Two small rivers in the Ob basin. Mouth of the Ob River
Where does the Ob River originate and where does it flow?
The Ob River originates in Altai and is formed by the confluence of the Biya and Katun rivers.
The Ob River flows into the Kara Sea in the north, forming a bay (about 800 km long) called the Gulf of Ob.
According to the nature of the river network, feeding conditions and formation water regime The Ob is divided into 3 sections: upper (to the mouth of the Tom), middle (to the mouth of the Irtysh) and lower (to the Gulf of Ob).
The Ob is a river in Western Siberia, the longest river in Russia and the second longest in Asia. The length of the Ob from its confluence is 3650 km (from the source of the Irtysh 5410 km).
The upper section of the basin is located in the mountains, where the sources of the Biya and Katun rivers and many tributaries originate: Peschanaya, Anuy, Charysh, Alei (left), Chumysh, Inya (right). In the upper reaches of the Ob there is a well-developed valley with developed floodplain terraces.
To the mouth of the Charysh it flows on low banks, the riverbed is replete with channels, islands, and rifts. Further, towards Barnaul, the valley and floodplain expand. From Barnaul to the town of Kamenya-on-Obi the valley is wide (5 - 10 km) and asymmetrical with a steep left slope; The wide floodplain is cut by oxbow lakes, channels and lakes. Near the town of Kamenya-on-Obi, the valley and floodplain narrow (to 3 - 5 km and 1.5 - 2 km, respectively), and there are areas with rocky ledges in the riverbed.
In the southern part of Novosibirsk, the river is blocked by a dam, which formed the Novosibirsk reservoir ("Ob Sea").
Below Novosibirsk the valley widens significantly and reaches 20 km towards the mouth of the Tom. The depths of the Ob (at low water) in the upper reaches range from 2 to 6 m, in places on the rifts they drop to 0.6 m.
Below the mouth of the Tom (beginning middle Ob), and especially Chulyma - the Ob River becomes large full-flowing river and before merging with the Irtysh it flows within taiga zone. The Ob valley has a width of up to 30 - 50 km or more; The vast floodplain (20 - 30 km) is covered with a dense network of channels.
Depths (at low water) range from 4 to 8 m. Large tributaries: Tom, Chulym, Ket, Tym, Vakh, Tromyegan, Lyamin, Nazim (right), Shegarka, Chaya, Parabel, Vasyugan, B. Yugan, B. Salym, Irtysh (left).
After the confluence of the Irtysh, the Ob turns to the North. The valley is wide (more than 50 km in places), asymmetrical, with a gentle, mostly low, left bank and a steep, steep right bank; narrows to 4 - 8 km in the area of Peregrebnoye and Salekhard.
The extensive, mostly left-bank floodplain is cut up by branches, channels, lakes, and is flooded to a width of 40 - 50 km during high water. From the mouth of the Irtysh to Peregrebnoye the Ob flows in one deep (at least 4 - 4.5 m) channel, below it is divided into the Bolshaya and Malaya Ob with depths (during low water) up to 2.5 - 3 m. After their confluence, the Ob channel has depths of more than 10 m. The main tributaries of the lower reaches: Kazym, Poluy (right), Northern Sosva, Shchuchya (left).
Before flowing into Ob Bay the river forms a delta with an area of more than 4 thousand km2. The main branches are Khamanelskaya (left) and the more powerful Nadymskaya (right), immediately behind their mouths there are shallow bars - Yamsalsky and Nadymsky. The average slope of the Ob from Biysk to the Yamsal bar is 0.054 m/km.
The food is predominantly snowy. During the spring-summer flood period, the river carries the main part annual flow. In the upper reaches, the flood starts from the beginning of April, on average - from the 2nd half of April, and in the lower reaches - from the end of April - beginning of May. The rise in levels begins even during freeze-up; when the river opens up as a result of congestion, intense short-term rises in levels occur.
On average and downstream the decline of the flood with overlapping rain floods continues until freeze-up. The range of level fluctuations in the upper reaches is on average 5 m, downstream it increases to Aleksandrovsky - 9 m, before the confluence with the Irtysh it decreases to 7 m, below the confluence of the Irtysh it reaches 10 m, and towards the mouth it decreases to 5 m.
Average flow rates increase from 1470 m3/sec near Barnaul to 12300 m3/sec near Salekhard, maximum flow rates respectively from 9690 m3/sec to 42800 m3/sec. Freeze-up on the Ob lasts 150 days in the upper reaches and 220 days in the lower reaches of the river.
The water temperature in July is up to 28 °C in the Barnaul - Belogorye section and up to 23 °C in the lower reaches.
Water mineralization is less than 200 mg/l and only in the area between Novosibirsk and the mouth of the Tom is more than 200 mg/l. The Ob waters are characterized by a high content organic matter and low oxygen levels, which leads to death in winter.
The average turbidity decreases downstream from 160 to 40 g/m. The annual runoff of suspended sediment is 16 million tons, and the entire solid runoff is about 50 million tons.
The Ob basin contains a variety of Natural resources. In terms of forecast reserves of oil, gas and coal, Western Siberia occupies a prominent place in the CIS; 1/2 of the all-Union peat reserves are concentrated here. The basin is also rich in water, forest and other types of resources. About 50 species and subspecies of fish live in the waters of the Ob and Ob Bay, 1/2 of which are commercial.
The most valuable species: sturgeon, sterlet, nelma, muksun, whitefish, whitefish, peled. Fishing objects are mainly small fish - pike, ide, burbot, dace, roach, crucian carp, perch.
The total potential hydropower resources of the Ob basin are estimated at up to 250 billion kWh. There are 3 hydroelectric power stations in operation - Novosibirsk on the Ob, Bukhtarma and Ust-Kamenogorsk on the Irtysh. The Ob River is the main transport route of Western Siberia. It is navigable along its entire length from source to mouth.
The navigation period ranges from 190 days in the upper reaches to 150 days in the lower reaches. The transport role of the Ob and its tributaries has grown since the early 60s. in connection with the development of gas and oil fields. Main ports and marinas of the basin: Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Surgut, Labytnangi, Pavlodar, Omsk, Tobolsk, Tyumen
Flow
In fact, the Ob is a continuation of the Katun River, but it is called the Ob only after the merger of the Katun with the Biya, that is, after the city of Biysk.
At the beginning, the Ob noticeably meanders, and its flow periodically changes in different directions - either to the north or to the west.
Flows in the Altai Territory through Barnaul, then for some time divides the Altai Territory and Novosibirsk region.
It flows through the Novosibirsk region, in particular through Novosibirsk. To the north, in the Tomsk region it merges with Tom, and then with Chulym, after which it turns slightly to the west and near the city of Kolpashevo merges with the Ket River.
In Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug The Ob flows through Nizhnevartovsk, Surgut, Nefteyugansk, and some other cities.
After Khanty-Mansiysk, the Ob turns north, and a delta begins from this section; then, in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the Ob flows through Salekhard and Labytnangi. After this point it widens noticeably and flows into the Gulf of Ob Kara Sea.
Pool
The area of the Ob basin is 2990 thousand km². According to this indicator, the river ranks first in Russia. The Ob is also the third most water-bearing river in Russia (after the Yenisei and Lena).
In the southern part of the Ob there is the Novosibirsk reservoir, formed by the dam of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station. The dam was constructed from 1950 to 1961; During the creation of the reservoir, many villages and the main part of the city of Berdsk were flooded. The Ob Sea (as it is called local residents) serves as a vacation spot for many Novosibirsk residents; numerous recreation centers and sanatoriums are located on its banks. Tourists come here from neighboring regions.
IN late XIX century, the Ob-Yenisei Canal was built, connecting the Ob with the Yenisei. It is currently unused and abandoned.
Tributaries
The main tributaries of the Ob: Charysh, Agan, Vakh, Aley, Chumysh, Tom, Chulym, Ket, Berd, Inya, Irtysh, Northern Sosva, Tromyegan. The following also flow into the Ob: Bolshoy Yugan (flows into the Yuganskaya channel), Shchuchya, Konda.
Water mode
The river is fed predominantly by snow. During the spring-summer flood period, the river carries the bulk of its annual flow.
In the upper reaches, the flood starts from the beginning of April, on average - from the second half of April, and in the lower reaches - from the end of April - beginning of May.
The rise in levels begins even during freeze-up; when the river opens up as a result of congestion, intense short-term rises in levels occur. Because of this, some tributaries may experience a reversal of flow direction.
In the upper reaches, the flood ends in July, the summer low water is unstable, and in September - October there is a rain flood.
In the middle and lower reaches, the decline of the flood with overlapping rain floods continues until freeze-up.
Animal world
About 50 species and subspecies of fish live in the waters of the Ob and Ob Bay, half of which are of industrial value. The most valuable species: sturgeon, sterlet, nelma, muksun, broad whitefish, tugun, whitefish, peled. Fishing objects are mainly small ones - pike perch, pike, ide, burbot, bream, dace, roach, crucian carp, perch.
Origin of the word "Ob"
The Nenets living in the lower reaches of the river called it “Sala-yam”, which means “Cape River”. The Khanty and Mansi gave it the name “As” - “big river”, the Selkups called the river “Kvay”, “Eme”, “Kuay”. These names meant “large river”.
The Russians first saw the river in its lower reaches, when hunters and merchants, together with Zyryan guides, went for Ural Mountains. And before Ermak’s conquest of Siberia, the region around the Ob was called Obdorsky.
There is a version that the name of the river comes from the Komi language, which meant “snow”, “snowdrift”, “place near the snow”.
There is also an assumption that the name is related to the Iranian word “ob” - “water”. And this name could well have been given to the deep river by the peoples of the Iranian-speaking group who lived in the south of Western Siberia during the period from the Early Bronze Age to the Middle Ages.
There is also a version that the word “Ob” comes from the Russian “both”, that is, “both rivers” - “Ob”, meaning two rivers - Katun and Biya, which merged into the Ob. See also the legend about the Katun and Biya rivers.
Cities on the Ob:
- Barnaul
- Novoaltaysk
- Stone-on-Obi
- Novosibirsk
- Kolpashevo
- Nizhnevartovsk
- Surgut
- Nefteyugansk
- Megion
- Salekhard
- Labytnangi
- Langepas (on the Kayukovskaya channel)
Main ports and marinas of the Ob basin: Barnaul river port, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Nizhnevartovsk, Surgut, Labytnangi, Pavlodar, Omsk, Tobolsk, Tyumen, Khanty-Mansiysk.
Bridges in the direction from the mouth to the source:
- Surgutsky Bridge (Surgut, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug);
- railway bridge Surgut;
- Shegarsky Bridge (near the village of Melnikovo, Tomsk region);
- Northern Bypass Bridge in Novosibirsk (2014);
- Dimitrovsky Bridge in Novosibirsk;
- Trans-Siberian railway bridge (Novosibirsk);
- Communal Bridge (Novosibirsk) (Oktyabrsky);
- Metrobridge in Novosibirsk;
- Komsomolsky Bridge (railway) in Novosibirsk;
- Bridge over the gateway of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station;
- railway bridge in Kamen-on-Obi Altai Territory;
- communal bridge (road, railway) in Barnaul;
- new bridge in Barnaul.
Additional material:
The Ob River is a river in Western Siberia. The river is formed in Altai by the confluence of the Biya and Katun rivers - the length of the Ob from their confluence is 3,650 km, and from the source of the Irtysh - 5,410 km. The Ob and Irtysh are the longest river in Russia and the second longest in Asia. In the north, the river flows into the Kara Sea, forming a bay (about 800 km long), which is called the Gulf of Ob. Flow Based on the nature of the river network, feeding conditions and formation of the water regime, the Ob is divided into 3 sections: upper (to the mouth of the Tom), middle (to the mouth of the Irtysh) and lower (to the Gulf of Ob). In fact, the Ob is a continuation of the Katun River, but it is called the Ob only after the merger of the Katun with the Biya, that is, after the city of Biysk. At the beginning, the Ob noticeably meanders, and its flow periodically changes in different directions - either to the north or to the west.It flows in the Altai Territory through Barnaul, then for some time it separates the Altai Territory and the Novosibirsk Region. It flows through the Novosibirsk region, in particular through Novosibirsk. To the north, in the Tomsk region it merges with Tom, and then with Chulym, after which it turns slightly to the west and near the city of Kolpashevo it merges with the Ket River and goes through the city of Strezhevoy. In the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, the Ob flows through Nizhnevartovsk, Surgut, Nefteyugansk, and some other cities. After Khanty-Mansiysk, the Ob turns north, and a delta begins from this section; then, in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the Ob flows through Salekhard and Labytnangi. After this point, it noticeably expands and flows into the Ob Bay of the Kara Sea. River hydrology The river is fed predominantly by snow. During the spring-summer flood period, the river brings the bulk of the annual flow. In the upper reaches, the flood starts from the beginning of April, on average - from the second half of April, and in the lower reaches - from the end of April - beginning of May. The rise in levels begins even during freeze-up; when the river opens up as a result of congestion, intense short-term rises in levels occur. Because of this, some tributaries may experience a reversal of flow direction. In the upper reaches, the flood ends in July, the summer low water is unstable, and in September - October there is a rain flood. In the middle and lower reaches, the decline of the flood with overlapping rain floods continues until freeze-up.
Economic use The area of the Ob basin is 2990 thousand km 2. According to this indicator, the river ranks first in Russia. The Ob is also the third most water-bearing river in Russia (after the Yenisei and Lena). In the southern part of the Ob there is the Novosibirsk reservoir, formed by the dam of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station. The dam was constructed from 1950 to 1961; During the creation of the reservoir, many villages and the main part of the city of Berdsk were flooded. The Sea of Ob (as the locals call it) serves as a vacation spot for many Novosibirsk residents; numerous recreation centers and sanatoriums are located on its shores. Tourists also come here from neighboring regions. At the end of the 19th century, the Ob-Yenisei Canal was built, connecting the Ob withIt originates from the confluence of the mountain watercourses Biya and Katun, near the southern outskirts of Russia, near the village of Fominskoye - a suburb of the city of Biysk, Altai Territory. It is an artery and carries its waters through a country like Russia.
River Ob
In the northeastern part of the Asian continent, in the Altai Territory, near the administrative border with the Altai Republic, two beautiful mountain rivers meet - the Katun and the Biya. They give rise to a great full-flowing river with the still unknown name Ob. As one of the assumptions regarding the toponymy of this geographical name it is associated with the word "both".
Where does the Ob River originate? This place is marked on maps as north latitude 52.5 degrees and east longitude 85 degrees. The Ob flows through the territories of five regions, crossing the West Siberian Plain from southeast to north. They consider the Gulf of Ob, 8 thousand km long, to be a bay of the Kara Sea. The place where the Ob River flows is located beyond the Arctic Circle. It is marked with coordinates of 66.5 degrees northern latitude and 69 degrees east longitude.
There is no disagreement regarding the location of the mouth. It is clear to everyone where the river flows. Different data on its extent are attributed to the Ob. Some scientists sum up the length itself with the length of its left tributary, the Irtysh. This turns out to be a very impressive distance - 5140 km. Others suggest that the length of the Ob be calculated from the sources of the Katun as more long river(688 km) than Biya (301 km), and receive a different value. But we cannot downplay the importance of the planet’s independent and unique watercourses - the Irtysh and Katun. In addition, the Irtysh mostly belongs to Kazakhstan. It would be correct to consider the length of the watercourse to be 3,650 km - from the confluence of the Katun with the Biya and to the Ob Bay, where the Ob River flows. In the State water register The same data is given. There is also a description of the location where the Ob River flows: the Gulf of Ob, which is part of the Arctic Ocean basin.
Hydrological regime
So, the length of the watercourse is 3650 km. According to this parameter, the Ob is second among Russian rivers, second only to the Lena.
Obsky Square drainage basin- almost 3 million sq. km. From this impressive territory, which is the first in importance among Russian rivers, a huge volume of runoff is formed surface waters. The Ob Bay, where the Ob flows, reaches 357 cubic meters. km of river waters.
The average annual flow rate (volume of water in cubic m/s) was recorded by long-term observations at gauging stations: 1470 - near the city of Barnaul (upper reaches), 12,300 - near the city of Salekhard, located nearby Gulf of Ob, where the Ob River flows. The maximum water abundance of the flow (during floods) recorded at gauging stations is approximately: Barnaul - 9690, Salekhard - 42,800 (cubic m/s).
More than 161 thousand streams, small, medium and big rivers carry their waters to the Ob. The total length of the tributaries is 740 thousand km. Most of them (94%) are small rivers (length no more than 10 km). Large tributaries more than 1000 km long: Irtysh, Vasyugan and Bolshoy Yugan - they flow from the left bank; Chulym and Ket are right-bank.
The depth of the Ob - from 2-6 m at the beginning, near the city of Biysk, reaches 25 m near the city of Novosibirsk (near the hydroelectric power station), decreases to 8 m near the mouth of the Tom and increases again to 15 m in the upper reaches of the Ob Bay, where the river flows . The Ob is characterized by slight slopes of the terrain: from 4.5 cm at the beginning to 1.5 cm (per 1 km of length) in the lower reaches. The width of the floodplain varies. It is 5 km at the beginning and 50 km in the area of the Ob Bay, where the river flows. Obi has characteristics plain river with a spill spring flood and autumn floods.
Economic importance
In conditions of inaccessibility due to swampy areas of the West Siberian Lowland, the Ob has been used for transport purposes since 1844. Navigation continues up to 190 days a year. In Novosibirsk, a hydroelectric power station was commissioned in 1961 - the main supplier of energy for the population and enterprises Favorite place recreation for Novosibirsk residents - the beaches of the reservoir formed during the construction of the hydroelectric dam. From it water is taken for drinking, household and manufacturing enterprises Novosibirsk agglomeration. The river is used for fishing - it is home to valuable species of sturgeon, whitefish and whitefish. Neutralized and purified waste is discharged into the Ob River. Wastewater industrial and municipal enterprises. In the Altai Territory, river waters irrigate farmland, entering them through the Kulunda irrigation system.
Cities on the Ob
Since ancient times, people have settled along the banks of rivers. Mother Ob did not stand aside either - there are many settlements near it. Let's name the largest ones in terms of population. At the beginning of the river stands the city of Biysk, founded in 1709, with a population of 200 thousand people. Next is the city of Barnaul, the center of the Altai Territory, founded in 1730, population - more than 600 thousand people. Novosibirsk - main city Siberian Federal District, founded in 1893, is inhabited by more than 1.5 million people. - port of Kolpashevo (1938, 23 thousand people). Oil Cities Khanty-Mansiysk Okrug with a population of more than 300 thousand people. in each - Nizhnevartovsk (1908) and Surgut (1594). Center Yamalo-Nenets District- The city of Salekhard (1595, 50 thousand people) is located on the right bank of the Ob. Opposite it on the left bank is the city of Labytnangi (1900, 26 thousand people).
Summing up
Among Russian watercourses great river According to its main characteristics, the Ob occupies:
- 1st place - in terms of drainage basin area - 2 million 990 thousand square meters. km.
- 2nd place - by length of the main channel - 3650 km.
- 3rd place - in terms of annual total runoff volume - 357 cubic meters. km.
And the whole world; the third most water-bearing river in the Russian Federation. It is formed by the confluence of the Biya and Katun rivers in Altai, flows from South to North through the territory of Western Siberia and flows into the Ob Bay of the Kara Sea. The length of the river is 3650 km, if we count the source of the Irtysh, then 5410 km. The pool area is 2990 thousand square meters. km, according to this characteristic the river ranks first in the Russian Federation. Most of the basin (approximately 85%) is located on West Siberian Plain. A significant part of the basin is covered with forests and occupied by swamps. More than 50 species of fish live in the waters of the Ob, some of them commercial. The most valuable species: sturgeon, nelma, sterlet, muksun, whitefish, peled, whitefish.
River flow
River crosses several climatic zones. In the south, in the upper reaches of the Ob, grapes, watermelons and melons grow, then in the north, in the lower reaches of the Ob, this is already the tundra and the harsh Arctic. The Novosibirsk Reservoir is located in the southern part of the Ob. The Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station was built from 1950 to 1961; during the creation of the reservoir it was flooded most of the city of Berdsk and many villages.
The upper section of the basin is located in the mountains; here the river has a well-developed valley with many floodplain terraces. Until the mouth of the Charysha River, the Ob flows on low, uncovered banks; the riverbed is replete with channels, rifts, and islands. Closer to Barnaul, the floodplain and valley expand. From Barnaul to the town of Kamenya-on-Obi, the valley expands to 10 km and is asymmetrical with steep left and gentle right slopes; The wide floodplain is cut by channels, oxbow lakes and lakes. Near the city of Kamenya-on-Obi, the valley and floodplain narrow to kilometers; in the riverbed there are areas with rocky ledges. In the southern part of the city of Novosibirsk, the river is blocked by a dam, which formed a reservoir - the Ob Sea. After Novosibirsk, the valley widens significantly and reaches 20 km at the mouth of the Tom, with a depth of up to 6 m.
Below the mouth of the Tom and Chulym, the Ob River becomes a large full-flowing river and flows within the taiga zone until its confluence with the Irtysh. The valley is up to 50 km wide with a floodplain covered with a dense network of channels. Depth up to 8 m.
The largest tributaries: Ket, Tom, Chulym, Tym, Tromyegan, Vakh, Lyamin, Nazim, Shegarka, Chaya, Vasyugan, Parabel, Bolshoi Yugan, Bolshoi Salym, Irtysh.
After the confluence of the Irtysh, the Ob turns to the North. The valley is very wide, more than 50 km, with a low left bank and a steep right bank. In the area of Peregrebnoye and Salekhard it narrows to 4-8 km. The extensive left-bank floodplain is cut up by channels, branches, lakes, and in high water reaches a width of up to 40-50 km. From the Irtysh to Peregrebnoye the Ob flows in one deep channel with a depth of at least 4 m, then the river is divided into the Bolshaya and Malaya Ob. After their confluence, the Ob channel has depths of more than 10 m.
Populated areas on the Ob
There are many cities and villages along the river, the largest of which is Surgut.
- Surgut
- Barnaul
- Novosibirsk
- Novoaltaysk
- Kolpashevo
- Stone-on-Obi
- Nizhnevartovsk
- Salekhard
Main tributaries of the lower reaches
The most major influx The Ob is the Irtysh.
- The most significant left tributaries are the Charysh, Peschanaya, Anui, Alei, Barnaulka, Shegarka, Kasmala, Chaya, Parabel, Bolshoi Yugan, Vasyugan, Northern Sosva, Synya, Shchuchya.
- The most significant firsts tributaries - Ket, Chumysh, Berd, Inya, Vatinsky Egan, Tom, Chulym, Tym, Kyiv Yogan, Vakh, Tromyegan, Poluy, Pim, Lyamin, Kazym.
Dams
In the city of Novosibirsk there is the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station with a length of 223.6 meters. The power of the hydroelectric power station is 455 MW, the average output per year is 1687 million square meters per hour. It is 20th in power in Russia.
Before flowing into the Ob Bay, the river forms a huge delta with an area of more than 4 thousand square meters. km. and 800 kilometers long.
Briefly
Main characteristics of the Ob River:
- Length - 3640 km.
- The length together with the Irtysh is 5410 km.
- The pool area is 2990 thousand square meters. km
- The maximum width of the valley is 50 km.
- The maximum depth is 20 meters.
Depths
Depth of the Ob upstream varies from 2 to 6 meters. Below the mouth of the Tom it is from 4 to 8 m. In the lower reaches it has a depth of more than 10 meters.
Located in the west of Siberia largest river Russia - Ob. beautiful river It is an important waterway for the entire country. Countries such as Russia, China and Kazakhstan are located on its shores. Particularly important water resources for Kazakhstan and China, since these states lack their own water sources. Interestingly, the two main rivers that form the Ob have completely different shades of water. In summer and autumn period The Ob River shows people a unique spectacle; in one stream you can see multi-colored water flows.
The majestic river is mainly fed by melted snow. In terms of water content, the Ob ranks third among the country's rivers. IN summer period The water temperature reaches 29 degrees. Many historical moments taking place in the country are associated with the Great Ob, so the river is an important landmark of Russia. Oil, coal, gas, and peat are extracted in the river basin. IN mighty waters there are a lot of fish living. The Russian Federation greatly values and is proud of its water heritage.
Length of the Ob River
The length of the river is more than 3600 km. The river valley remains vast until the mouth of the Tom. Intense narrowing is observed near the town of Kamen on the Ob. And after passing Novosibirsk, the river expands again to 19 km. After the confluence of the Irtysh River, the valley expands even more and becomes asymmetrical. Near the city of Salekhard the Ob narrows to 4 kilometers.
Source of the Ob River
(The muddy white waters of the Biya merge with the transparent turquoise Katun)
The disaster originates in Altai. It is formed by the rivers Biya and Katun, which unite at this place. Ob crosses Western Siberia and flows into the Ob Bay. From its mouth, the Ob heads west-south to the beginning of the Charysh River.
(Two dissimilar rivers continue to flow together in the same channel for a long time.)
After the rivers merge, the Ob flows to the north and there it divides into multiple streams, leaving behind numerous islands. The bending current heads to the northeast of the country and reaches the Tom River. The upper part of the stream is rocky with frequent shoals. Depending on the current, the river bed changes direction every year and washes the upland left banks, covering them with silt sand.
Mouth of the Ob River
(Here the Ob River flows smoothly into the Kara Sea basin)
In the north Russian Federation The Ob River flows into the Kara Sea. It is a huge bay called the Gulf of Ob. The large bay is located between several peninsulas - Yamal and Gydansky. The soil of the Ob Bay is viscous and silty. There are practically no trees on the shores of the bay. There are several bays and coves. In addition to the Ob, other river streams flow into the gulf. The bay is home to a variety of fish.
Tributaries of the Ob River
(The Tom River flowing into the Ob)
The Great River conventionally consists of three long sections. The Upper Ob belongs to the first section. The Tom River is listed as a right tributary of the river. Before joining the Tom, the river heads through Novosibirsk, Barnaul and Kamen to the Ob. The widened channel follows the Chulym River and after that becomes powerful water element. Numerous small tributaries will join the stream.
(Meeting of two Great Rivers, Ob and Irtysh)
When the majestic stream meets the Irtysh, the river makes a detour and turns towards the northern part of the country. On the left side in these places you can see many lakes and small channels. In the village of Peregrebnoye, the river bifurcates and forms two channels - the Malaya and Bolshaya Ob. The depth of the river is 15 meters. Passing Salihard, the river develops in width and forms a large delta. At this place the river forms two branches - Nadymsky and Khamanelsky. Then two water branches merge into a mighty stream and pass into the Ob Bay. In the spring there is a flood. The level of the pool can increase by more than 9 meters and flood nearby areas for many kilometers.
Cities of Russia on the Ob River
Just like around others large rivers, people have settled near the Ob since ancient times. IN modern times regional cities and many small settlements are located here. The capital of the Altai Territory, the city of Barnaul spreads its expanses on the banks of the Ob. The city of Kamen on the Ob is located near the Novosibirsk reservoir. Surgut, Nefteyugansk, Nizhnevartovsk develop the country's economy through the extraction of oil and gas from the river. Salekhard, Berezovo, Labytnangi also serve as important cities in the development of the country.
Nowadays, the river has been sufficiently studied and developed, but taiga spaces still remain untouched by people. For many settlements, the Ob remains the main source of income. The main value for Russia derived from the Ob River is the transport route. It is difficult for people to create roads in these taiga places, and nature itself gave them easy way to pass through the Western Siberian terrain. The river allows people to move into the deepest regions of the Siberian expanses.
Poems, songs and proverbs have long been written about the river. They performed feats in the name of their native river. Many publications about the Ob River, designed for a wide range of listeners, have survived to this day. Great artists captured the river on their famous canvases.