The Nevelskoy Strait () is a

strait A strait is a water body connecting two seas or water basins. The surface water is, for the most part, at the same elevation on both sides and flows through the strait in both directions, even though the topography generally constricts the ...

within the

Strait of Tartary Strait of Tartary or Gulf of Tartary (; ; ; ) is a strait in the Pacific Ocean dividing the Russian island of Sakhalin from mainland Asia (South-East Russia), connecting the Sea of Okhotsk ( Nevelskoy Strait) on the north with the Sea of Japan ...

located at the narrowest point between

Sakhalin Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, p=səxɐˈlʲin) is an island in Northeast Asia. Its north coast lies off the southeastern coast of Khabarovsk Krai in Russia, while its southern tip lies north of the Japanese island of Hokkaido. An islan ...

and the

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

n mainland. The Nevelskoy Strait is administratively part of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

on the border between

Khabarovsk Krai Khabarovsk Krai (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a krai) of Russia. It is located in the Russian Far East and is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District. The administrative centre of the krai is the types of ...

and

Sakhalin Oblast Sakhalin Oblast ( rus, Сахали́нская о́бласть, r=Sakhalinskaya oblastʹ, p=səxɐˈlʲinskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast) comprising the island of Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands in the Russian ...

in the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...

region.

Geography

The Nevelskoy Strait is a "

within a strait" in the

, which connects the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...

and the

Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk; Historically also known as , or as ; ) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, Japan's island of Hokkaido on the sou ...

between the island of

and the

n mainland in

Northeast Asia Northeast Asia or Northeastern Asia is a geographical Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia. Its northeastern landmass and islands are bounded by the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean. The term Northeast Asia was popularized during the 1930s by Ame ...

. The Nevelskoy Strait connects the southern main body of the Strait of Tartary with the northern

Amur Liman The Amur Liman is a liman of the Amur River, the northern part of the Strait of Tartary between Eurasia and Sakhalin. It connects the Sakhalin Gulf of the Sea of Okhotsk with the main body of the Strait of Tartary via the Nevelskoy Strait. " ...

, the

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 ...

of the

Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...

. The Nevelskoy Strait is formed by the narrowest point between Sakhalian and the Asian mainland, and features a number of small

capes A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used thr ...

and

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

s. Cape Lazarev, the largest cape, forms the narrow-most section of the Nevelskoy Strait as it projects towards Cape Pogibi. Politically, the Nevelskoy Strait is territory of

, in the

region on the border between the Russian

federal subject The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation () or simply as the subjects of the federation (), are the administrative division, constituent entities of Russia, its top-level political division ...

s of

and

. The Nevelskoy Strait region is sparsely populated with Pogibi and Lazarev as the only significant settlements, located on the opposite sides of the strait at Cape Lazarev. *Length: 56 km *Width (narrowest): 7.3 km *

Fairway depth Fairway is a part of a water body (bay, harbor, river) containing the navigable channel (also known as a ''ship channel''), a route suitable for ships of the larger size (with draft closer to the draft limit). Fairway depth, width, and heigh ...

: 7.2 m

History

The Nevelskoy Strait was named in honor of Captain

Gennady Nevelskoy Gennady Ivanovich Nevelskoy (; in Drakino, Soligalichsky Uyezd, Kostroma Governorate – in St. Petersburg) was a Russian navigator and naval officer. In 1829 he joined the Naval Cadet Corps and in 1846 was given the rank of ...

, an early Russian explorer of the Russian Far East and founder of

Nikolayevsk-on-Amur Nikolayevsk-on-Amur () is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia located on the Amur River close to its liman in the Pacific Ocean. Population: 17,815 (2024); History Medieval and early-modern history In the late Middle Ages, the people living al ...

, the first Russian settlement in the region. In 1849, Nevelskoy had definitively established that the Strait of Tartary is connected with the Amur estuary, and thus is in fact a strait, and not a bay. Nevelskoy was also unknowingly the third person to prove Sakhalin was an island and not connected to the Asian mainland. The Nevelskoy Strait's strategic location has made it the subject of numerous proposed projects connecting Sakhalin and the mainland. The

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

began construction of the

Sakhalin Tunnel The Sakhalin Tunnel () is an incomplete and currently indefinitely postponed construction project, which after completion would have connected the island of Sakhalin with mainland Russia via a tunnel of approximately under the Nevelskoy Strait ( ...

under the strait in 1950, which continued until the death of

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

in 1953, when the works were postponed then effectively abandoned. In July 2018, Russia's president

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

commissioned an analysis of a proposal to build a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

to Sakhalin. Putin said that the project is very important for Sakhalin's residents and would be a major factor in encouraging people to remain in the region and also boost the development of neighboring Khabarovsk Krai. Putin said that he has instructed the government to analyse this matter, particularly its economic aspects.

References

Straits of Sakhalin Oblast Bodies of water of Khabarovsk Krai Bodies of water of Sakhalin Oblast Pacific Coast of Russia {{russia-geo-stub

Geography

History

See also

References