Siberia

Siberia spans over 3 million square miles. It stretches West-East for 2.25 thousand miles - from the Eastern mountainside of Urals to the Far East (longitudes 65 and 115 east), and South-North for .2 thousand miles - from Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China borders to the Arctic Ocean shore (latitudes 50 and 80 north). The boundary between Western and Eastern Siberia runs mainly along divide of Ob and Yenisei rivers.

Siberian territory is extremely dissimilar as for both physical-climatic features and economic development. The Far North of Siberia is basically desert tundra and permafrost area, whereas to the south of Siberia there are regions with mild climate (grapes and water-melons ripen there in the open soil) and advanced industry. Population density varies as well: Kemerovo region is comparable in this respect with Moscow region, and Yamal, Taimyr, Evenkia territories are more like Alaska or Canadian North-West. Physical-climatic features of the southern Siberia regions are favorable for intensive agriculture and for development of modern recreational services (the Baikal Lake, Sayany Mountains and Mountain Altai).

Siberia holds the record for the coldest place on Earth (that inhabits humans), Oymyakon.

Often Russia Far Eastern District is included in Siberia's description. This due to the fact that throughout history it was not known what existed to the east. It was simply easier to say everything in that direction was Siberia. As we have seen, the original American states did the same type of thing. The northern and southern boundaries were defined by another state, the eastern boundaries was created by the Atlantic Ocean, and their western boundaries were infinite.

With only 3 people/*km², Siberia is a wide-open space. It not only holds some of the most abundant supply of natural resources in Russia, but in the world as well.

Siberia holds considerable share of non-ferrous metal reserves. There are deposits of copper, nikel, zink, aluminium ores, precious metals, deposits with commercial content of mica, fluorite, black lead, asbestos, mercury and many other valuable minerals. Rock salt deposits of Irkutsk salt-bearing basin count by hundreds billion tons. Over half the Russia's reserves of pure limestone is allocated in Siberia. Siberia's share (%) in the Russia's scale of 

   oil extracion                     - over 70 (300 million tons)
   gas extraction                  - over 80 (550 billion cubic metres)
   coal extraction                 - over 60 (220 million tons)
   timber resources               - over 50
   water resources                - over 60
   hydraulic power potential    - over 70
   electricity output              - over 20 (140 billion kW-h)