Shelikhov Bay: description, photo

Shelikhov Bay (Kamchatka Oblast, Russia) is located between the Asian coast and the base of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Refers to the water area of the Sea of Okhotsk.

Hydronym

The bay owes its name to the explorer and seafarer Grigory Ivanovich Shelikhov. He organized several trade and fishing companies, including in Kamchatka. Grigory Ivanovich mastered new lands for the Russian Empire, was the initiator of the Russian-American company. Now it becomes immediately clear, in honor of whom the Shelikhov Gulf is named - in honor of the "Russian Columbus".

Characteristics of the Gulf

The coordinates of the Shelikhov Bay are the following: 60 ° 00 'N and 158 ° 00' E. Its length is 650 km, the prevailing depth is 50-150 m, and the maximum reaches 350 m. But the width varies within 300 km, at the entrance it decreases to 130 km. From December to May the water area is frozen. The population in the bay area is about 1000 people.

Features of the Gulf

The Shelikhov Bay has a division into so-called lips, that is sea bays, which go far into land. So, its northern part is divided into Gizhiginskaya Bay and Penzhinskaya, which are separated from each other by the Taygonos Peninsula. On the southern part of the bay there are relatively small archipelago - the Yamskie Islands. It consists of five sections of land with a predominantly rocky terrain.

Due to the greatest inclination of the Moon to the surface of the Earth, irregular semidiurnal fluctuations in the water level are observed in this bay in the bay. In this case, tidal waves often reach a maximum height in the Penzhinskaya Bay (14 m). Such rivers as Gigiga, Malkachan, Yama, Penzhin feed the bay, while the latter flows back during the tides.

Penzhinskaya lip

In the east of the shore of the Penzhinskaya Bay, the presence of steep slopes, which consist of clayey or marl slates with the introduction of brown coal, is characterized. Its dimensions reach a length of 300 km, and a width of about 65 km. The depths in this area reach more than 60 m. In the south, gneiss and granite are the dominant species.

Unlike Gizhiginskaya Bay, Penzhinskaya is covered with ice for several months. It flows into the river Penzhina. The tides in these places are special, semi-diurnal and irregular. If we take into account the entire basin of the Pacific Ocean, then it is in the Penzhina Bay that they reach the maximum value.

Gizhigin's lip

Gizhiginskaya lip is the inner part of the bay into which the Gigiga River flows. This water area is under ice for most of the year. In length it occupies almost 150 km. The width of the lip is quite large and is about 260 km. In some places, the bottom moves away from the water surface by more than 85 m.

Animal world

The Shelikhov Bay is extremely rich in fish resources, which contributes to the good development of fishing. Among the representatives of this species of fauna are herring, halibut, Far Eastern navaga, flounder, smelt. Some individuals of the salmon family are also common.

Due to the depth, which sometimes reaches 350 m, the bay is distinguished by a variety of ichthyofauna (plankton and zooplankton), which is a food for fish.

Other inhabitants of this water area are various arthropods, among which are the Kamchatka crab, mussels, sea urchins, nutritious mollusks.

Did not pass around Shelikhov Bay and representatives of birds, for which fish is the main food. The rocks, towering on its banks, became the habitat of birds. There are countless bird markets on them.

Plane crash

The sad fact of the biography of Shelikhov Bay is the crash of the Il-18V aircraft. This tragic event occurred on February 26, 1963. On board there were only 10 people (crew and 2 passengers). The plane suddenly refused two engines, and the pilots had to make an emergency landing directly on the ice. Several people managed to get out before the plane sank. However, considering where the Shelikhov Bay is located, the water temperature was - 18 ^о С, they died from hypothermia. The place of the catastrophe was discovered only on April 4, 1963.