East European Plain: Main Characteristics. The East European Plain is one of the largest plains in the world

The East European Plain is one of the largest plains on our planet (the second largest after the Amazonian Plain in Western America). It is located in the eastern part of Europe. Since most of it lies within the borders of the Russian Federation, the East European Plain is sometimes called the Russian Plain. In the northwestern part, it is limited by the mountains of Scandinavia, in the southwestern part - the Sudetes and other mountains of central Europe, in the southeastern part - the Caucasus, and in the east - the Urals. From the north, the Russian Plain is washed by the waters of the White and Barents Seas, and from the south by the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas.

The length of the plain from north to south is more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 1 thousand kilometers. Almost the entire length of the East European Plain is dominated by a gently flat relief. Most of the population of Russia and most of the country's large cities are concentrated within the territory of the East European Plain. It was here that the Russian state was formed many centuries ago, which later became the largest country in the world in terms of its territory. A significant part of the natural resources of Russia is also concentrated here.

The East European Plain almost completely coincides with the East European Platform. This circumstance explains its flat relief, as well as the absence of significant natural phenomena associated with the movement of the earth's crust (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions). Small hilly areas within the East European Plain have arisen as a result of faults and other complex tectonic processes. The height of some hills and plateaus reaches 600-1000 meters. In ancient times, the Baltic shield of the East European platform was located in the center of glaciation, as evidenced by some forms of glacial relief.

The East European Plain. Satellite view

On the territory of the Russian Plain, platform deposits lie almost horizontally, making up lowlands and hills that form the surface relief. Where the folded foundation protrudes to the surface, hills and ridges are formed (for example, the Central Russian Upland and the Timan Ridge). On average, the height of the Russian Plain is about 170 meters above sea level. The lowest areas are on the Caspian coast (its level is about 30 meters below the level of the World Ocean).

Glaciation left its mark on the formation of the relief of the East European Plain. This impact was most pronounced in the northern part of the plain. As a result of the passage of the glacier through this territory, many lakes arose (Chudskoye, Pskovskoye, Beloye and others). These are the consequences of one of the most recent glaciers. In the southern, southeastern and eastern parts, which were subject to glaciation in an earlier period, their consequences were smoothed over by erosion processes. As a result, a number of uplands (Smolensk-Moscow, Borisoglebsk, Danilevskaya and others) and lacustrine-glacial lowlands (Caspian, Pechora) were formed.

Further south, there is a zone of uplands and lowlands stretched in the meridional direction. Among the heights, one can note the Priazovskaya, Central Russian, Privolzhskaya. Here they also alternate with the plains: Meshchera, Oksko-Don, Ulyanovsk and others.

Further south are the coastal lowlands, which in ancient times were partially submerged under sea level. The flat relief here was partially corrected by water erosion and other processes, as a result of which the Black Sea and Caspian lowlands were formed.

As a result of the passage of the glacier across the territory of the East European Plain, valleys were formed, tectonic depressions expanded, and even some rocks were polished. Another example of the impact of a glacier is the winding deep bays of the Kola Peninsula. With the retreat of the glacier, not only lakes were formed, but also concave sandy lowlands arose. This happened as a result of the deposition of a large amount of sandy material. Thus, over the course of many millennia, the many-sided relief of the East European Plain was formed.

Meadows of the Russian Plain. Volga river

Some of the rivers flowing through the territory of the East European Plain belong to the basins of two oceans: the Arctic (Northern Dvina, Pechora) and Atlantic (Neva, Western Dvina), while others flow into the Caspian Sea, which has no connection with the world ocean. The longest and most abundant river in Europe, the Volga, flows along the Russian Plain.

Russian plain

On the East European Plain, there are practically all types of natural zones available on the territory of Russia. Tundra predominates in the subtropical zone off the coast of the Barents Sea. Further south, in the temperate zone, a strip of forests begins, which stretches from Polesie to the Urals. It includes both coniferous taiga and mixed forests, which gradually turn into deciduous in the west. To the south, the transitional zone of the forest-steppe begins, and beyond it the steppe zone. A small strip of deserts and semi-deserts begins on the territory of the Caspian lowland.

Russian plain

As mentioned above, on the territory of the Russian Plain there are no natural ones such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Although some tremors (up to 3 points) are still possible, they cannot cause damage, and are recorded only by highly sensitive devices. The most dangerous natural phenomena that can occur on the territory of the Russian Plain are tornadoes and floods. The main environmental problem is the pollution of soil, rivers, lakes and the atmosphere with industrial waste, since many industrial enterprises are concentrated in this part of Russia.

NATURAL ZONES OF RUSSIA

EASTERN EUROPEAN (RUSSIAN) PLAIN

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The East European (Russian) Plain is one of the largest plains in the world in terms of area. Among all the plains of our Motherland, only it comes out to two oceans. Russia is located in the central and eastern parts of the plain. It stretches from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains, from the Barents and White Seas to the Azov and Caspian Seas.

The East European Plain has the highest rural population density, large cities and many small towns and urban-type settlements, and a variety of natural resources. The plain has long been mastered by man.

The following signs serve as the rationale for its determination to the rank of a physico-geographical country: 1) an uplifted stratal plain formed on the plate of the ancient East European platform; 2) Atlantic-continental, predominantly moderate and insufficiently humid climate, formed largely under the influence of the Atlantic and Arctic oceans; 3) natural zones are clearly expressed, the structure of which was greatly influenced by the flat relief and neighboring territories - Central Europe, North and Central Asia. This led to the interpenetration of European and Asian species of plants and animals, as well as to a deviation from the latitudinal position of natural zones in the east to the north.

Relief and geological structure

The East European elevated plain consists of elevations with heights of 200-300 m above sea level and lowlands along which large rivers flow. The average height of the plain is 170 m, and the highest - 479 m - on Bugulma-Belebey Upland in the Urals part. Maximum elevation Timan ridge slightly less (471 m).

According to the peculiarities of the orographic pattern, three stripes are clearly distinguished within the East European Plain: central, northern and southern. Through the central part of the plain runs a strip of alternating large hills and lowlands: Central Russian, Volga, Bugulma-Belebey Uplands and Common Syrt divided Oka-Don lowland and the Low Trans-Volga region, along which the Don and Volga rivers flow, carrying their waters to the south.

To the north of this strip, low plains prevail, on the surface of which, here and there, smaller uplands are scattered here and there in garlands and singly. From west to east-northeast, they stretch here, replacing each other, Smolensk-Moscow, Valdai Uplands and Northern Uvaly... They are mainly used for watersheds between the Arctic, Atlantic and internal (closed-drainage Aral-Caspian) basins. From the Northern Ridges, the territory goes down to the White and Barents Seas. This part of the Russian Plain A.A. Borzov called the northern slope. Large rivers flow along it - Onega, Northern Dvina, Pechora with numerous high-water tributaries.

The southern part of the East European Plain is occupied by lowlands, of which only the Caspian region is located on the territory of Russia.

Rice. 25. Geological profiles across the Russian Plain

The East European Plain has a typical platform relief, which is predetermined by the tectonic features of the platform: the heterogeneity of its structure (the presence of deep faults, ring structures, aulacogens, anteclises, syneclises and other smaller structures) with unequal manifestation of the latest tectonic movements.

Almost all large uplands and lowlands of the plain are of tectonic origin, with a significant part inherited from the structure of the crystalline basement. In the course of a long and complex path of development, they were formed as a single territory in the morphostructural, orographic and genetic relations.

At the base of the East European Plain lie Russian plate with Precambrian crystalline basement and northern edge in the south Scythian plate with a Paleozoic folded basement. The border between the slabs is not expressed in the relief. On the uneven surface of the Precambrian basement of the Russian Plate, there are strata of Precambrian (Vendian, in places Riphean) and Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks with slightly disturbed bedding. Their thickness is not the same and is due to the unevenness of the basement relief (Fig. 25), which determines the main geostructures of the slab. These include syneclises - areas of deep basement (Moscow, Pechora, Caspian, Glazovskaya), anteclises - areas of shallow basement (Voronezh, Volga-Ural), aulacogenes - deep tectonic ditches, in the place of which syneclises subsequently appeared (Kresttsovsky, Soligalichsky, Moskovsky, etc.), protrusions of the Baikal basement - Timan.

The Moscow syneclise is one of the most ancient and complex internal structures of the Russian plate with a deep crystalline basement. It is based on the Central Russian and Moscow aulacogens, filled with thick Riphean strata, above which the sedimentary cover of the Vendian and Phanerozoic (from the Cambrian to the Cretaceous) lies. In the Neogene-Quaternary period, it experienced uneven uplifts and is expressed in relief by rather large uplands - Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow and lowlands - Upper Volga, North-Dvina.

The Pechora syneclise is located wedge-shaped in the northeast of the Russian plate, between the Timan ridge and the Urals. Its uneven block foundation is lowered to various depths - up to 5000-6000 m in the east. The syneclise is filled with a thick stratum of Paleozoic rocks overlain by Meso-Cenozoic sediments. In its northeastern part there is the Usinsky (Bolshezemelsky) vault.

In the center of the Russian plate there are two large anteclises - Voronezh and Volga-Ural separated by Pachelm aulacogen... The Voronezh anteclise slopes gently to the north into the Moscow syneclise. The surface of its basement is covered with thin Ordovician, Devonian and Carboniferous deposits. Carboniferous, Cretaceous and Paleogene rocks occur on the southern steep slope. The Volga-Ural anteclise consists of large uplifts (arches) and depressions (aulacogenes), on the slopes of which flexures are located. The thickness of the sedimentary cover here is at least 800 m within the highest vaults (Tokmovsky).

The Caspian marginal syneclise is a vast area of ​​deep (up to 18-20 km) subsidence of the crystalline basement and belongs to structures of ancient origin, almost on all sides of the syneclise it is bounded by flexures and faults and has angular outlines. From the west it is framed by the Ergeninskaya and Volgograd flexures, from the north - flexure of Obshchy Syrt. In some places they are complicated by young faults. In the Neogene-Quaternary, further subsidence (up to 500 m) and the accumulation of a thick layer of marine and continental sediments took place. These processes are combined with fluctuations in the level of the Caspian.

The southern part of the East European Plain is located on the Scythian Epigercyn Plate, which lies between the southern edge of the Russian Plate and the Alpine folded structures of the Caucasus.

Tectonic movements of the Urals and the Caucasus have led to some disruption in the occurrence of sedimentary plate deposits. This is expressed in the form of dome-shaped uplifts, significant along the length of the swells ( Oksko-Tsniksky, Zhigulevsky, Vyatsky and others), individual flexural bends of layers, salt domes, which can be clearly traced in the modern relief. Ancient and young deep faults, as well as ring structures, determined the block structure of the plates, the direction of river valleys, and the activity of neotectonic movements. The predominant direction of the faults is northwest.

A brief description of the tectonics of the East European Plain and a comparison of the tectonic map with the hypsometric and neotectonic maps allow us to conclude that the modern relief, which has undergone a long and complex history, is in most cases inherited and dependent on the nature of the ancient structure and manifestations of neotectonic movements.

Neotectonic movements on the East European Plain manifested themselves with different intensity and direction: in most of the territory they are expressed by weak and moderate uplifts, low mobility, and the Caspian and Pechora lowlands experience weak subsidence (Fig. 6).

The development of the morphostructure of the north-west of the plain is associated with the movements of the marginal part of the Baltic shield and the Moscow syneclise; therefore, there are developed monoclinal (inclined) bed plains, expressed in orography in the form of hills (Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow, Belorusskaya, Northern Uvaly, etc.), and stratal plains occupying a lower position (Verkhnevolzhskaya, Meshcherskaya). The central part of the Russian Plain was influenced by the intense uplifts of the Voronezh and Volga-Ural anteclises, as well as the subsidence of neighboring aulacogens and troughs. These processes contributed to the formation layer-tiered, stepped elevations(Central Russian and Volga) and the Oksko-Don plain. The eastern part developed in connection with the movements of the Urals and the edge of the Russian plate; therefore, a mosaic of morphostructures is observed here. Developed in the north and south accumulative lowlands edge syneclises of the plate (Pechora and Caspian). Alternating between them stratal-tiered uplands(Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya, General Syrt), monoclinal-bed Uplands (Verkhnekamskaya) and intra-platform folded Timansky ridge.

In the Quaternary, a cooling of the climate in the northern hemisphere contributed to the spread of ice sheets. Glaciers have had a significant impact on the formation of relief, Quaternary sediments, permafrost, as well as on changes in natural zones - their position, floristic composition, fauna and migration of plants and animals within the East European Plain.

Three glaciations are distinguished on the East European Plain: Okskoe, Dnieper with the Moscow stage, and Valdai. Glaciers and fluvioglacial waters created two types of plains - moraine and outwash. Permafrost processes prevailed in the wide periglacial (preglacial) belt for a long time. Snowfields had an especially intense effect on the relief during the period of reduced glaciation.

Morena of the most ancient glaciation - Oksky- was studied on the Oka, 80 km south of Kaluga. The lower, heavily washed-out Oka moraine with Karelian crystalline boulders is separated from the overlying Dnieper moraine by typical interglacial deposits. In a number of other sections to the north of this section, under the Dnieper moraine, the Oka moraine was also found.

Obviously, the moraine relief that arose in the Oka Ice Age has not survived to our time, since it was first washed out by the waters of the Dnieper (Middle Pleistocene) glacier, and then it was covered by its bottom moraine.

Southern boundary of maximum spread Dniprovsky integumentary glaciations crossed the Central Russian Upland in the Tula region, then descended with the tongue along the Don valley - to the mouth of the Khopr and Medveditsa, crossed the Volga Upland, then the Volga near the mouth of the Sura River, then went to the upper reaches of the Vyatka and Kama and crossed the Ural in the area of ​​60 ° N. In the basin of the Upper Volga (in Chukhloma and Galich), as well as in the basin of the Upper Dnieper above the Dnieper moraine, the upper moraine occurs, which is attributed to the Moscow stage of the Dnieper glaciation *.

Before the last Valdai glaciation in the interglacial epoch, the vegetation of the middle zone of the East European Plain had a more thermophilic composition than the modern one. This testifies to the complete disappearance of its glaciers in the north. In the interglacial epoch, peat bogs with Brazen flora were deposited in lacustrine basins formed in depressions of the moraine relief.

In the north of the East European Plain, the boreal ingression arose during this era, the level of which was 70-80 m above the present-day sea level. The sea penetrated along the river valleys of the Northern Dvina, Mezen, Pechora, creating wide branching bays. Then came the Valdai glaciation. The edge of the Valdai ice sheet was located 60 km north of Minsk and went to the northeast, reaching Nyandoma.

In the climate of the more southern regions, due to glaciation, there have been changes. At this time, in the more southern regions of the East European Plain, the remnants of seasonal snow cover and snowfields contributed to the intensive development of nivation, solifluction, the formation of asymmetric slopes in erosional landforms (ravines, gullies, etc.).

Thus, if ice existed within the distribution of the Valdai glaciation, then in the periglacial zone a nival relief and sediments (boulderless loams) were formed. The non-glacial, southern parts of the plain are overlain by thick strata of loess and loess-like loams, synchronous with the ice ages. At that time, in connection with the humidification of the climate, which caused glaciation, and also, possibly, with neotectonic movements in the basin of the Caspian Sea, marine transgressions took place.

Natural processes of the Neogene-Quaternary time and modern climatic conditions on the territory of the East European Plain have led to various types of morphosculptures, which are zonal in their distribution: on the coast of the seas of the Arctic Ocean, sea and moraine plains with cryogenic relief forms are widespread. To the south lie moraine plains, transformed at various stages by erosion and periglacial processes. Along the southern periphery of the Moscow glaciation, a strip of outwash plains is observed, interrupted by remnant elevated plains covered with loess-like loams, dissected by ravines and gullies. To the south, there is a strip of fluvial ancient and modern landforms in the highlands and lowlands. On the coast of the Azov and Caspian Seas, there are Neogene-Quaternary plains with erosional, depression-subsidence and aeolian relief.

The long geological history of the largest geostructure - the ancient platform - predetermined the accumulation of various minerals in the East European Plain. The basement of the platform contains the richest deposits of iron ores (Kursk magnetic anomaly). The sedimentary cover of the platform is associated with deposits of coal (the eastern part of the Donbass, the Moscow basin), oil and gas in the Paleozoic and Mesozoic deposits (the Ural-Volga basin), and oil shale (near Syzran). Building materials (songs, gravel, clay, limestone) are widespread. Brown iron ore (near Lipetsk), bauxite (near Tikhvin), phosphorites (in a number of areas) and salts (Caspian region) are also associated with the sedimentary cover.

* A number of scientists consider the Moscow glaciation to be an independent Middle Pleistocene glaciation.

see also nature photography of the East European Plain(with geographic and biological captions for photographs)
from section

The East European Plain is second only to the Amazon Plain, located in South America. The second largest plain of our planet is located on the continent of Eurasia. Most of it is located in the eastern part of the mainland, a smaller part in the western part. Since the geographical position of the East European Plain is mainly located in Russia, it is often called the Russian Plain.

East European Plain: its boundaries and location

The plain has a length of more than 2,500 kilometers from north to south, and 1,000 kilometers from east to west. Its flat relief is explained by its almost complete coincidence with the East European platform. This means that large natural phenomena do not threaten it, small earthquakes and flooding are possible. In the northwest, the plain ends with the Scandinavian mountains, from the southwest - the Carpathians, from the south - the Caucasus, in the east - the Mugodzhars and the Urals. Its highest part is in the Khibiny (1190m), the lowest is located on the Caspian coast (28 m below sea level). Most of the plain is located in the forest zone, the southern and central parts are forest-steppe and steppe. The extreme south and eastern part is covered with desert and semi-desert.

East European Plain: its rivers and lakes

Onega, Pechora, Mezen, Northern Dvina are large rivers of the northern part that belong to the Arctic Ocean. The basin of the Baltic Sea includes such large rivers as the Western Dvina, Neman, Vistula. The Dniester, the Southern Bug, and the Dnieper flow to the Black Sea. The Volga and the Urals belong to the basin of the Caspian Sea. The Don aspires to the Sea of ​​Azov. In addition to large rivers, there are several large lakes on the Russian Plain: Ladoga, Beloe, Onezhskoe, Ilmen, Chudskoe.

East European Plain: Wildlife

The Russian Plain is inhabited by animals of the forest group, arctic and steppe. Forest fauna are more widespread. These are lemmings, chipmunks, gophers and marmots, antelopes, martens and forest cats, minks, black polecats and wild boars, garden, hazel and forest dormouse and so on. Unfortunately, man has caused significant damage to the fauna of the plain. Even before the 19th century, the tarpan (wild forest horse) lived in mixed forests. Today they are trying to preserve bison in Belovezhskaya Pushcha. There is a steppe reserve Askania-Nova, where animals from Asia, Africa and Australia have settled. And the Voronezh Nature Reserve successfully protects beavers. Moose and wild boars, previously completely exterminated, reappeared in this area.

Minerals of the East European Plain

The Russian Plain contains many mineral resources that are of great importance not only for our country, but also for the rest of the world. First of all, these are the Pechora coal basin, Kursk magnetic ore deposits, nepheline and apathetic ores on the Kola Peninsula, Volga-Ural and Yaroslavl oil, brown coal in the Moscow region. No less important are the aluminum ores of Tikhvin and the brown iron ore of Lipetsk. Limestone, sand, clay and gravel are widespread throughout the plain. Salt is mined in the Elton and Baskunchak lakes, and potash salt is mined in the Kama Cis-Urals. In addition to all this, gas is being produced (region of the Azov coast).

Geographical position of the East European Plain

The physical and geographical name of the Russian Plain is East European. The plain occupies about $ 4 million sq. Km. and is the second largest in the world after the Amazonian lowland. Within Russia, the plain stretches from the coast of the Baltic Sea in the west to the Ural Mountains in the east. In the north, its border starts from the shores of the Barents and White Seas to the shores of the Azov and Caspian Seas in the south. From the northwest, the Russian Plain is bordered by the Scandinavian mountains, in the west and southwest by the mountains of Central Europe and the Carpathians, in the south by the Caucasus mountains and in the east by the Ural Mountains. Within the Crimea, the border of the Russian Plain runs along the northern foot of the Crimean Mountains.

In the rank of a physico-geographical country, the plain was identified by the following characteristics:

1. The location of the slightly elevated plain on the plate of the ancient East European platform;
2. Moderate and insufficiently humid climate, which is largely formed under the influence of the Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean;
3. The flatness of the relief influenced the clearly expressed natural zoning.

Within the plain, there are two unequal parts:

1. Basement-denudation plain on the Baltic crystalline shield;
2. The East European Plain proper with bedded erosion-denudation and accumulative relief on the Russian and Scythian plates.

Relief crystal shield is the result of prolonged continental denudation. The tectonic movements of recent times have already had a direct impact on the relief. In the Quaternary period, the territory occupied by the Baltic crystalline shield was the center of glaciation, therefore fresh forms of glacial relief are common here.

Strong cover of platform deposits within actually Of the East European Plain, it lies almost horizontally. As a result, accumulative and stratal-denudation lowlands and uplands were formed. A folded foundation protruding to the surface in some places has formed basement-denudation heights and ridges - Timan Ridge, Donetsk Ridge, etc.

The East European Plain has an average elevation of about $ 170 m above sea level. On the coast of the Caspian Sea, the heights will be the smallest, because the level of the Caspian itself is below the level of the World Ocean by $ 27.6 m. At $ 300 - $ 350 m above sea level, elevations rise, for example, the Podolsk Upland, whose height is $ 471 m.

Settlement of the East European Plain

The Eastern Slavs, according to a number of opinions, were the first to populate Eastern Europe, but this opinion, others believe, is erroneous. In this area for the first time in the $ 30 millennium BC. Cro-Magnons appeared. To some extent, they were similar to modern representatives of the Caucasian race, and over time, their appearance became closer to the characteristic features of a person. These events took place in a harsh winter. By the $ X $ millennium, the climate in Eastern Europe was no longer so harsh, and the first Indo-Europeans gradually began to appear in Southeast Europe. No one can say for sure where they were up to this moment, but it is known that in the east of Europe they firmly settled in the $ VI $ -th millennium BC. NS. and occupied a significant part of it.

Remark 1

The settlement of Eastern Europe by the Slavs occurred much later than the appearance of ancient people on it.

The peak of the settlement of the Slavs in Europe is considered $ V $ - $ VI $ centuries. new era and under the pressure of migration in the same period, they are divided into eastern, southern and western.

South Slavs settled in the Balkans and surrounding areas. The tribal community ceases to exist, and the first semblances of states appear.

Settlement takes place at the same time Western Slavs, which had a northwest direction from the Vistula to the Elbe. Some of them, according to archaeological data, ended up in the Baltic states. On the territory of modern Czech Republic in $ VII $ c. the first state appeared.

V Eastern Europe the resettlement of the Slavs took place without major problems. In antiquity, they had a primitive communal system, and later they were clan. Due to the small population of the earth, there was enough for everyone. Within Eastern Europe, the Slavs assimilated with the Finno-Ugric tribes and began to create tribal alliances. These were the first state formations. In connection with the warming of the climate, agriculture, cattle breeding, hunting and fishing are developing. Nature itself walked towards the Slavs. East Slavs gradually became the largest group of Slavic peoples - they are Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians. The East European Plain began to be populated by the Slavs in the early Middle Ages, and by the $ VIII $ c. they already dominated it. On the plain, the Eastern Slavs settled in the vicinity of other peoples, which bore both positive and negative features. The colonization of the East European Plain by the Slavs took place over half a millennium and proceeded very unevenly. At the initial stage, land was developed along the path, which is called " from the Varangians to the Greeks". In a later period, the Slavs advanced to the east, west and southwest.

The colonization of the East European Plain by the Slavs had its own characteristics:

1. The process proceeded slowly due to the severity of the climate;
2. Different population densities in the colonized territories. The reason is the same - natural and climatic conditions, soil fertility. Naturally, in the north of the plain there were few people, and in the south of the plain, where conditions were favorable, there were much more immigrants;
3. Since there was a lot of land, there were no confrontations with other peoples during the resettlement;
4. The neighboring tribes, the Slavs, imposed a tribute;
5. Small peoples "merged" with the Slavs, adopting their culture, language, customs, customs, way of life.

Remark 2

A new stage began in the life of the Slavic people, who settled across the territory of the East European Plain, associated with the rapid development of the economy, a change in the life system and way of life, the appearance of prerequisites for the formation of statehood.

Contemporary exploration of the East European Plain

After the settlement and resettlement of the East European Plain by the Eastern Slavs, with the beginning of the development of the economy, the question of its study arose. Outstanding scientists of the country took part in the study of the plain, including the name of the mineralogist V.M. Severgin.

Studying Baltic in the spring $ 1803 g. V.M. Severgin drew attention to the fact that to the south-west of Lake Peipsi the nature of the terrain is becoming very hilly. To test his thoughts, he walked along the $ 24 $ meridian from the mouth of the Gauja River to the Neman River and reached the Bug River, again marking many hills and sandy elevated fields. Similar "fields" were found in the upper reaches of the Ptich and Svisloch rivers. As a result of these works, in the west of the East European Plain, for the first time, an alternation of low-lying areas and elevated "fields" was noted with the correct indication of their directions - from southwest to northeast.

Detailed study Polesie was caused by the reduction of meadow spaces due to the plowing of land on the right bank of the Dnieper. For this purpose, in $ 1873 $, the Western Expedition to drain the swamps was created. At the head of this expedition was the military topographer I. I. Zhilinsky. Researchers covered about $ 100 thousand square kilometers for $ 25 $ summer period. the territory of Polesie, $ 600 $ measurements of heights were carried out, a map of the region was compiled. On the materials collected by I.I. Zhilinsky continued the work of A.A. Tillo. The hypsometric map he created showed that Polesie is a vast plain with raised edges. The results of the expedition were $ 300 $ of lakes and $ 500 $ of Polesie rivers on the map with a total length of $ 9,000 km. The geographer G.I. Tanfilyev, who concluded that the drainage of the Polesie bogs would not lead to the shallowing of the Dnieper and P.A. Tutkovsky. He identified and mapped $ 5 $ elevations in the Polesie wetlands, including the Ovruch Ridge, from which the right tributaries of the lower Pripyat originate.

The study Donetsk ridge the young engineer of the Lugansk foundry E.P. Kovalevsky, who found out that in geological terms this ridge is a huge basin. Kovalevsky became the discoverer of Donbass and his first explorer who compiled a geological map of this basin. It was he who recommended to engage in prospecting and exploration of ore deposits here.

In $ 1840, the master of field geology R. Murchison was invited to Russia to study the natural resources of the country. Together with Russian scientists, the site was surveyed the southern coast of the White Sea... In the course of the work carried out, rivers and hills in the central part of the East European Plain were investigated, hypsometric and geological maps of the area were compiled, on which the structural features of the Russian platform were clearly visible.

On south of the East European Plain the founder of scientific soil science V.V. Dokuchaev. In $ 1883, while studying chernozem, he came to the conclusion that there is a special chernozem-steppe zone on the territory of Eastern Europe. On the card of V.V. Dokuchaev allocates $ 5 for the main natural areas in the plain.

In subsequent years, on the territory of the East European Plain, numerous scientific works were carried out to study it, new scientific discoveries were made, new maps were drawn.

From the east, the plain is bordered by mountains.

Large tectonic structures - the Russian and Scythian plates - lie at the base of the plain. In most of the territory, their basement is deeply submerged under thick sedimentary strata of various ages, lying horizontally. Therefore, flat relief prevails on the platforms. In a number of places, the foundation of the platform is raised. Large hills are located in these areas. The Dnieper Upland is located within. The Baltic shield corresponds to relatively elevated plains and, as well as low mountains. The raised foundation of the Voronezh anticlise serves as the core. The same rise of the foundation is located at the base of the heights of the High Trans-Volga region. A special case is the Volga Upland, where the foundation lies at great depths. Here, during the entire Mesozoic and Paleogene, there was a subsidence, the accumulation of thick strata of sedimentary rocks. Then, during the Neogene and Quaternary time, this area of ​​the earth's crust rose, which led to the formation of the Volga Upland.

A number of large uplands were formed as a result of repeated Quaternary glaciations, the accumulation of material - moraine loams and sands. Such are the heights of Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow, Klinsko-Dmitrovskaya, Northern Uvaly.

Between large hills there are lowlands, in which the valleys of large rivers - the Dnieper, Don, were laid.

To the north, such abounding, but relatively short rivers, such as Onega, carry their water, and the Neva and Neman to the west.

The upper reaches and channels of many rivers are often located close to each other, which, in a lowland environment, contributes to their connection by canals. These are channels to them. Moscow, Volga-, Volgo-Don, White Sea-Baltic. Thanks to the canals, ships from Moscow can sail along the rivers and lakes to, Black, Baltic and seas. Therefore, Moscow is called the port of the five seas.

In winter, all rivers of the East European Plain freeze over. In the spring, when the snow melts, most of the floods occur. Numerous reservoirs and hydroelectric power plants have been built on the rivers to retain and use spring water. The Volga and the Dnieper have turned into a cascade used both for generating electricity and for shipping, irrigation of lands, water supply to cities, etc.

A characteristic feature of the East European Plain is a bright manifestation of latitudinal. It is expressed more fully and clearly than on other plains of the world. It is no coincidence that the law of zoning, formulated by a famous Russian scientist, was primarily based on his study of this particular territory.

The flatness of the territory, the abundance of minerals, a relatively mild climate, sufficient rainfall, a variety of natural, favorable for various industries - all this contributed to the intensive economic development of the East European Plain. Economically, it is the most important part of Russia. More than 50% of the country's population lives on it and two-thirds of the total number of cities and workers' settlements are located. The plain is home to the densest network of highways and railways. Most of them - Volga, Dnieper, Don, Dniester, Zapadnaya Dvina, Kama - are regulated and transformed into a cascade of reservoirs. In vast areas, forests have been cleared and landscapes have become a combination of forests and fields. Many woodlands are now secondary forests, where coniferous and broad-leaved species have been replaced by small-leaved ones - birch, aspen. Half of the country's arable land is located on the territory of the East European Plain, about 40% of hayfields, 12% of pastures. Of all the large parts, the East European Plain is the most developed and changed by human activity.