|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
Ob
Ob , river, c.2,300 mi (3,700 km) long, W Siberian Russia. With the Irtysh River, its chief tributary, it is c.3,460 mi (5,600 km) long and is the world's fourth longest river. Formed by the junction of the Biya and Katun rivers (both of which rise in the Altai range) SW of Biysk, the upper Ob flows NW, then NE past Barnaul and Novosibirsk through the W Siberian lowlands to be joined by the Tom River. The middle Ob flows northwest through the swampy forests in the Tomsk and Narym regions and then is joined by the Chulym, Ket, and Irtysh rivers. The lower Ob consists of the Great Ob and the Small Ob and flows N, then E into Ob Bay, an estuary and shallow arm (c.500 mi/800 km long and 35–50 mi/56–80 km wide) of the Arctic Ocean between the Yamal and Gyda peninsulas. The width of the Ob increases downstream to c.25 mi (40 km) near its mouth. The valley of the middle Ob is subject to flooding each spring as the thaw occurs in the upper Ob basin before the ice in the lower course of the Ob has melted. Although frozen from five to six months of the year, the Ob is an important trade and transport route; Novosibirsk, Barnaul, Kamen-na-Obi, and Mogochin are the chief ports. There is a large hydroelectric power station at Novosibirsk. The largest oil and gas deposits in Russia are found in the basin of the middle and lower Ob. Severe pollution in the lower Ob has damaged the river's formerly famous fisheries. |
|
|
Cite this article
"Ob." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Ob." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Ob.html "Ob." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Ob.html |
|
Ob
Ob River in w Siberia, central Russia. It flows nw then ne through the lowlands of w Siberia, before continuing n and then e to enter the Gulf of Ob, an arm of the Kara Sea within the Arctic Ocean. Length: 3680km (2300mi). With its principal tributary, the Irtysh, it is the seventh-longest river in the world: 5410km (3360mi).
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Ob." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Ob." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-Ob.html "Ob." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-Ob.html |
|
Ob
Ob, Siberia/Russia A river whose name probably comes from the Persian ob ‘water’.
|
|
|
Cite this article
JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Ob." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Ob." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Ob.html JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Ob." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Ob.html |
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
