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Ust-Urt
The Ustyurt or Ust-Yurt (from ; ; ; — flat hill, plateau) is a transboundary clay desert shared by Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The plateau's semi-nomadic population raises camels, goats, and sheep. Geography The Ustyurt is located between the Dead Kultuk, Mangyshlak Peninsula and Kara-Bogaz-Gol of the Caspian Sea to the west, and the Aral Sea, Amudarya Delta and Sarygamysh Lake to the east. It extends roughly , with an average altitude of . Its highest point rises to in the south-west. At its northeastern edge it drops steeply to the Aral Sea and the surrounding plain. The Ustyurt Plateau is bounded by steep cliffs called chink (geology), chinks nearly from everywhere. To the east, it encompasses the historical western shoreline of the Aral Sea. In the southern region, it extends to the Kunya-Darya alluvial plain and the valley of the Uzboy, while in the west, it reaches the Karynyaryk depression. To the north, it spans the Karakum Desert, Karakum sands of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emba (river)
The Emba ( ''Embı'' or ''Jem'', ) in west Kazakhstan rises in the Mugodzhar Hills and flows across the Sub-Ural Plateau and Caspian Depression into the Caspian Sea. It is long, and has a drainage basin of . Great Soviet Encyclopedia It flows through the north of the Ust-Urt plateau, and reaches the Caspian by a series of shallow lagoons, which were navigable in the 18th century. The lower course traverses an area of salt domes and the petroleum-rich Emba fields. It is sometimes regarded as a definition for the natural boundary between Europe and Asia. In its upper course, the Emba is a small river, its valley barely over wide. Lower down, after the waters of the Temir River flow into it, the Emba's valleys widen to almost . The Emba flows in a single channel, only breaking off into little arms in places. But around before i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Desert
A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the land surface of the Earth is arid or Semi-arid climate, semi-arid. This includes much of the Polar regions of Earth, polar regions, where little precipitation occurs, and which are sometimes called polar deserts or "cold deserts". Deserts can be classified by the amount of precipitation that falls, by the temperature that prevails, by the causes of desertification or by their geographical location. Deserts are formed by weathering processes as large variations in temperature between day and night strain the Rock (geology), rocks, which consequently break in pieces. Although rain seldom occurs in deserts, there are occasional downpours that can result in flash floods. Rain falling on hot rocks can cause them to shatter, and the resulting frag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uzboy
The Uzboy (sometimes spelled Uzboj) was a distributary of the Amu Darya river which flowed through the northwestern part of the Karakum Desert of Turkmenistan until the 17th century, when it abruptly dried up, eliminating the agricultural population that had thrived along its banks. (It was a part of the ancient region of Dahistan). Now a dry river channel and a center for archaeological excavations, the Uzboy flowed some , from a branch in the Amu Darya River via Sarykamysh Lake to the Caspian Sea. A riverine civilization existed along the banks of the river from at least the 5th century BC until the 17th century AD, when the water which had fed the Uzboy abruptly stopped flowing out of the main course of the Amu Darya. The Uzboy dried up, and the tribes which had inhabited the river's banks were abruptly dispersed, the survivors becoming nomadic desert dwellers. In the early 1950s, construction work started to build a major irrigation canal roughly along the river bed of the f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plateaus Of Kazakhstan
In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides have deep hills or escarpments. Plateaus can be formed by a number of processes, including upwelling of volcanic magma, extrusion of lava, and erosion by water and glaciers. Plateaus are classified according to their surrounding environment as intermontane, piedmont, or continental. A few plateaus may have a small flat top while others have wider ones. Formation Plateaus can be formed by a number of processes, including upwelling of volcanic magma, extrusion of lava, plate tectonics movements, and erosion by water and glaciers. Volcanic Volcanic plateaus are produced by volcanic activity. They may be formed by upwelling of volcanic magma or extrusion of lava. The underlining mechanism in forming plateaus from up ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Transcaspian Oblast
The Transcaspian Oblast, or simply Transcaspia, was an oblast of the Russian Empire and early Soviet Russia to the east of the Caspian Sea during the second half of the 19th century until 1924. It was bounded to the south by Iran's Khorasan Province and Afghanistan, to the north by the former Russian province of Uralsk, and to the northeast by the former Russian protectorates of Khiva and Bukhara. Part of Russian Turkestan, it corresponded roughly to the territory of present-day Turkmenistan and southwestern Kazakhstan. The name of the oblast (literally, 'Beyond heCaspian') is explained by the fact that until the construction of the Trans-Aral Railway in the early 20th century the easiest way to reach this oblast from central Russia (or from Russian Transcaucasia) was across the Caspian Sea, by boat from Astrakhan or Baku. History Transcaspia was conquered by Russia in 1879–1885, in a series of campaigns led by Generals Nikolai Lomakin, Mikhail Skobelev, and Mik ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khwarazm
Khwarazm (; ; , ''Xwârazm'' or ''Xârazm'') or Chorasmia () is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, bordered on the north by the (former) Aral Sea, on the east by the Kyzylkum Desert, on the south by the Karakum Desert, and on the west by the Ustyurt Plateau. It was the center of the Iranian peoples, Iranian Khwarezmian language, Khwarezmian civilization, and a series of kingdoms such as the Afrighid dynasty and the Anushtegin dynasty, whose capitals were (among others) Kath (city), Kath, Gurganj (now Konye-Urgench) andfrom the 16th century onKhiva. Today Khwarazm belongs partly to Uzbekistan and partly to Turkmenistan. Names and etymology Names Khwarazm has been known also as ''Chorasmia'', ''Khaurism'', ''Khwarezm'', ''Khwarezmia'', ''Khwarizm'', ''Khwarazm'', ''Khorezm'', ''Khoresm'', ''Khorasam'', ''Kharazm'', ''Harezm'', ''Horezm'', and ''Chorezm''. In Avestan the name is '; in Old Persian 𐎢𐎺𐎠𐎼𐏀𐎷𐎡𐏁 or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karakalpaks
The Karakalpaks or Qaraqalpaqs (; ), are a Kipchak languages, Kipchak-Nogai Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group native to Karakalpakstan in Northwestern Uzbekistan. During the 18th century, they settled in the lower reaches of the Amu Darya and in the (former) river delta, delta of Amu Darya on the southern shore of the Aral Sea. The name ''Karakalpak'' comes from two words: ''qara'' meaning 'black' and ''Kalpak, qalpaq'' meaning 'hat'. The Karakalpaks number nearly 871,970 worldwide, out of which about 726,000 live in the Karakalpakstan region of Uzbekistan. Etymology The word Karakalpak is derived from the Russian Cyrillic spelling of their name and has become the accepted name for these people in the West. The Karakalpaks Endonym and exonym, endonymically refer to themselves as ''Qaraqalpaqs'', while the Uzbeks call them ''Qoraqalpoqs''. The word means "black kalpak" and has caused much confusion in the past, since historians linked them with other earlier peoples (such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shetpe
Shetpe (, ''Шетпе'', ''شەتپە'') is a selo and the administrative center of Mangystau District in Mangystau Region in western Kazakhstan. Population: Climate Shetpe has a cold desert climate (Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ... ''BWk''). References Populated places on the Caspian Sea Populated places in Mangystau Region {{MangystauRegion-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torysh
Torysh is a valley close to the village of Shetpe and the mountain Sherkala in Mangystau, Kazakhstan. Also known as "The Valley of Balls", the area features many spherical rock formations which have formed naturally across the landscape in the sedimentary rock, through a concretion process. It is near the eastern shores of the Caspian Sea and the medieval trading settlement of Kyzylkala. Rocks There has been little research into the formation of the ball-shaped rocks in Torysh. However, there is a prevailing theory that they are the product of various geological processes: # Sediment deposition occurs from the Caspian, which used to extend this far, although only to a shallow depth. # Various organic and inorganic hard, small items (such as shells, grains of sand and minerals) act as nucleation point, beginning the sedimentation process. # Minerals (usually calcites, silicates and iron oxides) precipitate and combine onto the nuclei, known as concretion. The resultant rocks ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sherkala
Sherkala (, شەرقالا) is a mountain in Mangystau Province, western Kazakhstan, close to the town of Shetpe (Шетпе, ''Şetpe'', شەتپە). It has been described as looking like a piala, yurt or Sphinx with steep south and east sides and a more eroded northern side. The mountain is sited between the central and western Karatau Mountains. Remains of a medieval caravanserei and fort belonging to Jochi, Genghis Khan's elder son are on top and at the foot of the mountain. A tunnel can be used to access the summit. The ruins of the medieval settlement of Kyzylkala and of Mankashlak (Mankyshlak), a Turkmen town on the Silk Road, are also nearby as is Torysh (The Valley of Balls). The mountain was, according to legend, besieged by the Sheikh of Khoresm Astsyz after he had conquered Mankashlak. After four months the attackers dug a tunnel sideways through the mountain into the well shaft of the town above, cutting off their rope and forcing their surrender. The name ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saiga Antelope
The saiga antelope (, ''Saiga tatarica''), or saiga, is a species of antelope which during antiquity inhabited a vast area of the Eurasian steppe, spanning the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains in the northwest and Caucasus in the southwest into Mongolia in the northeast and Dzungaria in the southeast. During the Pleistocene, it ranged across the mammoth steppe from the British Isles to Beringia. Today, the dominant subspecies (''S. t. tatarica'') only occurs in Kalmykia and Astrakhan Oblast of Russia and in the Ural, Ustyurt and Betpak-Dala regions of Kazakhstan. A portion of the Ustyurt population migrates south to Uzbekistan and occasionally to Turkmenistan in winter. It is regionally extinct in Romania, Ukraine, Moldova, China and southwestern Mongolia. The Mongolian subspecies (''S. t. mongolica'') occurs only in western Mongolia. Taxonomy and phylogeny The scientific name ''Capra tatarica'' was coined by Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the 12th edition of ''Systema Natu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ustyurt Mountain Sheep
The Ustyurt mountain sheep (''Ovis vignei cycloceros''), often referred to as the Turkmenian mountain sheep, is a subspecies of the urial that inhabits the mountain plateau regions of parts of Central Asia, especially the Ustyurt plateau from which it takes its name. It is particularly common in northern and eastern Turkmenistan and western Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th .... A number of reserves have been established in Central Asia to protect the sheep and other wildlife. The sheep are found in Gaplaňgyr Nature Reserve for instance. References External linksCentral Asian northern desert {{Taxonbar, from=Q839513 vignei Mammals of Central Asia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
