The North Siberian Lowland (russian: Северо-Сибирская низменность; sah, Хотугу Сибиир намтала), also known as Taymyr Lowland (Таймырская низменность), is a
plain
In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...
with a relatively flat relief separating the
Byrranga Mountains
The Byrranga Mountains (russian: го́ры Бырра́нга; ''Gory Byrranga'') are a mountain range in the middle of the Taymyr Peninsula, Siberia, Russia.
Even though they were first explored in 1736, the Byrranga Mountains are one of the lea ...
of the
Taymyr Peninsula
The Taymyr Peninsula (russian: Таймырский полуостров, Taymyrsky poluostrov) is a peninsula in the Far North of Russia, in the Siberian Federal District, that forms the northernmost part of the mainland of Eurasia. Administrat ...
in the north from the
Central Siberian Plateau
The Central Siberian Plateau (russian: Среднесибирское плоскогорье, Srednesibirskoye ploskogorye; sah, Орто Сибиир хаптал хайалаах сирэ) is a vast mountainous area in Siberia, one of the Gre ...
in the south.John Kimble (ed.), ''Cryosols: Permafrost-Affected Soils'' To the southeast of the Olenyok basin the lowland merges with the
Central Yakutian Lowland
The Central Yakutian LowlandJohn Kimble (ed.), ''Cryosols: Permafrost-Affected Soils'' or Central Yakutian Lowlands (russian: Центральноякутская равнина; sah, Саха сирин ортоку намтала), also known as ...
.
The territory of the lowland is one of the
Great Russian Regions
The Great Russian Regions (russian: Ландшафт России) are eight geomorphological areas in the Russian Federation displaying characteristic forms of relief. Seven of them are east of the Urals.
Geography
* Central Siberian Plateau ...
. Administratively it is mostly part of the
Krasnoyarsk Krai
Krasnoyarsk Krai ( rus, Красноя́рский край, r=Krasnoyarskiy kray, p=krəsnɐˈjarskʲɪj ˈkraj) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), with its administrative center in the city of Krasnoyarsk, the third-largest city in Si ...
, with a small section in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia). The main towns are
Dudinka
Dudinka (russian: Дуди́нка; Nenets: Тут'ын, ''Tutꜧyn'') is a town on the Yenisei River and the administrative center of Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It used to be the administrative center of Ta ...
,
Norilsk
Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''Norílʹsk'') is a closed city in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located south of the western Taymyr Peninsula, around 90 km east of the Yenisey River and 1,500 km north of Krasnoyarsk. Norilsk ...
Krasnoyarsk Krai
Krasnoyarsk Krai ( rus, Красноя́рский край, r=Krasnoyarskiy kray, p=krəsnɐˈjarskʲɪj ˈkraj) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), with its administrative center in the city of Krasnoyarsk, the third-largest city in Si ...
and
Yakutia
Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),, is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of roughly 1 million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far E ...
.
It is 1,400 km long and up to 600 km wide. This lowland plain features flat-topped ridges approximately 200-300 m high, which rise over broad and heavily swamped degradations with a large number of thermokarst lakes.
Rivers Pyasina,
Taymyra
The Taymyra (russian: Таймыра) is a river in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is located in the middle of the Taymyr Peninsula. It is about long and has a drainage basin of .Kheta and Kotuy flow over the North Siberian Lowland, as well as further east the Khatanga, Popigay, Kuoyka, Beyenchime, Bur, Buolkalakh, as well as the Anabar with its tributaries the Suolama and Udya, and the Uele. There are many lakes in the North Siberian Lowland, the biggest one is
Lake Taymyr
Lake Taymyr (russian: Таймыр, Таймырское озеро, Taymyr, Taymyrskoye ozero) is a lake of the central regions of the Taymyr Peninsula in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russian Federation. It is located south of the Byrranga Mountains. Geog ...
.
The North Siberian Lowland has deposits of oil, natural gas and coal (Taymyr Basin).
Geology
The North Siberian Lowland is formed by marine and ice-laid deposits, underlaid with
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
s and
argillite
:''"Argillite" may also refer to Argillite, Kentucky.''
Argillite () is a fine-grained sedimentary rock composed predominantly of indurated clay particles. Argillaceous rocks are basically lithified muds and oozes. They contain variable amounts ...
s. Permafrost is a common phenomenon in this area.
Climate and flora
The climate is subarctic continental with long (7–8 months) cold winters and short cool summers. Average temperature in January is -30 degrees Celsius in the West and down to -35-37 degrees Celsius in the East. Temperature in July is around 6-10 degrees Celsius. Snow cover stays for approximately 265 days. Precipitation is 250-300 mm per year.
Sparse forest in the west consists mainly of
Siberian larch
''Larix sibirica'', the Siberian larch or Russian larch, is a frost-hardy tree native to western Russia, from close to the Finnish border east to the Yenisei valley in central Siberia, where it hybridises with the Dahurian larch ''L. gmelinii' ...
. Eastern parts of the lowland are covered with
Dahurian larch
''Larix gmelinii'', the Dahurian larch or Gmelin larch, is a species of larch native to eastern Siberia and adjacent northeastern Mongolia, northeastern China ( Heilongjiang), South Korea and North Korea.
Description
''Larix gmelinii'' i ...
tundra
In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless mou ...
dominates northern parts of the lowland, while southern parts are full of shrubbery vegetation.
Alas (geography)
Alas ( sah, Алаас) is a shallow depression which occurs primarily in Yakutia, which is formed by subsidence of the Arctic permafrost owing to repeated melting and refreezing. An alas first develops as a shallow lake as melt water fills the ...