Our southernmost point. Extreme points of Russia. The extreme northern continental point of Russia. Territory of the Russian Federation. Short description

Our state covers such vast territory that it fits eleven time zones and three climatic, as well as ten natural areas. This makes the Russian Federation a one of a kind country. In this article we will talk about the Far Eastern points of Russia.

The easternmost point of Russia, an oblong island with an area of five by nine kilometers, did not always have such a name. The discoverer Vitus Bering first called it Big Diomede, and the nearby island - Small Diomede. But the Eskimos, who have lived here for hundreds of years, called the island simply "Imaklik", which means "surrounded by water". The current name appeared due to a mistake: in 1816, the traveler Otto Kotzebue marked the island on the map in honor of his friend Makar Ratmanov - although the island had already been discovered by Bering. However, the name was left. Rotmanov Island is covered with dense fog for most of the year.

The shape of Ratmanov Island resembles a gable roof. The slope on the north side is more spacious and gentle. A river flows from south to north. The southern slope is quite steep, in some places steep. At the "junction" of the slopes, a mountain range was formed, from the top of which you can see the expanses of the sea, as well as track the movements of animals and birds.

Photography is not allowed on the island.

The first people who mastered the island were the Inupik Eskimos, who established trade with the Eskimos from America and Asia. They had their own rich culture, partly combining the traditions of both East and West. During the Cold War, in 1948, all settlers were forcibly removed from the island.

Today, there is a Russian border outpost on Ratmanov Island. The village, located on a neighboring island, is home to 600 people, and between the islands there is a Russian-American border and a date line used throughout the world. The island is an object national importance. To get to Ratmanov Island, you need permission from the border control.

The extreme eastern point of the continental territory - Cape Dezhnev

The cape was discovered in 1648 by the traveler S. Dezhnev, and, as it turned out, it is located on the edge of the Russian land. This is a small mountain range, reaching a height of approximately 740 meters. It is tightly embraced on three sides by the cold waves of the Arctic Ocean. There are so few people in these places that nature is practically untouched. The development of tourism here is hindered mainly by the harsh climate.

Nevertheless, even here you can find settlements - the villages of Naukan and Uelen. People usually come to the first one only temporarily, for fishing, but the second one is rightfully called the capital of this region. Seven hundred people live in it, mainly the indigenous population - Eskimos and Chukchi. They are engaged in the traditional work of their distant ancestors: deer breeding, fishing, whale hunting. There are quite a lot of bone carvers here, their products even have their own museum.

It can be said that there is no summer at Cape Dezhnev, spring and autumn are hardly noticeable and merge with each other, and winter lasts eight months in a row

There is also abandoned from the time Soviet Union aerodrome. Yes, I confess, and the whole area looks rather abandoned, as if the country does not need it. The population is accustomed to this and considers it the norm of life.

The easternmost city - Anadyr

On the Far East Chukotka is a sparsely populated Russian region. Its population does not exceed 50 thousand, and the population of the capital - Anadyr - is only 15 thousand people. To truly appreciate this unusual city, built at one time to protect against strangers, you need to thoroughly walk around it for several days, preferably before looking into the dense tundra for comparison.

This eastern city was founded in 1889 by order of the king. True, its original name sounded like Novo-Mariinsk. The construction went rather slowly, the emphasis was on trade and state-owned warehouses. Fifteen years later, a radio station appeared in the city, at that time it became one of the most powerful in Russia. After the revolutionary events, the power of the Soviets was established here much later than in other regions - in 1924. And it was then that the current name Anadyr was approved.

Anadyr is a Chukchi word, presumably derived from the name of the river

Three years later, the village became the center of the Anadyr region, and then the entire Chukotka region. In the 1950s, an estuary was built here, which served as a powerful impetus for the development of the settlement. Thus, in 1965 the settlement received the status of a city. If we talk about modern events in the life of Anadyr, then in 2004 it received the status of an urban district, including one more settlement in its composition. The city is not divided into districts.

The climate in the city is quite cold, and out of habit, visitors may feel uncomfortable. And yet, due to the proximity of the sea, it is much warmer here than in the rest of Chukotka. Permafrost reigns almost constantly around the city, which means that the earth does not warm up above zero degrees.

In terms of economy, the main sources of financial and other resources are enterprises such as a fish processing plant, a thermal power plant, a gas engine station, and a wind power plant. Minerals are also actively mined - coal, gold.

Most of the population is engaged in fishing or hunting, there are deer farms. Culture is represented by a library and a museum, while science is represented by a university, school, laboratory. In 2013, after seven years of construction, a lift system was opened, which is located in the ski area.

Anadyr can be called a bright city in Russia, for this it was worth painting the gray Soviet buildings, and the view has changed dramatically

In 2011, a large area of perfectly preserved Upper Paleocene petrified forest was discovered in the vicinity of Anadyr, although earlier scientists claimed that there was no forest area in this area. Later, several more fossil objects were discovered, mainly related to flora. The collected copies are placed in the national Chukotka Museum.

There are significant monuments in the city - for example, a bronze bow cross, a memorial in memory of Chukotka's participation in the Great Patriotic War or a ten-meter statue dedicated to Nicholas the Wonderworker.

The transport structure of the city is represented by public transport, a port, an airfield. Ships sail from the port to Vladivostok, Magadan and other continental ports. True, the navigation period is very short, the rest of the time the waters freeze. As for the airport, it is an important transport hub. In addition to regular passenger flights, all year round cargo is transported by helicopters.

The flight from Moscow to Anadyr will take 8 hours, and the ticket price will cost approximately 30 thousand rubles

Despite the considerable distance from civilization, the eastern part Russian Federation is rich in sights, and there is no need to talk about the wonderful nature. If possible, you should definitely visit the listed places to feel their atmosphere.

The border between Europe and Asia within Russia is drawn along the Ural Mountains and along the Kumo-Manych Depression. Only slightly more than 1/5 of the country's area belongs to Europe (about 22%). At the same time, the European territory of Russia is often understood to mean the entire territory lying west of the Urals (about 23% of the area). In any case, the Asian part of Russia accounts for more than 3/4 of the country's territory. The 180th meridian passes through Wrangel Island and Chukotka, therefore, the eastern outskirts of Russia lies in the Western Hemisphere. The geographical center of Russia is located in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Evenki autonomous region on Lake Vivi. In Tuva, near Kyzyl, is the center of Asia.

The Russian Federation is the largest country in the world in terms of territory, the country's area is 17 million 75 thousand 400 km 2 (one eighth of the world's territory). The area of Russia is 1.7 times the area of Europe and 1.8 times the area of the United States, 2 times the area of China and 29 times the area of Ukraine, the largest European state.

Extreme northern point

The extreme northern point of Russia on the mainland is located far beyond the Arctic Circle at Cape Chelyuskin (77 ° 43 "N).

Cape Chelyuskin, which is the northernmost point of the Taimyr Peninsula and the Eurasian continent, was first reached by man in 1742. Then the expedition led by Semyon Ivanovich Chelyuskin named the cape East-North. It took place as part of the Great Northern Expedition, which was approved by the Admiralty Board, which considered that it was necessary to explore in detail the north of Russia from Pechora to Chukotka and make a description of those places. In honor of Semyon Chelyuskin, a polar navigator and explorer of the north of Russia, the cape was named already in 1842, when the centenary of his expedition was celebrated.

Chelyuskin's travel journal, in which he shares his impressions of his dog sledding journey, hard way, done by him with his comrades, and their arrival at the cape, is still stored in St. Petersburg, in the archive navy.

The northernmost point of the Taimyr Peninsula has a harsh climate. Winter here is year-round, the snow practically does not melt, and the temperature in July and August usually does not exceed +1C°.

The second person to visit this cape was a geologist and geographer from Sweden, Niels Nordenskiöld. The third was the Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen, who on September 9, 1893 sailed past Cape Chelyuskin in a heavy snow storm on the Fram ship.

In 1932, a polar station was equipped on the cape, to which an observatory was later added. Now the station has been transferred to the status of a meteorological station. About 10 people constantly winter on it. Communication with the mainland and civilization is provided by the Cape Chelyuskin airfield with a helipad.

Rudolf Island is the northernmost of the Franz Josef Land islands. Cape Fligeli on the island is the northernmost point of land belonging to the Russian Federation, and at the same time the northernmost point of Europe. The island administratively belongs to the Arkhangelsk region. The area is 297 km2. Almost completely covered by a glacier.

The meteorological station on Rudolf Island was opened in August 1932 as part of the program of the Second International Polar Year. 4 people remained for the first wintering, led by N.F. Balabin. A year later, the station was mothballed, and again work continued in the summer of 1936. Initially, the station was equipped as a base for the 1937 air expedition to the North Pole. Airfields were equipped near the station and on the ice dome of the island. In the period from April 1942 to 1947, it was mothballed again. The last period of work is 1947-1995.

Extreme southern point

According to the first version, the extreme southern point is located southwest of Mount Bazardyuzyu in the eastern part of the Main, or Watershed, ridge of the Greater Caucasus, on the border of Dagestan and Azerbaijan. The latitude of the point is 41 ° 11 "N. The distance between the extreme northern and southern points exceeds 40 ° along the meridian, and the northern mainland point is 36.5 ° away from the southern one. This is a little more than 4 thousand km.

All directories indicate - Bazardyuzyu (4466 m) - the highest of the mountain peaks of the Republic of Dagestan and neighboring Azerbaijan. 41°13′16″ N sh. 47°51′29″ E e.

However, there is another version: The extreme southern bend of the border between the Russian Federation and Azerbaijan is located a few kilometers southwest of Bazardyuzyu peak. Mount Ragdan is closer to the southern point of Russia (41 ° 12 "N). And the village of Kurush is the southernmost locality...

The peak on the left is Bazarduzu, on the right is Ragdan

The Usukhchaya Valley is unique in terms of having the epithets “most”, “most”, “most”. Here is the easternmost glacier of Dagestan - Tikhitsar. And the southernmost glacier of Dagestan and Russia - Charyn also lies in the river basin. Mount Ragdan, the southernmost point of the Russian Federation, rises near the Charyn glacier. One of the longest and highest rocky walls of the Caucasus is the Western Face of Erydag - the pride of our wall-climbers. Finally, the highest peak of Dagestan - Bazarduzi (4466 m) also adjoins the Usukhchay valley. One more natural phenomenon of the valley can be noted. From the crest of Erydag, the Charaur waterfall, the highest in Dagestan, breaks down to a depth of 300 meters.

Mount Ragdan is closer to the southern point of Russia (41°12" N), but it can only be found on large-scale maps

Such a length of the territory from north to south, combined with the latitudinal position, determines the uneven supply of heat to the surface of the country and the formation of three climatic zones(arctic, subarctic and temperate) and ten natural zones (from arctic deserts to temperate deserts). The main part of the territory of Russia is located between 70 and 50 ° N. latitude. About 20% of the territory lies beyond the Arctic Circle. The area of the regions of the North is 10 million km 2, in this respect only Canada can serve as an analogue.

Westernmost point

The extreme western point of Russia is located in the Kaliningrad region on the sandy Baltic Spit of the Gdansk Bay of the Baltic Sea at 19 ° 38 "30" E. But due to the fact that the Kaliningrad region is separated from the rest of Russia by the territory of other states and is an enclave, the extreme western point has turned into a kind of "island" point.

They also call the western point of the compact part of Russia, that is, without taking into account the Kaliningrad region, in the Pskov region, just north of the junction of the borders of Estonia, Latvia and Russia (27 ° 17 "E).

Extreme eastern point

The extreme eastern point of Russia on the mainland is located at Cape Dezhnev (169 ° 40 "W) - Ratmanov Island in the Bering Strait is located even further east - 169 ° 02" W.

Despite the remoteness from civilization, these places have attractions. Lighthouse named after Semyon Dezhnev and an ancient cross, installed nearby, an abandoned settlement of whalers of the XVIII-XX centuries - Naukan (it was disbanded during Soviet power). However, those who climb into these parts go to look at the unique fauna: countless bird colonies are located here, there is a walrus and seal rookery, in spring you can see polar bears with cubs. Sometimes killer whales and gray whales swim close to the shore.

Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev in 1648 rounded the Chukotka Peninsula from the north and proved that it was possible to get from Europe to China through the northern seas. He passed through the strait separating America from Eurasia 80 years earlier than Vitus Bering, but then little was known about the Russian pioneers in the Old World. Therefore, glory went to Bering. However, in 1879, restoring justice, the Swedish Arctic explorer Niels Nordenskiöld named the extreme eastern point of Eurasia - Cape Dezhnev, after the Russian navigator. Until that time, the cape was called Eastern.

How to get there: the nearest village Uelen is located 10 kilometers from Cape Dezhnev, and the nearest airport is located in Provideniya Bay, where planes fly from Anadyr.

The story of getting the island named after Ratmanov is as follows. In 1816, the famous navigator Otto Kotzebue, while exploring the Bering Strait, mistakenly counted not three islands in the Diomede archipelago (as it had been mapped since 1732), but four islands. He decided to give the “newly discovered” island the name of his colleague, naval officer Makar Ratmanov, with whom he took part in a round-the-world expedition a few years earlier. When the mistake was discovered, they decided to leave the name of Ratmanov on the map, and from the middle of the 19th century, Big Diomede changed its name.

Western (big) - Ratmanov Island

The brave Inupik Eskimo sailors lived on the islands. Through them, the exchange trade of Asian and American Eskimos went on, they were at the center of all the events of the Northern Bering Sea and, creating their own culture, they adopted a lot from the cultural traditions that already existed on both continents. In 1948, with the beginning of the Cold War between the USSR and the USA, the inhabitants of the island were resettled to the mainland.

The distance between the western and eastern outskirts of Russia is 171 ° 20 "or almost 10 thousand km. With a huge extent of the territory from west to east, the degree of climate continentality changes, which entails the manifestation of sectoriality in changing nature. There are 10 time zones within the Russian Federation The highest point in Russia is Mount Elbrus (5642 m), located in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic on the border with the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic.The lowest absolute height is noted in the Caspian depression (-28 m).

The extreme point of the country in the north still remains - this is Cape Chelyuskin on the Taimyr Peninsula (77 ° 43 "N), which is also considered the northernmost point of Eurasia. An additional island point is also taken into account - Cape Fligeli, on Rudolf Island, which belongs to the Franz Josef Land archipelago (81 ° 49 "N). The extreme western point - the city of Baltiysk, is considered the outport of Kaliningrad. The extreme eastern point is Cape Dezhnev and Ratmanov Island. But the extreme southern point of Russia has now changed: before it was in Turkmenistan, it was the village of Kushka. At present, the southernmost point of our country is located southwest of Mount Bazardyuzyu and east of the Main Caucasian Range, not far from the border of Dagestan and Azerbaijan. The first recorded ascent of Bazarduzu was made by Russian topographers in 1873.

Bazarduzu, whose height is 4,466 m, is one of the most memorable peaks of the Caucasus Range. It is just incredibly suitable for mountaineering. Its gentle southern slope is optimal for beginner climbers, and the icy northern, almost sheer wall belongs to the highest category of difficulty. Bazarduzu had different peoples various titles. Some translated this word as "mountain with a flat top", others called it Tikisar - High Head. Lezgins called it as Kichevnedag - the mountain of Horror. But in translation from Turkic it means “market square”, more precisely, “turn to the bazaar”.

Since ancient times, in these places in the Azerbaijani valley of Shakhnabady, which is located to the east of this mountain, a large annual fair was held, which was attended not only by merchants and buyers from nearby regions and states, but also by people from such countries as:

In order not to get lost, everyone was guided by the most noticeable mountain Bazarduzu, the ice wall of which immediately gave a complete picture of the location of the fair, since in this place it was necessary to turn left, overcome a small pass and go to the desired place.

The distance between the northern and southern points of Russia is more than four thousand kilometers. In combination with the latitudinal position, this determines the different intensity of heat supply to the entire surface area of the country, which is why three climatic zones are formed - arctic, subarctic, temperate. As well as ten natural zones.

At present, the southernmost point of Russia is located at an altitude of over 3,500 m and is located 2.2 km east of Mount Radgan, southwest of the Nesen (3.7 km) and Bazardyuzyu (7.3 km) mountains.

The most southern city of our country is Derbent (Dagestan). In 2015, the celebration of its 2000th anniversary took place. The location of the city in the narrowest place of the Caspian Passage influenced its architecture and the location of defensive buildings and walls. The longest wall is considered to be west of the citadel, the length of which is 40 km. Its construction made it impossible to bypass the fortress along the mountain passes. The name of the city "Derbent" first appeared in documents of the 7th century and meant "Locked Gates" in Persian.

In the center of the old city is the oldest mosque in the CIS and Russia, Juma Mosque. In 733, in addition to 7 mosques built in each of the mahals of Derbent, a large mosque was built for the common Friday prayer. The final formation of the entire complex was completed in 1815. But during the atheistic campaign carried out in the USSR, in the thirties of the last century, the Juma Mosque was closed, and then in 1943 it was returned to the clergy of the city. In 2015, it underwent restoration. Oriental plane trees, which have crossed the age of several centuries, are protected by the All-Russian State Program "Trees - Monuments of Wildlife". Their dense foliage protects pilgrims and numerous tourists in hot sunny weather.

Derbent today is a real city-museum, with a history that has been going on for the third millennium. It has been preserved in its place since ancient times. Due to its favorable location, the Roman Empire constantly tried to capture it, Golden Horde, enlightened Byzantium and even the Khazar Khaganate.

Most of the inhabitants of the ancient city keep and breed pigeons. Many yards, according to tradition, are equipped with dovecotes, they are also installed in attics and in the shade under trees. Soaring white birds over the ancient city are extraordinarily beautiful, their flight is impossible to forget.

Derbent is also famous for its carpets, the production of which began in the 5th century, and modern carpets are made using the same old technologies, from natural materials.

Derbent is the most famous ancient city, near which the southernmost point is located. Close to it is Mount Radgan, whose height is 4,020 m, but it is marked only on large-scale maps.

Russia is the largest country in terms of size on the entire planet Earth. Its territory exceeds one sixth of the entire land mass. The easternmost point of Russia is defined in two ways and is divided into extreme island and extreme continental points. Let's consider each of them.

The extreme eastern mainland point of Russia: eternal cold

Russia occupies the entire northeastern part of the mainland. Accordingly, its borders coincide with the borders of Eurasia. Therefore, the extreme eastern mainland point, like Eurasia, is Cape Dezhnev (169 ° 40 "W) on the Chukotka Peninsula. The Swedish scientist A. Nordenskiöld in 1879 renamed this place in honor of the Russian navigator Semyon Dezhnev. Until this year, the cape was called It was S.I. Dezhnev who was the first to pass through the northern seas, rounding the Chukchi Peninsula, and stopping at this cape.

Very close to the US border. Alaska is located 80 km from Cape Dezhnev. Arctic climate with harsh natural conditions does not leave room for the development of the industry, so the population is small, mainly - these are the indigenous people of these places - the Eskimos. The only settlement on the cape is the village of Uelen.

The main attraction is a sixteen-meter lighthouse-obelisk in honor of S. Dezhnev, placed at a hundred-meter height. In its niche is a bust of a navigator and a cast-iron commemorative plaque. The obelisk itself is covered with marble chips.

In addition to it, there is also an old cross made of wood. This is the very first monument in honor of the great discoverer Dezhnev. Rare travelers who decide to visit this point on the map mark the village of Naukan, where whalers lived and worked. It was disbanded at the end of the 20th century, when the Soviets came to power.

On Cape Dezhnev, walruses and seals are found in abundance. For them, here expanse. Scientists have noted more than 40 species of birds living on the cape. Killer whales and whales can often be seen from the shore. Also, the "inhabitants" of the cape are polar bears and cubs. Unusual natural feature of this place - the height of about 740 m - makes the cape look like a large sheer cliff, abruptly breaking off into the sea.

Until the middle of the 19th century, Fort Ross, located in Northern California, was the extreme eastern point of Russia. After Russian empire sold this settlement, its status was taken by Russian Alaska. In 1867, Alaska was ceded to the United States. Then the border began to be located between the two islands of the Diomede archipelago - Big and Small.

Ratmanov Island, otherwise Big Diomede, bears the honorary title of the most eastern island point of the Russian Federation. Administratively, it belongs to the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and is surrounded by two seas - the Bering and Chukchi. The area of \u200b\u200bthis island is about 10 sq. km, the coordinates on the map are 65 ° 47' northern latitude and 169 ° 01' western longitude.

The island is located in the Bering Strait. Its nature is harsh: huge rocks and a piercing cold wind. Therefore, the permanent population on about. Ratmanov is not. More habitable is the northern half of Diomede, which is famous for its large bird colonies.

Ratmanov Island - strategically important geographical feature. The border of the Russian state with North America passes here, and border guards are serving at the outpost. They not only protect the borders of Russia, but also take care of the preservation of the marine biological resource.

Almost 4 km from the Big Diomede is the Little Diomede, which belongs to the territory of the United States of America. Its second name is Krusenstern Island.

The history of the island begins in 1648. The great Russian explorer and discoverer of the North Seas S.I. Dezhnev was the first to visit him, spending some time with the indigenous peoples and studying their way of life and culture. The first expedition to Kamchatka in 1728, led by V. Bering, became the official date for the discovery of the island, which was named Diomede, in honor of St. Diomede. AT early XIX in. Lieutenant Otto Kotzebue gave the island the name of the famous navigator M.I. Ratmanov.

The indigenous inhabitants of the island are the Eskimos, native speakers of the Inupik language. Until the beginning of the 20th century, barter trade was carried out with the peoples of Asia and North America.

Interesting facts about the Diomede Islands

The original name of Ratmanov Island is Imaklik. From the language of the Eskimos it is translated as "surrounded by water."

Between the Big and Little Diomede is the date line. Therefore, moving from one island to another, you can meet New Year 2 times.

The time difference between the extreme western and extreme eastern points of Russia is 12 hours 35 minutes.

The highest point of Ratmanov Island is Mount Roof. Its height is 505 meters.

The last inhabitants of Big Diomede Island - the Eskimos - were evicted to the mainland in 1948 at the beginning of the Cold War.

300 days a year on the territory of the island it is difficult to see something: dense fog.

The easternmost point of Russia can be defined as Cape Dezhnev or Ratmanov Island. The first case is the extreme point, the second is the border of the state. These places attract extreme travelers with their natural power, unusualness and beauty.

Russia is located in the north of the Eurasian continent and occupies about a third of its territory (31.5%). The extreme northern and eastern points of the mainland are at the same time the extreme points of Russia. The country is located in two parts of the world and occupies the eastern sector of Europe and the northern part of Asia. Russia is washed by the seas of three oceans: the Atlantic, the Arctic and the Pacific.
The border between Europe and Asia within Russia is drawn along the Ural Mountains and along the Kumo-Manych Depression. Only slightly more than 1/5 of the country's area belongs to Europe (about 22%). At the same time, the European territory of Russia is often understood to mean the entire territory lying west of the Urals (about 23% of the area). In any case, the Asian part of Russia accounts for more than 3/4 of the country's territory. The 180th meridian passes through Wrangel Island and Chukotka, therefore, the eastern outskirts of Russia lies in the Western Hemisphere. The geographical center of Russia is located in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the Evenki Autonomous Okrug on Lake Vivi. In Tuva, near Kyzyl, is the center of Asia.
The Russian Federation is the largest state in the world in terms of territory, the country's area is 17 million 75 thousand 400 km2 (one eighth of the world's territory). The area of Russia is 1.7 times the area of Europe and 1.8 times the area of the United States, 2 times the area of China and 29 times the area of the largest European state - Ukraine.

Extreme northern point
The extreme northern point of Russia on the mainland is located far beyond the Arctic Circle at Cape Chelyuskin (77 ° 43 "N).
Cape Chelyuskin, which is the northernmost point of the Taimyr Peninsula and the Eurasian continent, was first reached by man in 1742. Then the expedition led by Semyon Ivanovich Chelyuskin named the Cape East-Northern. It took place as part of the Great Northern Expedition, which was approved by the Admiralty Board, which considered that it was necessary to explore in detail the north of Russia from Pechora to Chukotka and make a description of those places. In honor of Semyon Chelyuskin, a polar navigator and explorer of the north of Russia, the cape was named already in 1842, when the centenary of his expedition was celebrated.

Chelyuskin's travel journal, in which he shares his impressions of his journey on dog sleds, the difficult journey he and his comrades made, and their arrival at the cape, is still kept in St. Petersburg, in the archives of the Navy.
The northernmost point of the Taimyr Peninsula has a harsh climate. Winter here is year-round, the snow practically does not melt, and the temperature in July and August usually does not exceed +1C°.
The second person to visit this cape was the geologist and geographer from Sweden, Niels Nordenskiöld. The third was the Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen, who on September 9, 1893 sailed past Cape Chelyuskin in a heavy snow storm on the Fram ship.

At present, the station is called a radiometeorological center, where from 8 to 10 people spend the winter. A number of residential buildings and scientific pavilions have been built. Some of the buildings are abandoned and not in use. The northernmost airfield of continental Eurasia, Cape Chelyuskin, is also located here, which is serviced by the Khatanga United Aviation Enterprise. From the airfield, only a helipad remained, serviced by the military.
In 1932, a polar station was equipped on the cape, to which an observatory was later added. Now the station has been transferred to the status of a meteorological station. About 10 people constantly winter on it. Communication with the mainland and civilization is provided by the Cape Chelyuskin airfield with a helipad.

And one more island point: Cape Fligely on Rudolf Island in the archipelago of Franz Josef Land is located even further north - 81 ° 49 "N, the distance from Cape Fligely to the North Pole is only 900 km.
Rudolf Island is the northernmost of the Franz Josef Land islands. Cape Fligeli on the island is the northernmost point of land belonging to the Russian Federation, and at the same time the northernmost point of Europe. The island administratively belongs to the Arkhangelsk region. Area 297 km². Almost completely covered by a glacier.

The island, like the entire Franz Josef Archipelago, was discovered in 1873 by the Austro-Hungarian expedition of the explorer J. Payer, and was named after Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria. In 1936, the base of the first Soviet air expedition to the North Pole was established on the island. From there, in May 1937, four heavy four-engine ANT-6 aircraft delivered the Papanin team to the top of the world.
The meteorological station on Rudolf Island was opened in August 1932 as part of the program of the Second International Polar Year. 4 people remained for the first wintering, led by N.F. Balabin. A year later, the station was mothballed, and again work continued in the summer of 1936. Initially, the station was equipped as a base for the 1937 air expedition to the North Pole. Airfields were equipped near the station and on the ice dome of the island. In the period from April 1942 to 1947, it was mothballed again. The last period of work is 1947-1995.

Extreme southern point
According to the first version, the extreme southern point is located southwest of Mount Bazardyuzyu in the eastern part of the Main, or Watershed, ridge of the Greater Caucasus, on the border of Dagestan and Azerbaijan. The latitude of the point is 41 ° 11 "N. The distance between the extreme northern and southern points exceeds 40 ° along the meridian, and the northern mainland point is 36.5 ° away from the southern one. This is a little more than 4 thousand km.

All directories indicate - Bazardyuzyu (4466 m *) - the highest of the mountain peaks of the Republic of Dagestan and neighboring Azerbaijan. 41°13′16″ N sh. 47°51′29″ E e.

However, there is another version: The extreme southern bend of the border between the Russian Federation and Azerbaijan is located a few kilometers southwest of Bazardyuzyu peak. Mountain Ragdan is closer to the southern point of Russia (41 ° 12 "N) And the village of Kurush is the southernmost settlement ....

The peak on the left is Bazarduzu, on the right is Ragdan

The Usukhchaya Valley is unique in terms of having the epithets “most”, “most”, “most”. Here is the easternmost glacier of Dagestan - Tikhitsar. And the southernmost glacier of Dagestan and Russia - Charyn also lies in the river basin. Mount Ragdan rises near the Charyn glacier - the southernmost point of the Russian Federation. One of the longest and highest rocky walls of the Caucasus is the Western Face of Erydag - the pride of our wall-climbers. Finally, the highest peak of Dagestan - Bazarduzi (4466 m) also adjoins the Usukhchay valley. One more natural phenomenon of the valley can be noted. From the crest of Erydag, the Charaur waterfall, the highest in Dagestan, breaks down to a depth of 300 meters.

Closer to the southern point of Russia is Mount Ragdan (41°12" N), but it can only be found on large-scale maps.
Such a length of the territory from north to south, combined with the latitudinal position, determines the uneven supply of heat to the surface of the country and the formation within it of three climatic zones (arctic, subarctic and temperate) and ten natural zones (from arctic deserts to deserts of the temperate zone). The main part of the territory of Russia is located between 70 and 50 ° N. latitude. About 20% of the territory lies beyond the Arctic Circle. The area of the regions of the North is 10 million km2, in this respect only Canada can serve as an analogue.

Westernmost point
The extreme western point of Russia is located in the Kaliningrad region on the sandy Baltic Spit of the Gdansk Bay of the Baltic Sea at 19 ° 38 "30" E. But due to the fact that the Kaliningrad region is separated from the rest of Russia by the territory of other states and is an enclave, the extreme western point has turned into a kind of "island" point.

Extreme eastern point
The extreme eastern point of Russia on the mainland is located at Cape Dezhnev (169 ° 40 "W) - Ratmanov Island in the Bering Strait is located even further east - 169 ° 02" W.

Cape Dezhnev, one of the most brutal places on the Chukotka Peninsula. Here the rocks are piled one on top of the other, there are often fogs and a piercing wind is constantly blowing. From this point to the extreme western point of America - Cape Prince of Wales - 86 kilometers.
Despite the remoteness from civilization, these places have attractions. Lighthouse named after Semyon Dezhnev and an old cross, installed nearby, an abandoned settlement of whalers of the 18th-20th centuries - Naukan (it was disbanded under Soviet rule). However, those who climb into these parts go to look at the unique fauna: countless bird colonies are located here, there is a walrus and seal rookery, in spring you can see polar bears with cubs. Sometimes killer whales and gray whales swim close to the shore.

Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev in 1648 rounded the Chukotka Peninsula from the north and proved that it was possible to get from Europe to China through the northern seas. He passed through the strait separating America from Eurasia 80 years earlier than Vitus Bering, but then little was known about the Russian pioneers in the Old World. Therefore, glory went to Bering. However, in 1879, restoring justice, the Swedish Arctic explorer Nils Nordenskiöld named the extreme eastern point of Eurasia - Cape Dezhnev, after the Russian navigator. Until that time, the cape was called Vostochny.
How to get there: the nearest village Uelen is located 10 kilometers from Cape Dezhnev, and the nearest airport is located in Provideniya Bay, where planes fly from Anadyr.

Ratmanov Island has an irregular shape (about 9 km long, 5 km wide) and an area of about 10 square meters. km; practically it is a large rock with a flat top. Just 4 km 160 m is the island of Kruzenshtern (formerly Small Diomede), with an area of about 5 square meters. km, which belongs to the United States. There is also Fairway Rock. The name of Diomede was given to this archipelago by Vitus Bering, who approached the big island on the boat "Saint Gabriel" on August 16, 1728 on the day of St. Diomede. But even before this name, Ratmanov Island already had a name - Imaklik (translated from the Eskimo - "surrounded by water"), which was given to it by the Eskimos, who lived on it for more than two thousand years. By the way, the Eskimos called the island of Krusenstern (former Little Diomede) Ingalik, which means "opposite".
The story of getting the island named after Ratmanov is as follows. In 1816, the famous navigator Otto Kotzebue, while exploring the Bering Strait, mistakenly counted not three islands in the Diomede archipelago (as it had been mapped since 1732), but four islands. He decided to give the “newly discovered” island the name of his colleague, naval officer Makar Ratmanov, with whom he took part in a round-the-world expedition a few years earlier. When the mistake was discovered, they decided to leave the name of Ratmanov on the map, and from the middle of the 19th century, Big Diomede changed its name.

Western (big) - Ratmanov Island

The island is like a gable roof, with a vast, gentler northern slope. From south to north, as if bending it in the middle, a river flows with marshy banks, and closer to the raised edges, placers of bare stones and bizarre remnants begin. The southern ramp is smaller but steeper. The remnants on it are more numerous and the steep banks are higher. The junction of both slopes forms a small ridge, the highest point of which is called Mount Roof. The island occupies a key position on the border of Asia and North America and two oceans - the Pacific and the Arctic. From it you can see a huge area of water. For tens of kilometers to the west, north and east, it is easy to trace the movements of marine animals and the flights of birds.
The brave Inupik Eskimo sailors lived on the islands. Through them, the exchange trade of Asian and American Eskimos went on, they were at the center of all the events of the Northern Bering Sea and, creating their own culture, they adopted a lot from the cultural traditions that already existed on both continents. In 1948, with the beginning of the Cold War between the USSR and the USA, the inhabitants of the island were resettled to the mainland.

Now there is a Russian border outpost on Ratmanov Island. On the island of Kruzenshtern there is a village with a population of 600 people. Between these islands is the Russian-American border, as well as the international date line. Getting to Ratmanov Island is not just difficult, but extremely difficult. And not only because it is actually a state border, but also due to weather conditions - 300 days a year the island is shrouded in thick fog. The shortest way: from Anadyr by helicopter via St. Lawrence. But this is only after obtaining permission from the SVRPU. But it's worth it!
The distance between the western and eastern outskirts of Russia is 171 ° 20 "or almost 10 thousand km. With a huge extent of the territory from west to east, the degree of climate continentality changes, which entails the manifestation of sectoriality in changing nature. There are 10 time zones within the Russian Federation The highest point in Russia is Mount Elbrus (5642 m), located in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic on the border with the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic.The lowest absolute height is noted in the Caspian depression (-28 m).