Essay/Term paper: Ural mountains

Essay, term paper, research paper:  World History

Ural Mountains


David Bennington
Bennington 1
Mr. Macintosh
Environmental Science CP9
HR. 5 1/6/96


The Ural Mountains are a rugged spine across Russia, running 1,300 miles
from the fringe of the Arctic in the North, to the bend of the Ural River in the
South. Traditionally they form a boundary between Europe and Asia. The north-
south course of the Urals is relatively narrow, varying from about 20 to 90
miles in width, but it cuts across the vast latitude landscape regions of the
Eurasian landmass, from Arctic waste to semidesert; the Urals also are part of
the Ural economic region, a highly developed industrial complex closely tied to
the mineral-rich Siberian region, and are the home of people with roots reaching
deep into history.

Physical Features

The Urals divide into five sections. The northernmost Polar Urals
extend some 240 miles from Mount Konstantinov Kamen in the north-east to the
Khulga River the southeast; most mountains rise to 3300-3600 feet above sea
level, although the highest peak, Mount Payer reaches 4829 ft. The next stretch,
the Nether-Polar Urals, extends for more than 140 miles south to the Shchugor
River. This section contains the highest peaks of the entire range, including
Mount Narodnaya which reaches 6217 ft. and Mount Karpinsk Which is 6161 ft.
These first two sections are typically Alpine and are Strewn with
Glaciers and are heavily marked with permafrost. Farther south come the Northern
Urals, which stretch for more than 340 miles to the Usa River in the south; most
mountains top 3300 feet, and the highest peak, Mount Telpos-Iz, rises 5305 ft.
Many of the summits are flattened, the remnants of the ancient Peneplains
uplifted by geographically tectonic movements. In the north, intensive
weathering has resulted in vast "seas of stone" on mountain slopes and summits.
The lower Central Urals extend more than 200 miles to the Ufa river, rarely
exceeding 1600 ft., althought the highest peak Mount SrednyBascy, rises to 3261
ft. The summits are smooth, with isolated residual outcrops. The last portion,
the Southern Urals, extends some 340 miles to the westward bend of the Ural
River and consists of several parallel ridges rising to 3900 ft. and culminating
in Mount Yamantau, 580 ft.; the section terminates in the wide uplands of the
Mugadozer h ills.

The People

Human habitation of the Urals dates to the distant past, The Nenetes are
Sanoyed people of the Pay-Khoyregion, and their language belongs to the
Samoyedic group of languages, which is widespread throughout northern Siberia.
The most numerous indigenous groups the Bashkir, long settled in the southern
Urals speak a tongue relater to the Turkic group. The Russian population is the
largest group of people and is concentrated primarily in the central and
southern Urals. Most Russians live in cities notably Yekaterianburg, Chelyabinsk,
Perm, Ufa, and work in industries.

The Economy

The Urals are extremely rich in mineral resources. Ore deposits for
example notably Magnetite, predominate the Eastern slope, where contact deposits
are found, as at Vysokogorsk and Mount Blagodat. Some ore's contain alloy metals,
Vanadium and Titanium are two. The largest Copper ore deposits are at Gay and
Sebia and Nickel ore's are found at Ufaley. There are also large deposits of
bauxite, gold, platinum, and cromite. There are Petroleum and Natural Gas
deposits in the Ishimbay and Karasnokamsk areas.
Because of it's wealth of mineral resources, the leading industries in
the Urals are Mining, Metallurgy, machine building, and chemicals. Of National
importance are the metallurgical plants at Magmitogorsk, Chelyabinsk, and
NizhnyThigl; chemical plants at Perm, Ufa, and Oremburg; and large scale
engineering at Yekaterinburg.