvesting of sturgeons and their caviar, rampant poaching lead to a decrease in the number of sturgeons and forced restrictions on their production and export.

International status of the Caspian Sea

Legal status of the Caspian Sea

After the collapse of the USSR, the division of the Caspian Sea has long been and still remains the subject of unsettled disagreements related to the division of the resources of the Caspian shelf - oil and gas, as well as biological resources. For a long time there were negotiations between the Caspian states on the status of the Caspian Sea - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan insisted on dividing the Caspian along the median line, Iran - on dividing the Caspian along one fifth between all the Caspian states.

With regard to the Caspian Sea, the key is the physical and geographical circumstance that it is a closed inland water body that does not have a natural connection with the World Ocean. Accordingly, the norms and concepts of international maritime law, in particular, the provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of ​​1982, should not automatically apply to the Caspian Sea. Based on this, it would be unlawful to apply such concepts as “territorial sea”, “exclusive economic zone”, “continental shelf”, etc.

The current legal regime of the Caspian Sea was established by the Soviet-Iranian treaties of 1921 and 1940. These treaties provide for freedom of navigation throughout the sea, freedom of fishing, with the exception of ten-mile national fishing zones, and a ban on navigation in its waters of ships flying the flag of non-Caspian states.

Negotiations on the legal status of the Caspian are currently ongoing.

Delimitation of sections of the bottom of the Caspian Sea for the purpose of subsoil use

The Russian Federation concluded an agreement with Kazakhstan on the delimitation of the bottom of the northern part of the Caspian Sea in order to exercise sovereign rights to subsoil use (dated July 6, 1998 and the Protocol dated May 13, 2002), an agreement with Azerbaijan on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the bottom of the northern part of the Caspian Sea (dated September 23, 2002), as well as the trilateral Russian-Azerbaijani-Kazakhstan agreement on the junction point of the demarcation lines of adjacent sections of the bottom of the Caspian Sea (dated May 14, 2003), which established the geographical coordinates of the dividing lines limiting the sections of the bottom, within which the parties exercise their sovereign rights in the field of exploration and production of mineral resources.

The length of the coastline of the Caspian Sea is estimated at about 6500-6700 kilometers, with islands - up to 7000 kilometers. The shores of the Caspian Sea in most of its territory are low-lying and smooth. In the northern part, the coastline is indented by water channels and islands of the Volga and Ural deltas, the shores are low and swampy, and the water surface is covered with thickets in many places. On east coast limestone coasts adjoining semi-deserts and deserts predominate. The most winding coasts are on the west coast in the area Absheron Peninsula and on the east coast in the area of ​​the Kazakh Gulf and Kara-Bogaz-Gol. The territory adjacent to the Caspian Sea is called the Caspian Sea.

November 29th, 2015

Is it correct to call the Caspian a sea?

It is known that the sea is part of the oceans. From this geographically correct point of view, the Caspian cannot be considered a sea, because it is separated from the ocean by huge land masses. The shortest distance from the Caspian to the Black Sea, the closest of the seas included in the system of the World Ocean, is 500 kilometers. Therefore, it would be more correct to speak of the Caspian as a lake. This is the world's largest lake, often referred to simply as the Caspian or lake-sea.

The Caspian has a number of features of the sea: its water is salty (however, there are other salt lakes), the area is not much inferior to the area of ​​​​such seas as the Black, Baltic, Red, Northern, and even exceeds the area of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov and some others (however, Canadian lake The upper one is also a huge area, like the three Seas of Azov). In the Caspian, fierce storm winds and huge waves are frequent (and this is not uncommon in Baikal).

So, after all, the Caspian Sea is a lake? That's Wikipedia says it Yes, and the Great Soviet Encyclopedia answers that no one has yet been able to give an exact definition of this issue - "A generally accepted classification does not exist."

Do you know why this is very important and fundamental? And here's why...

The lake belongs to internal waters - the sovereign territories of coastal states, to which the international regime does not apply (the principle of non-intervention of the UN in the internal affairs of states). But the water area of ​​the sea is divided differently, and the rights of coastal states are completely different here.

In my own way geographic location The Caspian itself, in contrast to the land territories surrounding it, has not been the object of any targeted attention on the part of the coastal states for many centuries. Only at the beginning of the XIX century. between Russia and Persia, the first treaties were concluded: Gulistan (1813) 4 and Turkmanchai (1828), summing up the results of the Russian-Persian war, as a result of which Russia annexed a number of Transcaucasian territories and received the exclusive right to keep a navy in the Caspian sea. Russian and Persian merchants were allowed to freely trade on the territory of both states and use the Caspian Sea to transport goods. The Turkmanchay Treaty confirmed all these provisions and became the basis for maintaining international relations between the parties until 1917.

After the October Revolution of 1917, in a note of the new Russian government that came to power on January 14, 1918, it renounced its exclusive military presence in the Caspian Sea. The agreement between the RSFSR and Persia of February 26, 1921 declared invalid all agreements concluded before it by the tsarist government. The Caspian Sea became a body of water for common use by the parties: both states were granted equal rights of free navigation, except in cases where the crews of Iranian ships could include citizens of third countries using the service for unfriendly purposes (Article 7). The 1921 agreement did not provide for a maritime border between the parties.

In August 1935, the following treaty was signed, the parties to which were new subjects of international law - the Soviet Union and Iran, which acted under the new name. The parties reaffirmed the provisions of the 1921 agreement, but introduced into the agreement a new concept for the Caspian - a 10-mile fishing zone, which limited the spatial limits for its participants to conduct this fishery. This was done in order to control and conserve the living resources of the reservoir.

In the context of the outbreak of World War II, unleashed by Germany, an urgent need arose to conclude a new treaty between the USSR and Iran on trade and navigation in the Caspian. This was due to concern Soviet side, caused by Germany's interest in intensifying its trade relations with Iran and the danger of using the Caspian Sea as one of the stages transit route. The treaty signed between the USSR and Iran in 1940 10 protected the Caspian Sea from such a prospect: it repeated the main provisions of the previous agreements, which provided for the stay in its waters of ships of only these two Caspian states. It also included a provision for its indefinite validity.

The collapse of the Soviet Union radically changed the regional situation in the former Soviet space, in particular in the Caspian region. Among the large number of new problems, the problem of the Caspian Sea has also arisen. Instead of two states - the USSR and Iran, which previously bilaterally resolved all emerging issues of maritime navigation, fishing and the use of its other living and non-living resources, now there are five of them. Of the former, only Iran remained, Russia took the place of the USSR on the rights of succession, the remaining three are new states: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan. They used to have access to the Caspian, but only as republics USSR rather than independent states. Now, having become independent and sovereign, they have the opportunity to participate on an equal footing with Russia and Iran in the discussion and decision-making in the consideration of all the above issues. This was also reflected in the attitude of these states to the Caspian, since all five states that had access to it showed equal interest in the use of its living and non-living resources. And this is logical, and most importantly, justified: the Caspian Sea is rich in natural resources, both fish stocks and black gold - oil and blue fuel - gas. Exploration and production of the last two resources have long been the subject of the most heated and protracted negotiations. But not only them.

In addition to the presence of rich mineral resources, about 120 species and subspecies of fish live in the waters of the Caspian Sea, here is the world gene pool of sturgeons, the extraction of which, until recently, accounted for 90% of their total world catch.

Due to its location, the Caspian has traditionally and long been widely used for navigation, acting as a kind of transport artery between the peoples of the coastal states. Along its banks are such large seaports, as the Russian Astrakhan, the capital of Azerbaijan Baku, the Turkmen Turkmenbashi, the Iranian Anzeli and the Kazakh Aktau, between which trade, cargo and passenger sea transport routes have long been laid.

And yet, the main object of attention of the Caspian states is its mineral resources - oil and natural gas, to which each of them can lay claim within the boundaries that should be determined by them collectively on the basis of international law. And to do this, they will have to divide between themselves both the Caspian Sea and its bottom, in the depths of which its oil and gas are hidden, and develop rules for their extraction with minimal damage to a very fragile environment, especially the marine environment and its living inhabitants.

The main obstacle in resolving the issue of the beginning of a wide extraction of the mineral resources of the Caspian Sea for the Caspian states continues to be its international legal status: should it be considered a sea or a lake? The complexity of the issue lies in the fact that these states themselves must solve it, and so far no agreement has been observed in their ranks. But at the same time, each of them seeks to start extracting Caspian oil and natural gas as soon as possible and make their sale abroad a permanent source of funds to form their budget.

Therefore, the oil companies of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, without waiting for the end of the settlement of existing disagreements on the territorial division of the Caspian Sea, have already begun active production of its oil, in the hope of ceasing to be dependent on Russia, turning their countries into oil producers and, in this capacity, begin to build their own long-term trading relations with neighbors.

However, the issue of the status of the Caspian Sea remains unresolved. Regardless of whether the Caspian states agree to consider it a “sea” or a “lake”, they will have to apply the principles corresponding to the choice made or develop their own in this case to the territorial division of its water area and bottom.

Kazakhstan was in favor of recognizing the Caspian as a sea. Such recognition will make it possible to apply to the division of the Caspian the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea on Internal Waters, the Territorial Sea, the Exclusive Economic Zone, and the Continental Shelf. This would allow the coastal states to gain sovereignty over the subsoil of the territorial sea (Article 2) and exclusive rights to explore and develop the resources of the continental shelf (Article 77). But the Caspian cannot be called a sea from the position of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of ​​1982, since this body of water is closed and has no natural connection with the oceans.

In this case, the option of sharing its water area and bottom resources is also excluded.

In the treaties between the USSR and Iran, the Caspian Sea was considered as a border lake. With the legal status of a "lake" given to the Caspian Sea, it is supposed to be divided into sectors, as is done with respect to border lakes. But in international law there is no rule obliging states to do just that: division into sectors is an established practice.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly made statements that the Caspian is a lake, and its waters and subsoil are the common property of the coastal states. Iran also considers the Caspian Sea as a lake from the position fixed in the treaties with the USSR. The country's government believes that this status implies the creation of a consortium for the unified management of production and use of its resources by the Caspian states. Some authors also share this opinion, for example, R. Mammadov believes that with such a status, the extraction of hydrocarbon resources in the Caspian Sea by these states should be carried out jointly.

In the literature, there has been a proposal to give the Caspian Sea the status of a “sui generis” lake, and in this case we are talking about a special international legal status of such a lake and its special regime. Under the regime is assumed the joint development by states of their own rules for the use of its resources.

Thus, the recognition of the Caspian Sea as a lake does not require its mandatory division into sectors - each coastal state has its own part. In addition, there are no norms in international law on the division of lakes between states: this is their good will, behind which certain internal interests may be hidden.

At present, all the Caspian states recognize that the modern legal regime was established by the established practice of its use, but now the Caspian is in actual common use not by two, but by five states. Even at the meeting of foreign ministers held in Ashgabat on November 12, 1996, the Caspian states confirmed that the status of the Caspian Sea could be changed only with the consent of all five coastal states. Later, this was also confirmed by Russia and Azerbaijan in a joint statement dated January 9, 2001 on the principles of cooperation, as well as in the Declaration on cooperation in the Caspian Sea signed between Kazakhstan and Russia dated October 9, 2000.

But in the course of numerous Caspian negotiations, conferences and four summits of the Caspian states (Ashgabat summit on April 23-24, 2002, the Tehran summit on October 16, 2007, the Baku summit on November 18, 2010 and Astrakhan on September 29, 2014), the consent of the Caspian countries it has not been possible to achieve.

More productive so far is cooperation at the bilateral and trilateral levels. Back in May 2003, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the junction of the lines of delimitation of adjacent sections of the bottom of the Caspian Sea, which was based on previous bilateral agreements. In the current situation, Russia, by its participation in these agreements, seemed to confirm that the agreements between the USSR and Iran are outdated and do not correspond to existing realities.

In the Agreement of July 6, 1998 between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan on the delimitation of the bottom of the northern part of the Caspian Sea in order to exercise sovereign rights to subsoil use, the delimitation of the sea bottom between adjacent and opposite sides along a modified median line was announced on the basis of the principle of justice and agreement of the parties. At the bottom of the section, the states have sovereign rights, but their common use of the water surface is preserved.

Iran perceived this agreement as separate and violating the previous Treaties with the USSR of 1921 and 1940. However, it should be noted that in the preamble of the 1998 agreement, to which Russia and Kazakhstan were parties, the agreement was considered as a temporary measure pending the signing of the convention by all the Caspian states.

Later, on July 19 of the same year, Iran and Russia made a joint statement in which they proposed three possible scenarios for the delimitation of the Caspian Sea. First: the sea should be shared on the basis of the condominium principle. The second scenario boils down to dividing the water area, waters, bottom and subsoil into national sectors. The third scenario, which is a compromise between the first and second options, suggests dividing only the bottom between the coastal states, and considers the water surface to be common and open to all coastal countries.

The existing options for the delimitation of the Caspian Sea, including those mentioned above, are possible only if there is good political will on the part of the parties. Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have clearly expressed their position from the very beginning of the process of multilateral consultations. Azerbaijan considers the Caspian Sea to be a lake and, therefore, it should be divided. Kazakhstan proposes to consider the Caspian as a closed sea, referring to the 1982 UN Convention (Articles 122, 123), and, accordingly, stands for its division in the spirit of the Convention. Turkmenistan has long supported the idea of ​​joint management and use of the Caspian, but foreign companies already developing resources off the coast of Turkmenistan have influenced the policy of its president, who began to object to the establishment of a condominium regime, supporting the position of dividing the sea.

Azerbaijan was the first of the Caspian states to start using the hydrocarbon resources of the Caspian under the new conditions. After the conclusion of the "Deal of the Century" in September 1994, Baku expressed a desire to declare the sector adjacent to it integral part its territory. This provision was also enshrined in the Constitution of Azerbaijan, adopted in order to exercise sovereign rights to subsoil use, Moscow, July 6, 1998 at a referendum on November 12, 1995 (Article 11). But such a radical position from the very beginning did not correspond to the interests of all other coastal states, especially Russia, which expresses fears that this will open access to the Caspian Sea to countries in other regions. Azerbaijan agreed to a compromise. In the Agreement between the Russian Federation and Azerbaijan on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the Caspian Sea in 2002, a provision was fixed in which the division of the bottom was carried out using the median line, and the water area of ​​the reservoir remained in joint use.

Unlike Azerbaijan, which expressed a desire to completely divide the Caspian, Iran proposes to leave its bowels and water for joint use, but does not object to the option of dividing the Caspian into 5 equal parts. Accordingly, each member of the Caspian five would be allocated 20 percent of the total territory of the reservoir.

Russia's point of view was changing. For a long time Moscow insisted on the establishment of a condominium, but wanting to build a long-term policy with neighbors who did not benefit from considering the Caspian as the property of five coastal states, it changed its position. This then prompted the states to start new stage negotiations, at the end of which, in 1998, the above Agreement was signed, where Russia declared that it was "ripe" for the division of the Caspian. Its main principle was the position "the water is common - we divide the bottom."

Taking into account the fact that some of the Caspian states, namely Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia, have reached agreements on the conditional delimitation of spaces in the Caspian, it can be concluded that they are actually satisfied with the already established regime with the division of its bottom along a modified median line and the joint use of the surface reservoir for navigation and fishing.

However, the lack of complete clarity and unity in the position of all countries of the coast prevents the Caspian states themselves from developing oil production. And oil is of key importance to them. There are no unequivocal data regarding their reserves in the Caspian Sea. According to the US Energy Information Agency in 2003, the Caspian was ranked second in oil reserves and third in gas reserves. The data of the Russian side is different: they speak of an artificial overestimation by Western experts of the energy resources of the Caspian Sea. Differences in assessments are due to the political and economic interests of regional and external players. The data distortion factor was the geopolitical significance of the region, with which the foreign policy plans of the US and the EU are connected. Zbigniew Brzezinski back in 1997 expressed the opinion that this region is the "Eurasian Balkans".

The Caspian Sea is rightfully the most big lake on the whole planet and this sea-lake is located at the junction of two significant parts of the world: Asia and Europe.

Until now, there are disagreements in the name of the Caspian Sea: is it a sea or a lake. And it is called the sea due to the large size of the reservoir.

Origin of the sea

The Caspian Sea has an oceanic origin. It was formed approximately 10 million years ago as a result of the division of the Sarmatian Sea.

According to one of the legends modern name The Caspian reservoir received in honor of the Caspian tribes living on the southwestern shores. For all the time, the Caspian Sea has changed its name about 70 times.

currents

The water area of ​​the Caspian Sea can be divided into the following three parts:

• southern (39% of the area)
• medium (36% of the total area)
• northern part (25% of the area).

The currents of the reservoir are formed as a result of the following influences: the general influence of the wind regime, density differences in certain areas and the flow of inflowing rivers.

Off the western coast of the middle part of the Caspian, southern and southeastern currents predominate. For the middle and southern parts of the Caspian Sea, depending on the direction of the winds, currents of the northern, northwestern, southern and southeastern directions are characteristic. Eastern currents prevail in the eastern part of the Caspian.

The following currents also play an important role in the Caspian water cycle:

• seiche;
• gradient;
• inertial.

Which rivers flow into the Caspian Sea

main part river waters they enter the Caspian through the Volga River. In addition to the Volga, the following rivers flow into this reservoir:

• Samur, flowing on the border of Azerbaijan and Russia;
• Astarachay, flowing on the border of Iran and Azerbaijan;
• Kura located in Azerbaijan;
• Kheraz, Sefudrud, Tejen, Polerud, Chalus, Babol and Gorgan flowing in Iran;
• Sulak, Kuma, located in the territory Russian Federation;
• Emba and Ural flowing in Kazakhstan;
• Atrek located in Turkmenistan.

Sulak river photo

Where does the Caspian Sea flow into?

The Caspian reservoir has no connection with the ocean, since it is an endorheic reservoir. The Caspian Sea has dozens of bays. The largest of them can be distinguished: Komsomolets, Gyzlar, Kara-Bogaz-Gol, Mangyshlak, Kazakh, Krasnovodsk and others. Also in the waters of the Caspian Sea there are about 50 islands of different sizes, with a total area of ​​more than 350 km2. Some of the islands are grouped into archipelagos.

Relief

The following forms can be distinguished in the relief of the bottom of the Caspian Sea: in the south of the reservoir there are deep-water depressions; continental slope, starting just below the shelf line and descending to the southern part of the Caspian Sea up to 750 m, and in the middle part of the Caspian Sea - up to 600 m. shelf, the length of which from the depth to the coastline is 100 m and is covered with shell sands, and in deep water - with silty sediments.

Derbent photo

The coastline of the northern region of the sea is low-lying, quite indented, in some areas it is flat. West Bank the reservoir is indented, mountainous. In the east, the coasts are distinguished by elevations. The southern coastline is mostly mountainous. The Caspian Sea is located in a zone of high seismicity. Also, mud volcanoes often erupt here, most of which are located in the southern part of the reservoir.

Cities

The following states have access to the waters of the Caspian Sea:

• Russia. A large city is Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan. Also in Dagestan are the cities of Kaspiysk and Izberbash. In addition to the above cities in the Russian Federation on the Caspian Sea, Derbent, the southernmost city of Russia located on the western coast of the Caspian Sea, Olya in the Astrakhan region, should be noted.
• Azerbaijan: The port city of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, is located in the southern part of the Absheron Peninsula. Another large city is Sugmait, located in the northern part of the peninsula. The resorts of Nabran and Lankaran should also be noted. The latter is located near the southern border of Azerbaijan.
• Turkmenistan with the port city of Turkmenbashi.
• Iran: Bandar-Torkemen, Anzeli, Nowshahr.

Makhachkala photo

Flora and fauna

Whole animal world The water areas of the Caspian Sea can be conditionally divided into the following groups:

• The first group consists of descendants of ancient organisms: representatives of herring (shad, Volga, Kessler and Brazhnikovskaya herring); representatives of the Caspian gobies (golovach, pugolovka, Berg, Baer, ​​Knipovich and Bubyr); sprats; a large number of crustaceans; some types of shellfish.
• The second group includes representatives of the fauna that entered the sea from the north in the post-glacial era of desalination of the reservoir: seal; fish species: perch, cyprinids, nelma, white salmon and trout; some representatives of crustaceans: sea cockroaches, mysid crustaceans and others.
• The third group includes species that came to the Caspian from mediterranean sea: the following types of fish: golden mullet, flounder and needle fish; representatives of mollusks; representatives of crustaceans: shrimps, amphipods, crabs.
• The fourth group includes representatives of freshwater fish that entered the Caspian Sea from fresh rivers: stellate sturgeon, beluga, sturgeon, Caspian fish, red-lipped asp, barbel, pike perch, catfish.

sturgeon photo

The water area of ​​the Caspian Sea is the main and main habitat for sturgeon representatives on the entire planet. Almost 80% of all sturgeons in the world live in the sea. Sharks and various predatory fish that carry any danger to humans do not live in this reservoir.

The flora of the Caspian Sea is represented by more than 700 species of lower plants (phytoplankton), as well as 5 species of higher plants (spiral and sea ruppia, comb pondweed, zoster, sea mollusk). Here you can meet various waterfowl. Some of them come here for wintering from the north (waders, loons, gulls, geese, swans, ducks, geese), some come from the south for nesting (eagles).

Characteristic

Let's get acquainted with the main characteristics of the Caspian Sea:

• The length from north to south was approximately 1200 km;
• The width of the basin from west to east is approximately 200-435 km;
• The total area of ​​the Caspian is approximately 390,000 km2;
• The volume of sea waters is 78000 km3.
• Maximum sea ​​depth- about 1025m.
• The salinity of the water is on average up to 13.2%.

Sea level is below the level of the oceans. The north of the Caspian is characterized by a continental climate. The middle Caspian is characterized by a temperate climate. The southern part of the sea is characterized by a subtropical climate. In winter, the average temperature in the north varies from 8 to 10 degrees of frost, and in the south from 8 to 10 degrees of heat. In summer, the average temperature in the north is 24-25 degrees above zero, and in the south 26-27 degrees of heat.

Caspian Sea. birds photo

• To this day, scientists are arguing: what status to give the Caspian sea or lake? After all, this reservoir is closed and drainless. At the same time, this reservoir prevails in size over some other seas.
• The bottom at the deepest point is separated from the water surface of the Caspian Sea by a distance of more than a kilometer. In the Caspian, the water level is unstable and tends to decrease.
• This reservoir had about 70 names, which were given to it by different tribes and peoples living on the banks.
• There is a scientific theory that claims that the Caspian and Black Sea, were united into one sea in ancient times.
• The Volga River supplies the Caspian for the most part river water.
• Since the Caspian is the main habitat for sturgeon fish on the planet, most of the black caviar in the world is produced here.
• The waters of the Caspian reservoir are constantly renewed every 250 years. The name of the reservoir, according to legend, comes from the name of the tribe that lived on its shores.
• The area of ​​the Caspian Sea exceeds the area of ​​Japan and slightly less than the area of ​​Germany.
• If this body of water is considered a lake: it will take the third place in terms of depth in the world, after Baikal and Tanganyika. The Caspian is also the largest lake on the planet.
• The Caspian Sea is very rich in Natural resources. Oil, gas, limestone, salt, clay, stones and sand are mined here.
• The Caspian Sea has recently faced the following environmental problems: Sea pollution. Oil is the main pollutant of the sea, suppressing the development of phytoplankton and phytobenthos. In addition to oil, phenols and heavy metals enter the Caspian. All this leads to a decrease in oxygen production, resulting in the death of a large number of fish and other organisms. Also, pollution leads to disease of living organisms in the sea. Poaching is one of the main reasons for the sharp decline in sturgeon catches. Changes in natural biogeochemical cycles. Construction on the Volga deprives fish representatives of their natural habitats.
• The Caspian Sea is a very important object in the field of shipping and economy. This body of water is absolutely closed and isolated from the oceans. This is the distinctive uniqueness of the Caspian.

The Caspian Sea is simultaneously considered both an endorheic lake and a full-fledged sea. The reasons for this confusion are brackish waters and a marine-like hydrological regime.

The Caspian Sea is located on the border of Asia and Europe. Its area is about 370 thousand km 2, the maximum depth is just over one kilometer. The Caspian has a conditional division into three almost equal parts: Southern (39% of the area), Middle (36%) and Northern (25%).

The sea washes simultaneously Russian, Kazakh, Azerbaijani, Turkmen and Iranian shores.

Coast of the Caspian Sea(Caspian) has a length of about 7 thousand kilometers, if you count together with the islands. In the north, the low sea coast is covered with swamps and thickets, and has multiple water channels. Eastern and West Coast The Caspian has a sinuous shape, in some places the coast is covered with limestone.

There are many islands in the Caspian Sea: Dash-Zira, Kyur Dashi, Dzhambaisky, Boyuk-Zira, Gum, Chigil, Khere-Zira, Zenbil, Ogurchinsky, Tyuleniy, Ashur-Ada, etc. Peninsulas: Mangyshlak, Tyub-Karagan, Absheron and Miankale. Their total area is approximately 400 km2.

flows into the Caspian Sea more than a hundred different rivers, the most significant are the Ural, Terek, Volga, Atrek, Emba, Samur. Almost all of them provide the sea with 85-95% of the annual runoff.

The largest bays of the Caspian Sea: Kaydak, Agrakhansky, Kazakh, Dead Kultuk, Turkmenbashi, Mangyshlak, Gyzlar, Girkan, Kaydak.

Climate of the Caspian

The Caspian is located in three climatic zones: subtropical climate in the south, continental in the north and temperate in the middle part. In winter, the average temperature varies from -10 to +10 degrees, while in summer the air warms up to about +25 degrees. During the year falls from 110 mm of precipitation in the east and up to 1500 mm in the west.

The average wind speed is 3–7 m/s, but in autumn and winter it often increases to 35 m/s. The most blown areas are the coastal regions of Makhachkala, Derbent and the Absheron Peninsula.

Water temperature in the Caspian Sea fluctuates from zero to +10 degrees in winter, and from 23 to 28 degrees in summer months. In some coastal shallow waters, the water can warm up to 35‒40 degrees.

Only the northern part of the sea is subject to freezing, but in especially cold winters, coastal zones middle part. The ice cover appears in November and disappears only in March.

Problems of the Caspian region

Water pollution is one of the main environmental issues Caspian. Oil production, various harmful substances from flowing rivers, waste products from nearby cities - all this adversely affects the state of sea water. Additional troubles are created by poachers, whose actions reduce the number of fish of certain species found in the Caspian Sea.

Sea level rise also causes serious financial damage to all the Caspian countries.

According to conservative estimates, the restoration of destroyed buildings and the implementation of comprehensive measures to protect the coast from flooding costs tens of millions of dollars.

Cities and resorts on the Caspian Sea

The largest city and port washed by the waters of the Caspian Sea is Baku. Among other settlements of Azerbaijan, located in close proximity to the sea, are Sumgayit and Lankaran. On the eastern shores is the city of Turkmenbashi, and about ten kilometers from it by the sea is the large Turkmen resort of Avaza.

On the Russian side, the following cities are located on the seashore: Makhachkala, Izberbash, Derbent, Lagan and Kaspiysk. Astrakhan is also often called a port city, although it is located about 65 kilometers from northern shores Caspian.

Astrakhan

Beach holidays in this region are not provided: along the sea coast there are only continuous reed thickets. However, tourists go to Astrakhan not for idle lying on the beach, but for fishing and various kinds of active rest: diving, catamaran, jet skiing, etc. In July and August, excursion boats ply the Caspian.

Dagestan

For a classic seaside vacation, it is better to go to Makhachkala, Kaspiysk or Izberbash - this is where not only good sandy beaches but also decent recreation facilities. The range of entertainment on the seashore from the Dagestan side is quite wide: swimming, therapeutic mud springs, windsurfing, kiting, rock climbing and paragliding.

The only disadvantage of this direction is the underdeveloped infrastructure.

In addition, among some Russian tourists There is an opinion that Dagestan is far from the most peaceful territory that is part of the North Caucasian Federal District.

Kazakhstan

Much more relaxed atmosphere can be found in the Kazakh resorts of Kuryk, Atyrau and Aktau. The last one is the most popular tourist city Kazakhstan: there are many good entertainment venues and well-maintained beaches. In summer, the temperature here is very high, reaching +40 degrees during the daytime, and dropping only to +30 at night.

Disadvantages of Kazakhstan tourist country- the same poor infrastructure and rudimentary transport connection between regions.

Azerbaijan

by the most the best places Baku, Nabran, Lankaran and other Azerbaijani resorts are considered for recreation on the Caspian coast. Fortunately, everything is fine with the infrastructure in this country: for example, several modern comfortable hotels with pools and beaches.

However, in order to enjoy relaxing on the Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan, you need to spend a lot of money. In addition, you can get to Baku quickly enough only by plane - trains run rarely, and the journey from Russia itself takes two to three days.

Tourists should not forget that Dagestan and Azerbaijan are Islamic countries, therefore, all "infidels" need to adjust their habitual behavior to local customs.

If you follow the simple rules of your stay, nothing will overshadow your vacation on the Caspian Sea.