Relief of Kazakhstan: deserts, semi-deserts, steppes. Khan-Tengri. Rivers of Kazakhstan

The relief of Kazakhstan is extremely diverse. To see this, it is enough to glance at the physical map of the country. But we will do it more thoroughly and tell you in detail about the mountains, plains, rivers and deserts of one of the largest countries in Eurasia.

Geography of Kazakhstan (briefly): location and boundaries

Kazakhstan is the largest continental country in the world (referring to those states that are not washed by the waters of the World Ocean). Its area is 2.72 million square meters. Km, and the total length of the borders is over 13 thousand kilometers. In addition, it is the second largest state on the planet from among those that are located immediately in two parts of the world (through Kazakhstan, the border between Europe and Asia passes).

The large area of the country largely determines the diversity of its landscapes and natural complexes. Geography of Kazakhstan is interesting and extremely diverse. An interesting fact: despite the huge area of the territory, Kazakhstan has only five neighbors. It borders directly with China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The border between Europe and Asia passes within the Aktobe region of the country. Most often it is conducted along the eastern foothills of the Mugodzhary mountains, then along the Emba River and the Caspian Sea.

The relief of Kazakhstan is characterized by great contrast. The total height difference in the country exceeds 7000 meters! The climate of Kazakhstan is moderately continental and rather arid. In summer, there is often a grueling heat, and in winter - severe cold weather (down to -40 degrees Celsius). In the early spring, climatic contrasts in Kazakhstan are especially noticeable: when snow blizzards are still raging in the north, trees can blossom in the south.

Next, we will describe in more detail what is interesting and special about the relief of Kazakhstan. Where in the country can you see the mountains? Where are the plains, and where are the deserts?

General features of the relief of Kazakhstan

About 15% of the country's territory is occupied by mountain systems and ridges, about 30% are plains and plateaus, 10% - lowlands, 45% - deserts and semi-deserts. Such diverse relief of Kazakhstan is explained by the rather complex geological structure of this territory. The country is located in a place where a stable East European platform converges, a mobile Alpine belt, and folded structures of the Ural-Mongolian belt.

Unique features of the relief of Kazakhstan are also included in significant differences in absolute heights within the state. So, the lowest point of the country is located on the Caspian coast (the Karagiyi depression, 132 meters below sea level). But the highest point almost reaches the mark of 7 thousand meters (peak Khan-Tengri in the south-east of the country).

The highest mountains in Kazakhstan are concentrated along the eastern and southeastern borders of the state. This is Altai, Tarbagatay, Dzhungar Alatau, and also spurs of the Tien Shan. In addition, in the north of the country is located the southern extremity of the Ural mountain system.

Plains of Kazakhstan are located in the north, in the center and in the north-west of the state. Lowlands prevail in the west and south. From the north to the south, the country is cut by a long Turgai trough in which two large rivers of Kazakhstan - Turgai and Tobol - have pierced their way.

Deserts occupy huge territories in the west (in the Caspian region), in the south, and also in the central-eastern part of the country.

Hydrology of Kazakhstan

Within the country there are more than 85 thousand natural watercourses. The largest rivers of Kazakhstan are the Urals, Tobol, Ishim, Ili and Syr Darya. The densest river network is typical for high-mountain areas, and the lowest is observed in the desert zones. Most of Kazakhstan's rivers carry their waters to the Aral and Caspian Seas.

There is a lot in Kazakhstan and lakes. True, large reservoirs, the area of which exceeds 100 square kilometers, only 21. Among them - the Caspian and Aral Sea, Balkhash, Tengiz, Alakol and others. Most of the lakes of this country are concentrated in its northern and central regions.

In Kazakhstan there are also 13 artificial reservoirs. The total volume of fresh water in them is about 87 thousand cubic meters. Km.

The Kazakh steppes

Steppes and semi-deserts in total occupy about 70% of the territory of this Central Asian country. Many of their sites are in their original state or have been changed by the economic activities of a person only slightly.

The Kazakh steppe stretched out a wide belt for almost 2 thousand kilometers: from the valley of the Ural River in the west to the Altai Mountains in the east. By area it is the largest array of dry steppe landscapes all over the world. The climate here is continental and very arid: the average annual rainfall rarely exceeds 350-400 mm.

Due to the lack of moisture, vegetation in the steppes of Kazakhstan is very scarce, there are practically no trees. But the fauna is rich in variety and species diversity. Here there are many unique mammals: saiga, marmot-baike, steppe pika, Siberian roe deer and others. Equally rich in this area is the avifauna. In the steppes of Kazakhstan, one can find an eagle, a black lark, a pink pelican, a black stork, a flamingo, a kite, a golden eagle, and a white-tailed eagle.

The most beautiful and picturesque is the Kazakhstan steppe in spring, in the beginning and middle of May. It was at this time that poppies, irises and many other bright flowers bloom here, turning the gray, lifeless terrain into a colorful carpet of thousands of flowering field plants.

Kazakhstani deserts

Deserts and semi-deserts occupy almost half of the territory of Kazakhstan. They stretch almost a continuous strip from the coast of the Aral Sea and to the mountain ranges of the eastern part of the country. The deserts of Kazakhstan are vast and poorly developed: extremely rarely their flat and wild landscapes are animated by tiny villages, picturesque hills or caravans of phlegmatic camels.

Within Kazakhstan, there are deserts of various genetic types: stony, sandy, gravel, solonchak and clayey.

The Betpak-Dala Desert area of about 75 thousand square kilometers is located in the heart of the country. In the relief it is represented by a flat plain with average heights of 300-400 meters. Summer here is very dry and hot, precipitation for the year falls no more than 150 mm. Solonchaks and bizarre takyrs are common in the depressions of the desert.

To the south of Betpak-Dala are the Sands Moyynkum. By area, this desert is almost half the size. In the south, it is confined to the high mountain ridges of Karatau and the Kirghiz Alatau. Accordingly, the average altitude above sea level here is higher - 700-800 meters. The climate here is slightly softer, the precipitation falls to 300 mm per year. Many parts of the desert are used by local residents as pastures for cattle.

Structures of the Ural mountain belt

As it was mentioned above, within the territory of Kazakhstan is the southern extremity of the Ural mountainous country. Here it is represented by the Ural and Zauralsky plateaus, Mugodzhary mountains, and also by several smaller ridges and ridges (Shirkala, Shoshkakol and others).

The pre-Urals plateau stretches between the Caspian lowland in the west and Mugodzhary in the east. It gradually decreases to the west and south-west, gradually moving into a weakly hilly plain. The average height of the plateau is 150-300 meters above sea level.

Mugodzhary - the southernmost spur of the Ural Mountains with absolute heights of up to 657 meters (the top of Boktybai Mountain). These mountains, in fact, are a chain of low and gentle hills covered with scanty vegetation. In some places relic birch copses are found. Mugodzhary is an important raw material base of Kazakhstan. Here, crushed stone and other building stone are mined.

Mountains of eastern and southeastern Kazakhstan

The most mountainous part of Kazakhstan is the east and south-east of the country. Here rises the ranges of Altai and Tarbagatai, separated by the basin of Lake Zaisan. Along the border with China and Kyrgyzstan stretches of the Tien Shan. By the way, here is the highest point of the country. In the south-eastern part of Kazakhstan, there are a number of high mountain ranges: Karatau, Dzhungar and Zailiysky Alatau, Toksanbai and others.

Within the Karaganda region are the Karkaraly mountains. This massif is composed mainly of granites, quartzites and porphyrites and is known for rich deposits of polymetallic ores.

In the south of the country is located a large and very picturesque range of Karatau (spur of the Tien Shan). Here, numerous sites of the ancient man were found. Due to this event, the ridge is a candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO security list. The Karatau massif is composed of various rocks: sandstones, shales, limestones and other. Karst processes and phenomena are widely developed within its borders. On the slopes of Karatau, deposits of uranium, iron, polymetallic ores and phosphorites are being developed.

Mangyshlak Plateau

Plateau Mangyshlak (or Mangistau) is located on the peninsula of the same name in the western part of the country. Its average height is 200-300 meters above sea level. From the north, the plateau borders the Mangistau mountains with heights of up to 556 meters. In the east it flows smoothly into the neighboring plateau of Ustyurt.

There are at least two variants of the origin of the name of the plateau. Thus, the word "mangistau" is translated from the Kazakh language as "one thousand winter". But the Turkmen researcher K. Annaniyazov translates the word "mangylshak" as a "big settlement". In Soviet times, this board was named Mangyshlak, but in modern Kazakhstan it is already called in another way - Mangistau.

"Desert. Absolutely without any vegetation - sand and stone ", - so described the famous Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko. Indeed, the climate here is sharply continental and extremely arid, there are practically no rivers with a constant watercourse. The local area is distinguished by a rich world of birds, of which there are more than a hundred different species.

The plateau of Mangyshlak is rich in mineral resources. There are deposits of oil, copper, manganese ores, rock crystal and phosphorites. Mangyshlak also has many sources of medicinal mineral waters: chloride, bromine and sodium.

What else is interesting about the Mangyshlak plateau? We can not fail to mention the fact that on its eastern extremity a unique Karagiyi depression was formed - the deepest in Kazakhstan and one of the deepest in the world. It is located 132 meters below the level of the World Ocean.

The Caspian lowland

About the mountain ranges, plains, steppes and deserts of Kazakhstan, we have already told. But the description of the relief of this country will be incomplete without mention of its largest lowland.

The Caspian lowland is a vast area of 200 thousand square kilometers (about the same area is occupied by the Republic of Belarus). It borders the northern part of the Caspian Sea. At the same time, the lowlands limit the hills of the Common Syrt from the north, and Ustyurt and the Ural plateau from the west. The lowland looks like a practically flat surface, slightly inclined to the Caspian. Its absolute altitudes range from -30 to 150 meters above sea level.

The Caspian lowland is crossed by valleys of five major rivers: the Volga, the Urals, Emba, Terek and Kuma. Within the lowlands there are many shallow lakes, from which salt is actively extracted.

The climate of the region is sharply continental, dry, there are frequent dry winds. In the northern part of the lowland, the wormwood-cereal steppes grow, while in the south the desert and semi-desert landscapes dominate. Solonets and solonchaks are often found. Local residents use the Caspian lowland as a huge pasture. It also develops vegetable growing and melon growing.

The highest peak in Kazakhstan

Khan-Tengri is the pointed pyramidal peak of Tien-Shan, the highest point of Kazakhstan. The absolute height of the mountain is 6995 meters, taking into account the glacial shell - 7010 meters.

Formally, the Khan-Tengri mountain is at the junction of three states: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China, thus embodying peace and friendly relations between the three countries. The first in the history of this mountain conquered Soviet mountaineers: Mikhail Pogrebetsky, Boris Tyurin and Franz Zauberer. This happened in 1931. The group was well armed in the event of an attack by the Basmachi - partisans, who fought against Soviet power in Central Asia.

6 interesting facts about the summit of Khan-Tengri:

• The peak has a second name - the Blood Mountain (due to the large number of climbers who died while climbing it);
• For today there are 25 different routes on which you can climb to this peak;
• On top of the special capsule in which all climbers leave their wishes to the next of its conquerors;
• The famous alpinist Anatoly Bukreev called this peak one of the most beautiful on the planet;
• In 2002 a banknote of 100 som denomination with a peak image was issued in Kyrgyzstan;
• The record-holder for the number of ascents to the Khan-Tengri peak is the mountaineer from Novosibirsk Gleb Sokolov, who climbed to the top 34 times!