 The heartland of this region is affected by continentality, or continental effects ◦ The further land is from the ocean, the greater the range of temperatures and the drier a region will tend to be  Air coming from the Atlantic loses most of its moisture as it moves further and further inland  Weather systems coming from the south have little rainfall after they climb over the Himalayas and other mountains south of the region

 Temps seldom reach upwards of 50° and sometimes as low as -90° F  People use frozen rivers and lakes as roads during the winter  Permafrost can reach depths of 1,500 ft.

 Humid continental and subarctic climates dominate the north and east of the region  The south east is semi arid and desert  In Transcaucasia, moist air from the Mediterranean and Black Seas contributes to a subtropical climate zone

 4 major regions ◦ Tundra  In the arctic climates zone: mosses, lichens, small herbs and shrubs adapted to cold, harsh conditions ◦ Forest  The Russian taiga is the largest forest region in the world  Mostly coniferous trees  Many fur bearing animals such as sable, fox and ermine  South of the taiga, the forest transitions into deciduous forests

 Steppe ◦ The temperate grassland that extends from southern Ukraine through northern Kazakhstan ◦ Chernozem makes this region primo agricultural land  Desert ◦ In the western and central parts of Central Asia ◦ Kara Kum in Turkmenistan ◦ Kyzyl Kum in western Uzbekistan

 The Aral sea is filled from two main rivers-the Amu Darya and Syr Darya  In the 1950s, the water was diverted for cotton irrigation

 Pesticides and fertilizers were picked up by runoff-rainfall not absorbed by the soil and deposited in the Aral Sea ◦ None of the original 24 native species of fish are left today  Retreating waters of the sea exposed these fertilizers and pesticides as well as salt; wind storms dump these pollutants on neighboring populations ◦ Sharp increases in disease  Saving the Aral Sea would mean taking half of the land out of cultivation ◦ Terrible hardship for farmers who depend on the field for their livelihood

 Verkoyansk in Siberia has recorded temperatures from - 90° F to 94° F within the same year from winter to summer ◦ When the snow and ice melt, pools of water and swampy conditions are breeding ground for mosquitoes and black flies ◦ In order to keep buildings from melting the permafrost and sinking into the soil, builders build them on stilts.  “General Winter” has helped Russians ◦ In 1812, Napolean invaded Russia with over 100, 000 soldiers ◦ Caught by the winter, 90,000 soldiers lost their lives and Napolean’s effort was defeated ◦ A similar fate met the Germans during World War II

 Siberia mirrors the history of our American “West” ◦ In order to improve travel into the region, the emperor order the building of the Trans-Siberian Railroad to link Moscow with Vladivostok  Covered more than 5,700 miles and 7 time zones  Built between 1891 and 1904 ◦ Within years, settlers poured into the region and resources poured out  5 million settlers  Coal and Iron ore poured out ◦ The railroad also aided the political unity and economic development of the country