The confluence of the Shilka and Argun rivers in the Trans-Baikal Territory is considered to be the source of the Amur. There are many ridges in the valleys of which numerous streams flow. Larch sparse taiga grows on the peaks and gentle slopes of granites and sandstones.
Source and flow
The length from the source to the place where the Amur flows is 2824 kilometers. The height of the terrain varies greatly along the course of the current. The first 900 kilometers is a plateau where the channel is not suitable for navigation. At the same time, there are many small tributaries. Numerous loops and lowlands begin in the Blagoveshchensk region. "Krivuny" are local attractions that surprise tourists.
Between Blagoveshchensk and Khabarovsk there is a slow current and lowlands. Here is a large tributary of the Zeya. Some experts tend to believe that the Amur is a tributary of the Zeya, since at the confluence the channel of the latter is wider and more full-flowing. One way or another, the discussion on this matter continues today.
The lower section is very swampy. In the area surrounding the mouth, where the Amur River flows, on waterproof clays there are herbal and moss-herbalswampy areas. Peatlands in the north of the Khabarovsk Territory form a mari. These are swamps with rare larches.
Mouth
In which direction does the Amur River flow? Where does one of the longest water arteries of the country flow into? The first question can be answered confidently that to the east. At the same time, the waters have to make several serious turns along their course, as well as change several climatic and physiographic zones. These are forests, forest-steppes, steppes and even semi-deserts.
As for the second question, there are several points of view about where the Amur River flows. It ends with the estuary of the same name. Thanks to fresh water, the salinity level here is relatively low (about 10%), while the same indicator in the Sea of Okhotsk fluctuates at 30%.
The Amur Estuary belongs to the Sea of Okhotsk or the Sea of Japan. So, for example, domestic experts are supporters of the first theory, which is reflected in all kinds of encyclopedias and reference books of the USSR and Russia. At the same time, the second point of view is popular abroad - about the Sea of Japan (International Hydrographic Organization, etc.).
Near the mouth where the Amur River flows into, is the city of Nikolaevsk-on-Amur. Until 1926, it was called Nikolaev and got its name in honor of Emperor Nicholas I, in whose reign it was founded. Until 1870, it was the main port in the Russian Far East, from where it then moved to Vladivostok.
Pool
The rivers flowing into the Amur River form a vast basin. Only 54% of its area is located in Russia, another 44% - in China, the remaining 2% - in Mongolia. The river itself can be divided into three sections: the upper one, up to the Zeya tributary, the middle one, up to the Ussuri, and the lower one, up to the mouth.
Total area of the basin is 1,855,000 km2. According to this indicator, the Amur is in fourth place among the rivers of Russia, behind the Yenisei, Ob and Lena. The largest river in the European part of the country, the Volga, is inferior to the Far Eastern artery, having a basin area of 1,361 thousand km2.
Climate and minerals
Due to the climate, the water level fluctuates significantly throughout the year. Thus, monsoon rains account for about 75% of the annual runoff. Periodically flood floodplain can reach 10-30 kilometers. That is why Cupid is fed by rain.
Most recently, in 2013, heavy rains led to massive flooding of settlements and large-scale evacuation of the population. More than a hundred people died and thousands more were injured. According to meteorologists, such natural disasters occur here no more than once every two hundred years.
Local waters are covered with ice by the second decade of November. Spring opening occurs in April. Approximate navigation season is 150-170 days.
The subsoil near the places where the Amur flows, as well as the depths of the river itself, are rich in gifts of nature. These are minerals such as iron ore, coal, antimony, tin, graphite, gold, molybdenum, lead and graphite. A large amount of chalk, limestone, marble,cement raw materials, etc.
The border position, where several natural zones adjoin, enriched Amur with a variety of fish. So, for example, local salmon lives in water, the temperature of which is optimal for it. And the slightest excess already makes the environment unsuitable for his life. On the contrary, for tropical fish, the local waters are the coldest suitable for normal life. Such an amazing combination of local inhabitants is explained by the biological characteristics of fish as a species. The protein of these living organisms changes temperature according to water indicators, unlike warm-blooded animals, such as mammals.
Localities
There are several cities in the area from the source to the place where the Amur River flows into. These are Amursk (founded in 1958), Blagoveshchensk (1856), Khabarovsk (1858), Komsomolsk-on-Amur (1932), Nikolaevsk-on-Amur (1850). At the same time, Blagoveshchensk is the administrative center of the Jewish Autonomous Region, and Khabarovsk is the center of the region of the same name (subject of the federation). The Cossacks, who turned out to be local Russian discoverers, played a big role in the development of the local lands. Often their life consisted of a hastily erected hut among deserted and foreign swamps. Such buildings of the XVII-XVIII centuries. are a local attraction (for example, in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur).
A curious distinguishing feature is that this waterway is at a significantsection is the state border between Russia and China. Historically, until the 17th century, the lands in the lower reaches of the river were under the jurisdiction of the Celestial Empire. There are also Chinese cities on the right bank of the Amur, such as Heihe.
Etymology
All those territories where the Amur flows into, at different times belonged to different peoples and civilizations. In this regard, the river bore certain names. The Russian version appeared as an onomatopoeia of the local Tungus-Manchu languages, in translation from which the toponym means "big river".
The Chinese call the water artery the "black river", in other words, Heihe. It has to do with local mythology. Once upon a time, a black dragon lived in these waters. The anatomy of the body of a mythical creature personifies the tributaries of the river, which are the "paws" of a flying serpent.
