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The Ob (; ) is a major river in Russia. It is in western
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
, and with its tributary the
Irtysh The Irtysh is a river in Russia, China, and Kazakhstan. It is the chief tributary of the Ob (river), Ob and is also the longest tributary in the world. The river's source lies in the Altai Mountains, Mongolian Altai in Dzungaria (the northern p ...
forms the world's seventh-longest river system, at . The Ob forms at the confluence of the Biya and Katun which have their origins in the
Altai Mountains The Altai Mountains (), also spelled Altay Mountains, are a mountain range in Central Asia, Central and East Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan converge, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob River, Ob have their headwaters. The ...
. It is the westernmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the
Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five oceanic divisions. It spans an area of approximately and is the coldest of the world's oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...
(the other two being the
Yenisei The Yenisey or Yenisei ( ; , ) is the fifth-longest river system in the world, and the largest to drain into the Arctic Ocean. Rising in Mungaragiyn-gol in Mongolia, it follows a northerly course through Lake Baikal and the Krasnoyarsk Dam b ...
and the
Lena Lena or LENA may refer to: Places * Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso * Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada * Lena, Norway, a village in ...
). Its flow is north-westward, then northward. The main city on its banks is
Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...
, the largest city in Siberia, and the third-largest city in Russia. It is where the
Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...
crosses the river. The
Gulf of Ob The Gulf of Ob (), also known as the Bay of Ob (), is a bay of the Arctic Ocean, located in northern Russia at the mouth of the Ob River. It is the world's longest estuary. Geography The mouth of the Gulf of Ob is in the Kara Sea between the ...
is the world's longest
estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
.


Names

The internationally known name of the river is based on the Russian name ''Обь'' (''Obʹ'', ). Possibly from
Proto-Indo-Iranian Proto-Indo-Iranian, also called Proto-Indo-Iranic or Proto-Aryan, is the reconstructed proto-language of the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European. Its speakers, the hypothetical Proto-Indo-Iranians, are assumed to have lived in the late 3rd ...
'' *Hā́p-'', "river, water" (compare
Vedic Sanskrit Vedic Sanskrit, also simply referred as the Vedic language, is the most ancient known precursor to Sanskrit, a language in the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. It is atteste ...
''áp-'',
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
''āb'', Tajik ''ob'', and
Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...
''obə'', "water"). Katz (1990) proposes Komi ''ob'' 'river' as the immediate source of derivation for the Russian name. Katz's proposal of a common Finno-Ugric root, borrowed early on from a pre-Indo-Iranian source related to Sanskrit ''ambhas-'' 'water' is deemed improbable by Rédei (1992), who prefers to analyse this as a later loan from a descendant of the non-nasal root form ''*Hā́p-''. The Ob is known to the
Khanty people The Khanty (), also known in older literature as Ostyaks (), are a Ob-Ugric languages, Ugric Indigenous people, living in Khanty–Mansi Autonomous Okrug, a region historically known as "Yugra" in Russia, together with the Mansi people, Mansi. I ...
as the ''As'' (the source of the name "
Ostyak Ostyak () is a name formerly used to refer to several Indigenous peoples and languages in Siberia, Russia. Both the Khanty people and the Ket people were formerly called Ostyaks, whereas the Selkup people were referred to as Ostyak-Samoyed. Kh ...
"), ''Yag'', ''Kolta'' and ''Yema''; to the
Nenets people The Nenets (; ), in the past also called 'Samoyeds' or 'Yuraks', are a Samoyedic ethnic group native to Arctic Russia, Russian Far North. According to the latest census in 2021, there were 49,646 Nenets in the Russian Federation, most of them l ...
as the ''Kolta'' or ''Kuay''; and to the
Siberian Tatars Siberian Tatars () are the Indigenous peoples of Siberia, indigenous Turkic languages, Turkic-speaking population of the forests and steppes of southern Western Siberia, originating in areas stretching from somewhat east of the Ural Mountains to ...
as the ''Umar'' or ''Omass''.


Geography

The Ob forms southwest of
Biysk Biysk ( rus, Бийск, p=bʲijsk; , ) is a city in Altai Krai, Russia, located on the Biya River not far from its confluence with the Katun River. It is the second largest city of the krai (after Barnaul, the administrative center of the krai ...
in
Altai Krai Altai Krai (, ) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai). It borders, clockwise from the west, Kazakhstan ( East Kazakhstan Region, Abai Region and Pavlodar Region), Novosibirsk and Kemerovo, and the Altai Republic. The krai's administrative ce ...
at the confluence of the Biya and Katun rivers. Both these streams have their origin in the
Altai Mountains The Altai Mountains (), also spelled Altay Mountains, are a mountain range in Central Asia, Central and East Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan converge, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob River, Ob have their headwaters. The ...
, which gradually give way to the
Ob Plateau The Ob Plateau (, ''Priobskoye Plato''), is one of the great plateaus of Siberia. Administratively it falls within Altai Krai and Novosibirsk Oblast, Siberian Federal District, Russia. The plateau is named after the Ob River and is part of its ba ...
.Приобское плато
; ''
Great Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; , ''BSE'') is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Great Russian Enc ...
'' in 30 vols. — Ch. ed.
A.M. Prokhorov Alexander Mikhailovich Prokhorov (born Alexander Michael Prochoroff, ; 11 July 1916 – 8 January 2002) was an Australian-born Russian physicist and researcher on lasers and masers, in the former Soviet Union. He shared the Nobel Prize in Ph ...
. – 3rd ed. – M. Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969–1978.
The Biya has its sources in
Lake Teletskoye Lake Teletskoye (; ) is the largest lake in the Altai Mountains and the Altai Republic, Russia, and has depth up to 325 meters. Situated at a height of above the sea level, the lake is long and wide and lies between the mountain ridges Korbu ...
and the long Katun in a glacier on Mount Byelukha. The Ob itself is in Russia. Its tributaries extend into northern
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 western corner of China and a tiny upland parcel of the western tip of Mongolia, where the wider borders match the drainage basin almost precisely. The river splits into more than one arm after the large
Irtysh The Irtysh is a river in Russia, China, and Kazakhstan. It is the chief tributary of the Ob (river), Ob and is also the longest tributary in the world. The river's source lies in the Altai Mountains, Mongolian Altai in Dzungaria (the northern p ...
flows into it at about 69° E. Originating in China, the Irtysh is the furthest source of the Ob. From their respective sources to the confluence, the Irtysh measures 4,248 kilometers (2,640 mi) and the Ob 2,538 km (1,577 mi). Other noteworthy tributaries are: from the east, the
Tom Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name. Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film * ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...
, Chulym, Ket, Tym and
Vakh The Vakh () is a river in Khanty–Mansia, Russia. It is a right tributary of the Ob. The Vakh is long with a basin area of . The river is a status B Ramsar wetland, nominated for designation as a Wetland of International Importance in 2000. ...
rivers; and, from the west and south, the
Vasyugan The Vasyugan () is a river in the southern West Siberian Plain of Russia. It is a tributary of the Ob on the left side, and its course from its source in the Vasyugan Swamp is entirely within the Kargasok district of Tomsk Oblast. Statistic ...
, Irtysh (with the
Ishim Ishim may refer to: *Ishim (river), a river in Kazakhstan and Russia *Ishim, Tyumen Oblast, a town in Tyumen Oblast, Russia *Ishim (angel), a rank of angels in the Jewish angelic hierarchy See also

*Ishimsky (disambiguation) *Ishimbay {{Disam ...
and
Tobol The Tobol (, ) is a river in Western Siberia (in Kazakhstan and Russia) and the main (left) tributary of the Irtysh. Its length is , and the area of its drainage basin is . History The Tobol River was one of the four important rivers of the S ...
rivers), and
Severnaya Sosva The Severnaya Sosva (, "''Northern Sosva''”; Northern Mansi: Со̄с-я̄, Та̄гт; ''Sōs-jā, Tāgt'') is a river in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, which drains the northern Ural Mountains into the lower Ob. It discharges into ...
. The Ob zigzags west and north until it reaches 55° N, where it curves to the northwest, south of the
Siberian Uvaly Siberian Uvaly () is a hilly region in the central part of the West Siberian Plain, Russia. A sector of the hills is a protected area under the name Upper Taz Nature Reserve, which was established in December 1986. The area is sparsely populate ...
, at the western end of which it bends northwards, wheeling finally eastwards into the
Gulf of Ob The Gulf of Ob (), also known as the Bay of Ob (), is a bay of the Arctic Ocean, located in northern Russia at the mouth of the Ob River. It is the world's longest estuary. Geography The mouth of the Gulf of Ob is in the Kara Sea between the ...
, a bay of the
Kara Sea The Kara Sea is a marginal sea, separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and from the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago. Ultimately the Kara, Barents and Laptev Seas are all ...
, separating the
Yamal Peninsula The Yamal Peninsula () is located in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug of northwest Siberia, Russia. It extends roughly 700 km (435 mi) and is bordered principally by the Kara Sea and its Baydaratskaya Bay on the west, and by the G ...
from the
Gyda Peninsula The Gyda Peninsula () is a geographical feature of the Siberian coast in the Kara Sea. It takes its name from the river Gyda, that flows on the peninsula. It is roughly 400 km long and 360 km wide. This wide peninsula lies between the ...
. The combined Ob-Irtysh system, the fourth-longest river system of Asia (after
Yenisei The Yenisey or Yenisei ( ; , ) is the fifth-longest river system in the world, and the largest to drain into the Arctic Ocean. Rising in Mungaragiyn-gol in Mongolia, it follows a northerly course through Lake Baikal and the Krasnoyarsk Dam b ...
, and China's
Yangzi The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dangqu, Dam Qu River the l ...
and
Yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In t ...
rivers), is long, and the area of its basin . The river basin of the Ob consists mostly of
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...
,
taiga Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. In North A ...
, swamps,
tundra In physical geography, a tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: #Arctic, Arctic, Alpine tundra, Alpine, and #Antarctic ...
, and
semi-desert A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...
topography. The floodplains of the Ob are characterised by many tributaries and lakes. The Ob is icebound at southern
Barnaul Barnaul (, ) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative centre of Altai Krai, Russia, located at the confluence of the Barnaulka and Ob (river), Ob rivers in the West Siberian Plain. As of the Russian Censu ...
from early in November to near the end of April, and at northern
Salekhard Salekhard ( ; Khanty language, Khanty: , ''Pułñawat''; , , formerly Obdorsk) is a Classification of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative centre of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia. The town lies on the Arctic Circle, ...
, above its mouth, from the end of October to the beginning of June. The Ob River crosses several climatic zones. The upper Ob valley, in the south, supports grapes, melons and watermelons, whereas the lower reaches of the Ob are Arctic tundra. The most temperate climates on the Ob are at
Biysk Biysk ( rus, Бийск, p=bʲijsk; , ) is a city in Altai Krai, Russia, located on the Biya River not far from its confluence with the Katun River. It is the second largest city of the krai (after Barnaul, the administrative center of the krai ...
, Barnaul, and
Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...
.


Human use

The Ob provides irrigation, drinking water, hydroelectric energy, and fishing (the river hosts more than 50 species of fish). There are several hydroelectric power plants along the Ob river, the largest being Novosibirskaya GES. The navigable waters within the Ob basin reach a total length of . The importance of navigation in the Ob basin for transport was particularly great before the completion of the
Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...
, since, despite the general south-to-north direction of the flow of Ob and most of its tributaries, the width of the Ob basin provided for (somewhat indirect) transport in the east–west direction as well.


History

The Novgorodians were aware of the lands of western Siberia from at least the 11th century, which were designated by the Russian word ''
Yugra Yugra or Yugor Land (; also spelled ''Iuhra'' in contemporary sources) was a collective name for lands and peoples in the region east of the northern Ural Mountains in modern Russia given by Russian chroniclers in the 12th to 17th centuries. Du ...
''. Novgorod established two trade routes to the Ob River, both starting from the town of
Ustyug Veliky Ustyug () is a town in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located in the northeast of the oblast at the confluence of the Sukhona and Yug Rivers. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 31,665. Veliky Ustyug has a great historical significa ...
. The first route went along the
Sukhona The Sukhona () is a river in the European part of Russia, a tributary of the Northern Dvina. The course of the Sukhona lies in Ust-Kubinsky, Sokolsky, Mezhdurechensky, Totemsky, Tarnogsky, Nyuksensky, and Velikoustyugsky Districts of Volo ...
and
Vychegda The Vychegda (; ) is a river in the European part of Russia, a tributary of the Northern Dvina. Its length is about . Its source is approximately west of the northern Ural Mountains. It flows roughly in a western direction, through the Komi Re ...
, then along the
Usa The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
to the lower reaches of the Ob. The second route went down the
Northern Dvina The Northern Dvina (, ; ) is a river in northern Russia flowing through Vologda Oblast and Arkhangelsk Oblast into the Dvina Bay of the White Sea. Along with the Pechora River to the east, it drains most of Northwest Russia into the Arctic O ...
, then along the coasts of the
White Sea The White Sea (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; ) is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the nort ...
and
Kara Sea The Kara Sea is a marginal sea, separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and from the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago. Ultimately the Kara, Barents and Laptev Seas are all ...
, before reaching the mouth of the Ob. The Russian settlements of
Beryozov Beryozovo (; Khanty: Сўмт вош, ''Sŭmt-voš''; Mansi: Ха̄льӯс, ''Hāļūs'') is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) and the administrative center of Beryozovsky District of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located ...
and Obdorsk were founded towards the end of the 16th century on the lower reaches of the Ob, while
Surgut Surgut ( rus, Сургу́т, p=sʊrˈgut; Khanty: Сәрханӆ, ''Sərhanł, Сө̆ркут, sörkut'') is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the Ob River near its junction with the Irtysh River. It is one of the fe ...
was founded on the middle course of the Ob. Until the early 20th century, a particularly important western river-port was
Tyumen Tyumen ( ; rus, Тюмень, p=tʲʉˈmʲenʲ, a=Ru-Tyumen.ogg) is the administrative center and largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Tyumen Oblast, Russia. It is situated just east of the Ural Mountains, along the Tura ( ...
, located on the Tura, a tributary of the
Tobol The Tobol (, ) is a river in Western Siberia (in Kazakhstan and Russia) and the main (left) tributary of the Irtysh. Its length is , and the area of its drainage basin is . History The Tobol River was one of the four important rivers of the S ...
. Reached by an extension of the
Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg (, ; ), alternatively Romanization of Russian, romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( ; 1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The ci ...
Perm Perm or PERM may refer to: Places * Perm, Russia, a city in Russia **Permsky District, the district **Perm Krai, a federal subject of Russia since 2005 **Perm Oblast, a former federal subject of Russia 1938–2005 ** Perm Governorate, an administr ...
railway in 1885, and thus obtaining a rail link to the
Kama ''Kama'' (Sanskrit: काम, ) is the concept of pleasure, enjoyment and desire in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. It can also refer to "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature.Monier Williamsका ...
and
Volga The Volga (, ) is the longest river in Europe and the longest endorheic basin river in the world. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchment ...
rivers in the heart of Russia, Tyumen became an important railhead for some years until the railway extended further east. In the eastern reaches of the Ob basin,
Tomsk Tomsk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast in Russia, on the Tom (river), Tom River. Population: Founded in 1604, Tomsk is one of the oldest cities in Siberia. It has six univers ...
on the
Tom Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name. Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film * ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...
functioned as an important terminus. Tyumen had its first
steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...
in 1836, and steamboats have navigated the middle reaches of the Ob since 1845. In 1916, there were 49 steamers on the Ob; 10 on the Yenisei. In an attempt to extend the Ob navigable system even further, a system of canals, utilising the Ket, long in all, was built in the late 19th-century to connect the Ob with the
Yenisei The Yenisey or Yenisei ( ; , ) is the fifth-longest river system in the world, and the largest to drain into the Arctic Ocean. Rising in Mungaragiyn-gol in Mongolia, it follows a northerly course through Lake Baikal and the Krasnoyarsk Dam b ...
, but soon abandoned as being uncompetitive with the
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
. The Trans-Siberian Railway, once completed, provided for more direct, year-round transport in the east–west direction. But the Ob river-system still remained important for connecting the huge expanses of
Tyumen Oblast Tyumen Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is located in Western Siberia, and is administratively part of the Ural Federal District. The oblast has administrative jurisdiction over two autonomous ...
and
Tomsk Oblast Tomsk Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It lies in the southeastern West Siberian Plain, in the southwest of the Siberian Federal District. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited loca ...
with the major cities along the Trans-Siberian route, such as Novosibirsk or
Omsk Omsk (; , ) is the administrative center and largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia and has a population of over one million. Omsk is the third List of cities and tow ...
. In the second half of the 20th century, construction of rail links to
Labytnangi Labytnangi (; from Khanty: ; lit. ''seven larches''; Nenets: Лабытнаӈгы. ''Labytnaŋgy'') is a town in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the left bank of the Ob River, northwest of Salekhard. Population: History It ...
,
Tobolsk Tobolsk (, ) is a town in Tyumen Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh rivers. Founded in 1587, Tobolsk is the second-oldest Russian settlement east of the Ural Mountains in Asian Russia, and was the historic capita ...
, and the oil and gas cities of
Surgut Surgut ( rus, Сургу́т, p=sʊrˈgut; Khanty: Сәрханӆ, ''Sərhanł, Сө̆ркут, sörkut'') is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the Ob River near its junction with the Irtysh River. It is one of the fe ...
, and
Nizhnevartovsk Nizhnevartovsk ( rus, Нижневартовск, p=nʲɪʐnʲɪˈvartəfsk) is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra, Russia. Since the 1960s, the Western Siberian oil boom has led to Nizhnevartovsk's rapid growth from a small settlem ...
provided more railheads, but did not diminish the importance of the waterways for reaching places still not served by the rail. A dam built near Novosibirsk in 1956 created the then-largest artificial lake in
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
, called
Novosibirsk Reservoir Novosibirsk Reservoir or Novosibirskoye Reservoir (), informally called the Ob Sea (), is the largest artificial lake in Novosibirsk Oblast and Altai Krai, Russian Federation. It was created by a 33 m high concrete dam on the Ob River built in Nov ...
. From the 1960s through 1980s, Soviet engineers and administrators contemplated a gigantic project to divert some of the waters of Ob and Irtysh to
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 ...
and the Soviet
Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
n republics, replenishing the
Aral Sea The Aral Sea () was an endorheic lake lying between Kazakhstan to its north and Uzbekistan to its south, which began shrinking in the 1960s and had largely dried up into desert by the 2010s. It was in the Aktobe and Kyzylorda regions of Kazakhst ...
as well. The project never left the drawing board, abandoned in 1986 for economic and environmental considerations.


Pollution

The water in the river is significantly polluted. In the lower reaches, the maximum permissible concentrations of petroleum products are exceeded by 9–10 times. The oxygen content in the water is 4 times lower than normal


Tributaries

The
Irtysh The Irtysh is a river in Russia, China, and Kazakhstan. It is the chief tributary of the Ob (river), Ob and is also the longest tributary in the world. The river's source lies in the Altai Mountains, Mongolian Altai in Dzungaria (the northern p ...
is the major
tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...
of the Ob. The larger tributaries along its course are: In addition, the
Nadym Nadym () is a town in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the river Nadym. The population has fluctuated over time: Etymology There are three several translations from the Nenets language: # ''"nyadey ya"'' – mossy place # ' ...
and the Pur River flow into the
Gulf of Ob The Gulf of Ob (), also known as the Bay of Ob (), is a bay of the Arctic Ocean, located in northern Russia at the mouth of the Ob River. It is the world's longest estuary. Geography The mouth of the Gulf of Ob is in the Kara Sea between the ...
and the
Taz Taz or TAZ may refer to: Geography *Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia *Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia People * Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia ** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...
into the
Taz Estuary The Taz Estuary () is a long gulf formed by the Taz River. It consists of a roughly long estuary that begins in the area of the settlement of Tazovsky and ends in the Gulf of Ob, which is connected with the Kara Sea. Its average width is ab ...
, a side arm of the Gulf of Ob.


Cities

Cities along the river include: *
Barnaul Barnaul (, ) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative centre of Altai Krai, Russia, located at the confluence of the Barnaulka and Ob (river), Ob rivers in the West Siberian Plain. As of the Russian Censu ...
*
Kamen-na-Obi Kamen-na-Obi (), known until 1933 as Kamen (), is a town in Altai Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Ob River northwest of Barnaul, the administrative center of the krai. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 43,888. Hist ...
*
Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...
(Russia's third largest city and Siberia's largest by population) * Kolpashevo *
Langepas Langepas (; Khanty: Лӑңкипос, ''Lăŋkipos'') is a town in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia. Population: Geography Langepas lies on the Kayukovskaya riverbank, north of the right bank of the Ob River, close to the mouth of the Vat ...
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Megion Megion () is a town in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra, Russia, located at the altitude of above sea level, on the right bank of the Ob River, east of Khanty-Mansiysk and northeast of Tyumen. The area of the town is and the nearest air ...
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Nizhnevartovsk Nizhnevartovsk ( rus, Нижневартовск, p=nʲɪʐnʲɪˈvartəfsk) is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra, Russia. Since the 1960s, the Western Siberian oil boom has led to Nizhnevartovsk's rapid growth from a small settlem ...
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Surgut Surgut ( rus, Сургу́т, p=sʊrˈgut; Khanty: Сәрханӆ, ''Sərhanł, Сө̆ркут, sörkut'') is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the Ob River near its junction with the Irtysh River. It is one of the fe ...
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Khanty-Mansiysk Khanty-Mansiysk (, lit. ''Khanty-Mansi Town''; Khanty: , ''Jomvoćś''; Mansi: , ''Abga'') is a city in west-central Russia. Technically, it is situated on the eastern bank of the Irtysh River, from its confluence with the Ob, in the oil-ri ...
* Beryozovo *
Labytnangi Labytnangi (; from Khanty: ; lit. ''seven larches''; Nenets: Лабытнаӈгы. ''Labytnaŋgy'') is a town in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the left bank of the Ob River, northwest of Salekhard. Population: History It ...
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Salekhard Salekhard ( ; Khanty language, Khanty: , ''Pułñawat''; , , formerly Obdorsk) is a Classification of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative centre of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia. The town lies on the Arctic Circle, ...


Bridges

From a confluence to a source: *
Surgut Bridge The Yugra Bridge (; or Surgut Bridge, ) is a cable-stayed bridge across the Ob River at Surgut, Russia. It is one of the longest in Siberia. The bridge is long and has only one tower. Its central span of makes it the longest single-tower cabl ...
*Railway bridge in
Surgut Surgut ( rus, Сургу́т, p=sʊrˈgut; Khanty: Сәрханӆ, ''Sərhanł, Сө̆ркут, sörkut'') is a city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located on the Ob River near its junction with the Irtysh River. It is one of the fe ...
*Shegarsky bridge *The bridge of "northern bypass" of
Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...
* Dimitrov bridge in Novosibirsk *First railway bridge across the Ob (
Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...
) * Communal (October) bridge in Novosibirsk * Metro bridge in Novosibirsk – longest Metro Bridge in the world * Bugrinsky Bridge *Komsomol railway bridge in Novosibirsk *The bridge above the lock of Novosibirskaya HPP *Railway bridge in
Kamen-na-Obi Kamen-na-Obi (), known until 1933 as Kamen (), is a town in Altai Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Ob River northwest of Barnaul, the administrative center of the krai. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 43,888. Hist ...
*Communal bridge (railway, automobile) in
Barnaul Barnaul (, ) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative centre of Altai Krai, Russia, located at the confluence of the Barnaulka and Ob (river), Ob rivers in the West Siberian Plain. As of the Russian Censu ...
*New bridge in Barnaul


See also

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List of rivers of Russia Russia can be divided into a European and an Asian part. The dividing line is generally considered to be the Ural Mountains. The European part is drained into the Arctic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, and Caspian Sea. The Asian part is drained i ...
* Siman Island


References


External links


The Top Ten: Longest Rivers of the World
{{Authority control Rivers of Altai Krai Rivers of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug Rivers of Novosibirsk Oblast Rivers of Tomsk Oblast Rivers of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug Rivers of Novosibirsk Geography of Siberia Braided rivers in Russia West Siberian Plain