Russian Geography facts

Location:
Northern Asia (the area west of the Urals is considered part of Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North Pacific Ocean

Geographic coordinates:
60 00 N, 100 00 E

Map references:
Asia

Area:
total: 17,075,200 sq km
land: 16,995,800 sq km
water: 79,400 sq km

Area - comparative:
approximately 1.8 times the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 20,017 km
border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China (southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 294 km, Finland 1,340 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 19 km, Latvia 217 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 227 km, Mongolia 3,485 km, Norway 196 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 206 km, Ukraine 1,576 km

Coastline:
37,653 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast

Terrain:
broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 m

Natural resources:
wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder exploitation of natural resources

Land use:
arable land: 7.17%
permanent crops: 0.11%
other: 92.72% (2005)

Irrigated land:
46,000 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula; spring floods and summer/autumn forest fires throughout Siberia and parts of European Russia

Environment - current issues:
air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and seacoasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination; groundwater contamination from toxic waste; urban solid waste management; abandoned stocks of obsolete pesticides

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulfur 94

Geography - note:
largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture; Mount El'brus is Europe's tallest peak

Dating industry related news
JTB to Implement Initiatives to Stem Effects of New U.S. Passport Regime	Love at first site?	Love may bloom late for the baby boomers
The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) intends to pursue a number of initiatives to prevent a fall-off in tourist arrivals when the Caribbean phase of the United States (U.S.) passport regime comes into effect in January 2007.Speaking at the weekly post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House on (Oct. 9), Minister of Tourism, Entertainment and Culture, Aloun Assamba, said plans were in place to work with the United States Postal Service to establish sign-up stations to enable visitors to apply for pass...	Once the preserve of geeks and perverts, internet dating is fast losing its social stigma. Casilda Grigg goes online in search of Mr Right Once upon a time, finding love was easy. Now, with most of us working longer hours, commuting longer distances, and living alone, finding a life partner has become the needle in the proverbial haystack. We are not designed to live alone, or be alone, yet millions of us do and are. 'Overnight I've acquired more than a dozen suitors from all ...	COME with me, if you dare, to that dark and foreboding jungle that lies west of the Baby Boomer Mountains. I speak of course of the land inhabited by those strange creatures born prior to the end of World War II. Here are the 60-somethings, 70-somethings and the 80-plus-year-olds. These tribes cling together for preservation, awkwardly wedged between the advancing hordes of baby boomers and oblivion's precipice. To this point in time it is these tribes who have marked what might be polite...
read more >>	read more >>	read more >>