The Lena River basin is located on the vast territory of North-Eastern Siberia (in Yakutia, as well as in the Irkutsk region). Some of its tributaries are located in the Krasnoyarsk, Khabarovsk, Zabaykalsky Krai and the Republic of Buryatia. Among all the rivers in the world, Lena is 10th in length and 8th in terms of fullness. This reservoir is considered the longest river in Russia, which flows under the same name.
General information
The source of the Lena River is located near Lake Baikal, 145 km from the village of Kachug in the Irkutsk Region (the area of the Baikal Range). Then it flows through the Zhigalovsky, Kachugsky, Ust-Kutsky and Kirensky districts, which are located in the same region.
In Yakutia, Lena flows in Lensky, Khangalassky, Olekminsky, Namsky, in the urban district of Yakutsk, Zhigansky, Kobyaysky and Bulunsky districts. It flows into the Laptev Sea, 160 km from the village of Chekurovka (Bulunsky district). The direction of the Lena River is from south to northeast, and further from Yakutsk to the north.
Discovery story
The first information about the huge eastern river appeared at the beginning of the XVII century. Several detachments of Cossacks were sent to scout this unexplored region. In 1628, Vasily Bugor went on an expedition with his detachment. They climbed up the Angara, then went to Ilim, there they crossed the watershed and went along the Kuta River to the Lena. A couple of years later, the centurion Peter Beketov went to the region of North-Eastern Siberia. The first houses were built by his troops in the area of the Kuta River, thanks to which a new city, Ust-Kuta, began to be founded.
In 1733-1743, the Lena River basin began to study the members of the scientific Kamchatka expedition. In the 19th century, Chekanovsky, Anjou, Toll and other scientists continued to explore this region. In 1910-1915 cartographic work was carried out on the Lena River. In 1919-1920, according to the results of the expedition of Evgenov and Matisen, an inventory was made of a reservoir from its mouth to the city of Yakutsk. The name "Lena", strangely enough, is completely unrelated to the Russian female name, but comes from the Yakut "Elyu-Ene", which translates as "big river".
Tributaries of the Lena River
Main tributaries:
- Young, Kuta, Vilyuy (the largest left tributaries).
- Tea, Aldan, Vitim, Chuya, Kirenga, Olekma (the largest right tributaries).
The largest of them is the Aldan River with a basin area of 729,000 square meters.
Smaller tributaries:
- right: Sukhush, Orling, Beach, Zharkov, Chichapta, Iga, Dyanshka, Tayura, Dzhardzhan, Kovtov, Botovka, Anga, Tutura, Big River, Distillery, Shapkin, Buotmama, Birch, Small Balakhnya, Yukte, Larch, Chechuy, Upper Sarafanikha, Tuolba, Zybunya, Kovtorov, Kuzmin, Ylovetsky, Sobolokh-Mayan, Parshinka, Zakobeninsky river and others;
- left: Indus, Yamny, Ilga, Lower, Atalanga, Markha, Moon, Zakharovka, Dry, Upper Bochakta, Shulaga, Turuk, Skate, Naman, Semig, Bobrovka, Kazimirka, Bots, Fedorovka, Ilikta, Talabak, Kuhta, Fedorovka, Half, Potapovka, Kokara, Slaughtered, Peledui, Horuonka, Eekit, Tympylykan, Bear, Piludu, Rassokha, Yamny, Upper Katyma, Mokshenikha, Meneevsky, Lower Katyma, Olenekskaya, Chembalovka, Bearish, Nemtankov, Yechenga, Zhecha, Yechenga others.
Hydrological regime
The Lena River is 4400 km long. The maximum depth is 21 km. The widest armhole is 30 km. The pool area is 2,490,000 km ². Lena and almost all its tributaries are fed by melt snow and rain water. Due to permafrost, the reservoir is poorly fed by groundwater, although geothermal sources are an exception. In spring, floods occur on the river, several floods occur in the summer, and autumn and winter are characterized by low low-water.
Relief and soil
The upper reaches of the reservoir and a significant part of its right tributaries are located in the mountainous regions of Baikal, Aldan, and Transbaikalia. Part of the left-bank basin is located on the Central Siberian Plateau. The lowest section of the river lies in its middle and lower reaches (Central Yakut Lowland). After the city of Pokrovsk, which is located in Yakutia, the course of the Lena River slows down significantly.
The river can be divided into three main zones: from the source, which is located 12 km from Baikal at an altitude of 1,470 meters, to the confluence of the Vitim River (upper section), from the latter to the confluence with Aldan (middle) and from the indicated point to the mouth (lower).
Almost one third of its length falls on the upper part of the river. The width of the valley ranges from 1-3 km to 10 km, in some places the channel narrows to 200 meters. The slopes of the reservoir are rocky and steep. The height of the Lena River in this region reaches 300 meters.
In the middle course, it becomes more full-flowing. Its size especially increases after flowing into the Olekma River. Here the width of the channel reaches 2 km. Below the mouth of Olekma, the Lena valley becomes narrow with limestone slopes that are very dissected, which are separate rocks.
Below the mouth of the Aldan, the borders of the Lena River basin extend beyond the Central Yakut Lowland. In this region, its valley expands to 20–25 km, and the width of the armhole is 7–15 km. The bed of water bodies is very branched. The valleys are rather asymmetric: the slope of the Lena River on the left bank is much lower than on the right. In this area, the depth reaches 16-20 meters. In the lower reaches, the basin of the reservoir is narrow: elevations of the Central Siberian Plateau are observed from the west, and spurs of the Verkhoyansk Range protrude strongly from the east. Further, in the area where the river flows between the Chekanovsky ridge and the Kharaulakh mountains, the width of the channel narrows to 2 km.
In the place where the pond flows into the Laptev Sea, an extensive delta with numerous arms has formed (this can be seen if you look at the Lena River basin on the map), which exceeds the Nile Delta (30,000 km2). Here are important ecological territories: the Sokol and Ust-Lenskoye reserves, as well as the Lena-Ustye reserve. In these places, there are about 109 species of birds, 32 species of fish, 33 mammals and 402 species of plants.
River features
Lena is significantly different from other rivers due to its powerful ice regime. A fairly strong and thick ballast of ice is formed on a pond in the conditions of a harsh, long and snowy winter. Without it, the river lasts about 5-6 months in the south and 4-5 months in the north. Freeze-up is established on it approximately 10 days later than on tributaries of the reservoir. The upper reaches of the Lena River freeze from the end of October, and the lower - from the end of September. It completely thaws the reservoir in the middle of May in the upper reaches and only at the beginning of summer - in the lower reaches. The maximum water temperature can reach +19 C in the upper reaches and about +14 C in the lower reaches.
At the end of April, a spring spill is often observed near the city of Kirensk (the upper part of the Lena) and smoothly shifts to the north, where it steps on a pond still covered with ice. In the lower reaches of the river, this phenomenon is usually observed in mid-June. Here, the rise of water can reach up to 18 meters. Annually, Lena carries out about 41 thousand tons of dissolved substances in the Laptev Sea.
The reservoir is also characterized by a periodic increase in annual runoff, which does not occur as a result of a large amount of precipitation in the reservoir, but because intense melting of permafrost and ice in the lower part of the Lena occurs. This phenomenon is explained by the fact that recently the temperature in the north of Yakutia is higher than usual.
Settlements
The largest settlements on the river are Kachug, Ust-Ilga, Vitim, Verkholensk, Sangar, Yakutsk, Bestyakh, Maimaga, Chuya, Chekurovka, Omola, Bakhanai, Khorintsy, Sinsk and others.
The largest ports are: Lensk, Sangar, Pokrovsk, Tiksi, Osetrovo, Kirensk, Olekminsk and Yakutsk.
The most important city in the region is Yakutsk. It was founded in 1632 by a detachment of Cossacks Pyotr Beketov on the right side of the reservoir. Later, the city was moved to the left bank of the Lena. Now its population is approximately 240 thousand inhabitants. This is one of the largest settlements in North-East Siberia.
In general, the riverbanks are poorly populated. From one village to another, sometimes the distance can reach hundreds of kilometers. Most settlements are located near Yakutsk. Many villages are in an abandoned state.
Vegetation
A significant part of the territory is covered by endless taiga and coniferous forests. Cedars, spruce, larch, fir and pine grow in this region. At the same time, on some sections of the banks of the Lena there are meadows where there is steppe vegetation (for example, wormwood, fescue).
Ichthyofauna
The Lena River basin is rich in such fish species : whitefish, pike, ide, lenok, catfish, tungun, chir, dace, burbot, taimen, grayling, omul, ruff, pike perch, common carp, roach and bream.
Animals
Among the animals there are ermine, mink, wolf, bear,
reindeer, marten. Soft and fluffy fur helps animals tolerate harsh winters quite easily. The birds of the region - the gray-headed gadget and the tundra tap dance, the tundra swan and the pink gull - also have warm, thick plumage.
Water quality
A turbidity of not more than 50-60 g / m³ is observed in the river. The degree of mineralization of the reservoir - from fresh to salty. In general, Lena is characterized by medium and low mineralization. The average is observed during floods and floods. If we talk about the chemical composition, then water can be attributed to hydro-carbonate-calcium.
Shipping
Lena is rightfully considered the main waterway of Yakutia, as well as the Irkutsk region. The river is navigable from its mouth to Kachug. Only ships with a slight draft can sail from the Ust-Kut settlement along the Lena River. In small areas annually held events to deepen the bottom of the reservoir. The navigation period lasts from about 125 to 170 days. It is worth noting that it is on this reservoir that a significant part of the "northern delivery" is produced.
Tourism
Cruise ships and small boats float along the river. Lena is a favorite fishing spot for both tourists and locals.
The Lena River basin is famous for the so-called Shishkinsky rocks. The rock inscriptions of ancient people are very well preserved here. They are located in the upper reaches of the reservoir. It is worth noting that this is the only place where the work of primitive man is so vividly and distinctly represented.
No less popular among tourists are Lena Pillars (Yakutia, Khangalassky District) - this is a kind of geological formation - and a nature reserve, which is located on the right bank of the river. One of the rifts was called the Devil's Path, and the rock is called Drunken Bull. Traces of ancient people were also found in the area of Lena Pillars. This fact confirms the theory of the extratropical origin of man. And although scientists date the age of the Neolithic sites differently, it is reliably known that representatives of the genus Homo lived here at least 300 thousand years ago.
There are indeed many miracles in Siberia, but the desert among the taiga is simply a phenomenal phenomenon. On the right bank of the river there is a small stretch (about 1 km) of sand dunes that create the illusion of arid and hot terrain. Only nearby pines destroy this self-deception. There are many explanations for this phenomenon, however, not one of them has not yet been officially adopted.
Fossil and energy potential
12 reservoirs were created on Lena, 2 of the largest hydroelectric power stations are located in Vilyue and on Mamakan. The river basin is famous for its minerals. Here are the Aldan and Bodaibo gold-bearing regions. Gold deposits in the Lena basin were found at the beginning of the 19th century. Pretty soon after this, the fame of the incredible wealth of the area swept across Russia. A real gold rush has begun in the region, as in Alaska. The coast began to populate many lovers of easy money. Among them were representatives of different sectors of the population: merchants, artisans, fugitive criminals, soldiers. Many of them, in the pursuit of wealth, perished from hunger and disease, but there were still more and more gold seekers.
A diamond deposit was discovered on the Vilyui River, which was discovered in 1955. It was previously believed that these stones can only be found in hot countries. Now the large city of Mirny is considered the diamond capital of Russia . In addition, there are such minerals as coal, natural gas, mica, rock salt, iron ore and others.
At first glance this harsh and inhospitable region is beautiful and attractive in its own way. As it turned out, despite its external impregnability, the waters and coast of the Lena contain many wealth. It is possible that many more treasures will be discovered in these areas, because the river basin has not yet been fully explored.