Mountains and plains are the main landforms. They form the surface of continental rises and oceanic depressions. More small forms relief - river valleys, dunes, hills, spits, ravines and many others, can only be formed at the base. The role of this base, bridgehead or parent rock, as one might guess, is played by mountains and plains.
Definition
Mountains- these are huge, highly dissected areas earth's surface, which are elevated above the surrounding area. The highest mountain on Earth is considered to be Chomolungma, also known as Everest, whose height is 8850 m. But there is also the “amphibious” Hawaiian mountain Mauna Kea. It is a volcano and “grew” from the bottom Pacific Ocean to a height of 10,203 meters, significantly surpassing Everest and its entire retinue of eight-thousand-meter mountains.
Plains- These are huge, fairly flat areas of the earth's surface, which are characterized by slight fluctuations in relative heights. The largest plain on Earth is the Amazon Lowland, with an area of 5 million km².
Comparison
Mountains are raised above the adjacent surface. In most cases, mountains are located in groups in the form of linearly elongated ridges. In the structure of each mountain, one can clearly distinguish the base, slopes and peak. Plains are loners. Their area is huge. Example – East European plain, which is home to a dozen European countries. Based on their appearance, plains are divided into flat and hilly.
Belarusian Plain
The mountains are divided into 3 groups according to their height.
- Low. Their height does not exceed 1000 m (Crimean, Ural).
- Medium-high, with altitudes from 1000 to 2000 m (Carpathians, Scandinavian, Apennines).
- Tall. Those that exceeded 2000 m (Himalayas, Andes, Alps, Caucasus).
The plains are also divided into 3 groups by height: lowlands, hills and plateaus. The lowlands have an absolute height of up to 200 m – West Siberian Plain, Amazonian lowland, Caspian lowland. Hills are plains, the height of which ranges from 200 to 500 m. Example - Volga Upland, Timan Ridge. Plateaus are plains whose height exceeds 500 m. For example, the Deccan or Brazilian plateaus.
The main difference between mountains and plains, on which their morphological differences depend, lies in the origin of both objects of comparison. In the vast majority of cases, mountains are the result of activities internal forces Earth. That's why there are volcanic mountains - Kilimanjaro, Kenya or Fuji. There are folded mountains - the Pyrenees, the Himalayas, the Caucasus, the Atlas. They were formed as a result of crushing earth's crust into folds during counter horizontal tectonic movements. The third group is folded block mountains. They are obtained as a result of vertical tectonism, when some part of one mountain range rises or falls, isolated from the general height of the parent orographic structure. An ideal example Such mountain systems are the Ural and Tien Shan. If the mountain building process is not completed, then the processes of volcanism and earthquakes can be predicted in this place with a high percentage of probability.
Mount Kazbek. Caucasus Most plains are based not on folds, but on a platform. For example, at the base of the East European Plain is the East European Platform, at the base of the Deccan Plateau is part of the Indo-Australian Plate. Platforms are stable areas of the earth's crust that are not potentially seismic areas. Also, plains can be formed when the seabed rises, when old mountains denudate, or when sedimentary and alluvial rocks fill depressions and depressions in the earth's crust.
Theoretically, it is believed that plains are more suitable for economic activity– construction, agriculture, road laying than mountainous areas. Controversial issue is a comparison of climate comfort, living and recreation conditions in mountainous areas and on the plains.
Conclusions website
- Fundamentally different appearance mountains and plains.
- The height of most of the plains does not exceed 500 meters, the mountains “easily” exceeded the height of 8000 m and continue to grow.
- The area of the plains on Earth significantly exceeds the area of the mountains.
- Most of the mountains arose due to the action of the internal forces of the Earth. At the base of many plains are platforms that have been worked on external forces Earth.
- There is a high probability of earthquakes in the mountains. A standard plain cannot become the epicenter of an earthquake.
- Mountains and plains are used differently by people.
What plain do you live on? What mountains are there in Russia? Where is one of the seven wonders of Russia - the Valley of Geysers? In this lesson we will learn the answers to all these and other questions, learn a lot of interesting things about the West Siberian and East European Plains, get acquainted with the amazing minerals of the Urals, the magnificent nature of Altai and the Sayans, the mesmerizing heights of the Caucasus, the unique severity of Kamchatka.
In the north, the plain is washed by the Barents and White Seas. In the south Black and Seas of Azov. The length of the plain from north to south is 2500 km, from west to east - 1000 km. The East European Plain is rightly called great, because it is the second largest in the world (an area of more than 5 million km²). The second name of the East European Plain is Russian.
The fact that it is called a plain does not mean that its surface is completely flat (Fig. 2).
Rice. 2. East European Plain ()
On the East European Plain there are lowlands and hills, and many hills. Such a plain is called hilly.
Since ancient times, people have inhabited the plains - they are convenient for building houses and laying roads, farming, and grazing livestock. The Volga, the longest and deepest river in Europe (Fig. 3), flows along the Russian Plain, along with the deep-flowing Dnieper and Don.
The East European Plain is home to most of the population of the Russian Federation. Multimillion-dollar cities were built here: Moscow (Fig. 4), St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Rostov-on-Don.
The East European Plain was the center of Russian culture and science, inspiring poets, writers and artists with its unique beauty.
Levitan (Fig. 5), Shishkin (Fig. 6), and Polenov (Fig. 7) tried to reflect the charm of the Russian Plain in their paintings.
Rice. 5. I.I. Levitan. Golden Autumn ()
Rice. 6. A.I. Shishkin. Morning in a pine forest ()
Rice. 7. V. D. Polenov. First snow ()
On the physical map of Russia we will find the West Siberian Plain, lying east of the Ural Mountains (Fig. 8).
Rice. 8. West Siberian Plain ()
Its area is huge - about 3 million km². Unlike the East European Plain, it is flat - there are no lowlands or hills for many kilometers. Such a plain is called flat (Fig. 9).
Rice. 9. West Siberian Plain ()
The West Siberian Plain is the flattest and lowest plain on Earth, so there are a lot of swamps on it (Fig. 10-12).
Rice. 10. West Siberian Plain. Swamps ()
Rice. 11. West Siberian Plain. Vasyugan swamps ()
Rice. 12. West Siberian Plain. Vasyugan River ()
The main rivers of this plain are the Ob, Irtysh, and Yenisei, which flow north because the West Siberian Plain is slightly inclined toward the Arctic Ocean.
To the east of the West Siberian Plain lies the Central Siberian Plateau (Fig. 13).
Rice. 13. Central Siberian Plateau ()
This is also a plain, although it looks completely different: elevated spaces with flat surfaces and rather steep slopes (Fig. 14, 15).
Rice. 14. Central Siberian Plateau ()
Rice. 15. Central Siberian Plateau. Putorana Plateau ()
This landscape resembles a mountainous area, hence the name “plateau”. Total area plateaus about 3.5 million km². The fast, full-flowing and rapids rivers Lena, Angara, and Podkamennaya Tunguska, Vilyui. There are cool summers and very cold (up to -60) and snowy winters. The Central Siberian Plateau is located in the region " permafrost", the soil here was frozen to a depth of 1 km. This area is sparsely populated.
Let's find the Ural Mountains on the physical map of Russia (Fig. 16).
Rice. 16. Ural Mountains
They were formed more than 200 million years ago and were up to 10 thousand meters high. Now the most highest point The height of the Urals does not exceed 1,400 m. This happened because over many millions of years the mountains were destroyed under the influence of rain, wind, frost, heat, vegetation and other factors, becoming lower and sometimes acquiring bizarre shapes. In the old days, the Ural Mountains were called the “stone belt of the Russian land,” because they seemed to girdle the country, separating European part from Asian.
For a long time it was known about the wealth of the Ural Mountains in useful minerals (white mica, tourmaline, aquamarine, garnet, sapphire, topaz, corundum (Fig. 17-23)),
Rice. 17. White mica. Muscovite()
Rice. 18. Tourmaline ()
Rice. 19. Aquamarine ()
and in 1700, Tsar Peter I gave the order to develop ore deposits, and factories for their processing began to be built. In the Ilmen Mountains (Ural) a previously unknown mineral was found, which was called ilmenite (Fig. 24),
Rice. 24. Ilmenite ()
now it is a protected area of the Ilmensky Nature Reserve (Fig. 25).
Rice. 25. Ilmensky Reserve ()
The highest mountains in Russia are the Caucasus (above 5 thousand meters), so many peaks are constantly covered with snow (Fig. 26, 27).
Rice. 26. Caucasus Mountains
Rice. 27. Caucasus Mountains ()
Here is the highest mountain in Russia - Elbrus, due to the fact that it has two peaks, it is called double-headed (the height of the peaks is 5642 m and 5521 m) (Fig. 28).
Rice. 28. Mount Elbrus ()
In the south of Siberia there are the Altai and Sayan mountains, which are famous for their beauty and unique nature. The snow leopard (irbis) (Fig. 29) and argali (the largest mountain sheep) (Fig. 30) live here.
Rice. 29. Snow leopard ()
Altai is included in the list World Heritage. It is also called the Golden Mountains of Eurasia. This name is associated with the Turkic word “altyn” - golden (Fig. 31-33).
Rice. 32. Altai ()
The internal and external forces of the Earth in different parts of it act with different intensities and speeds, and as a result, the continents have formed different shapes relief. The most pronounced relief features are plains, mountains, and ups and downs of the Earth's surface.
Plains
Plains occupy 64% of the land area. The largest plains in the Northern Hemisphere are the Central Plains in North America, the East European, West Siberian, Great Chinese Plains, and the Central Siberian Plateau in Eurasia. IN Southern Hemisphere The largest plain in the world is located - the Amazonian Lowland (South America).
Most plains are formed on platforms (platform plains). Based on their origin, plains are divided into denudation and accumulation.
Denudation plains arise on the site of destroyed mountains. Denudation - aggregate external processes destruction rocks and transfer of destruction products to low areas (by water, wind, ice). The main unevenness of the relief of denudation plains is associated with tectonic movements. They cause deformation of the shields, their general lifting, and movement of individual blocks. The destruction of mountains leads to a smoothing of the Earth's topography. As a result, significant hills and low areas located close to them are formed, for example, the Kazakh small hills.
Accumulative plains are formed during the long-term accumulation of sediments at the site of extensive subsidence of the earth's surface (West Siberian, Caspian, Indo-Gangetic, Mesopotamian lowlands, Great Chinese Plain). (Use the maps to determine the location of the plains.)
Sediments can be of various origins: marine, river, lake. U West Siberian Lowland the sedimentary cover is mainly composed of young marine sediments. Among accumulative plains, stratal plains are often distinguished - these are flat areas of ancient platforms with almost horizontal occurrence of layers of sedimentary rocks of great thickness, confined to the platform plate. Plains mostly have a flat or hilly topography (Amazonian lowland in South America, East European lowland in Eurasia).
Mountains
Based on their origin, mountains are classified as folded, block, folded-block and volcanic. fold mountains- young mountains more often high altitude. They formed in mobile zones of the earth's crust, mainly on the outskirts lithospheric plates. Rocks as a result tectonic movements crumpled into folds various sizes and steepness (Fig. 7). The main feature of folded mountains is their elongation in the form of chains of mountain ranges on long distances, pointed peaks, such as the mountains of the Alpine-Himalayan fold belt. Fold mountains are found on almost all continents. (Remember which mountains are included in the global fold belts.)
Tectonic movements of the earth's crust disrupt the horizontal occurrence of rocks. As a result of the displacement of rocks, faults, horsts, and grabens are formed (Fig. 8).
Reset- a block of the earth's crust in the mountains that has descended along a fault relative to another block. As a result of the fault, a ledge appears on the earth's surface (both on continents and in the oceans).
Horst- a raised section of the earth's crust bounded by faults. Formed as a result of intense uplifts of the earth's crust. Horsts form mountain ranges with domed or flat tops and reach many tens of kilometers in diameter and hundreds of kilometers in length.
Graben- a lowered section of the earth's crust, bounded by faults. Grabens often serve as basins for modern lakes (Baikal in Asia, Tanganyika in Africa) or seas (Red Sea).
Block Mountains formed as a result of tectonic uplifts that occurred along faults in the earth's crust (see Fig. 7). They are characterized by massiveness, gently sloping peaks and relatively weak dissection. They appear, as a rule, on the outskirts of platforms.
This is how they were formed Drakensberg Mountains V South East Africa. From the outside Indian Ocean they form steep stepped slopes and give the impression of a high mountain range. The Western and Eastern Ghats on the Hindustan Peninsula are the elevated edges of the Hindustan Platform.
Fold-block mountains appeared on the site of areas of the earth's crust that underwent mountain building in the past. The mountains collapsed, turning into plateaus. The earth's crust in these areas acquired rigidity and stability. Then they underwent rejuvenation - repeated mountain building, which was accompanied by both folding and uplift and subsidence of individual blocks. In Eurasia these are the flat-topped Urals, Kunlun, North America- Appalachians, in Australia - the East Australian Mountains, in Africa - the Cape Mountains.
Volcanic mountains formed during volcanic eruptions. These include Kilimanjaro in Africa, Klyuchevskaya Sopka, Fuji, Etna, Kazbek in Eurasia. (Remember how volcanoes form.)
Mountains and plains are the most pronounced forms of continental relief. Based on their origin, plains are divided into accumulative and denudative; mountains are divided into folded, block, folded-block and volcanic.
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Russia is a country of vast plains and majestic mountains. The largest plains in Russia are the East European (Russian), West Siberian, and Central Siberian Plateau. The most famous mountains of our country are the Ural, Caucasian, Altai, Sayan.
Using the map in the textbook ( The world around us 4th grade, p. 58-59) subscribe to contour map(p. 30-31) largest plains and the mountains of our country. Please note that the outline map has dotted lines for labels.
Ask a student sitting next to you to check your work.
Question Ant wants to know the names of these geographical features. Indicate with arrows.
Test yourself using the textbook.
"Stone Belt of the Russian Land" - Ural Mountains
A plain stretching from the western borders of Russia to the Ural Mountains - East European Plain
The highest mountain in Russia is Elbrus
The plain located east of the Ural Mountains is the West Siberian Plain
Learn to recognize plains and mountains from photographs. Cut out photos from the Appendix. Think about what signs you can use to recognize these geographical features. Place the photos in the appropriate boxes. Ask your teacher to check your work. After checking, paste the photos.
The Wise Turtle invites you to use the map as a source of information and get important information about the mountains of Russia. Using the map in your textbook, fill in the table.
The height of some mountains in Russia
Using a map, explain (orally) where each mountain is located. Using the table data, compare the mountains by height. List the mountains in order of increasing height; in order of decreasing height.
According to the instructions of the textbook (p. 64), prepare a report about one of the geographical objects (of your choice).
Message Subject: Caucasus Mountains
Message plan:
1. Location.
2. Mountain relief.
3. Greater Caucasus
4. Lesser Caucasus
5. Mount Elbrus and Kazbek
6. Minerals in the Caucasus.
7. Flora and fauna.
Important message information: Divided into two mountain systems:
Caucasus - folded mountains with some volcanic activity, which formed approximately 28-23 million years ago. The mountains consist, among other things, of granite and gneiss, the foothills contain oil deposits and natural gas.
The Caucasus is often divided into North Caucasus and Transcaucasia, the border between which is drawn along the Main, or Watershed, ridge of the Greater Caucasus, which occupies a central position in mountain system. The most famous peaks - Mount Elbrus (5642 m) and Mount Kazbek (5033 m) are covered with eternal snow and glaciers.
Source(s) of information: Internet
Message about the Ural Mountains >>
The largest lowland in Russia
East European Lowland
Between the highlands of the East European Plain lies the largest lowland in Russia.
It stretches along the valleys of large rivers such as the Dnieper, Don, and Volga. The lowland is washed by the White and Barents seas from the north, the Caspian, Black and Azov seas from the south, and borders the Scandinavian mountains, the mountains of Central Europe, the Caucasus, Crimea, and the Urals. Total length lowlands about 2500 km.
The most low point is located on the coast of the Caspian Sea.
The Russian Plain almost completely coincides with the East European Platform. This may explain the lack of strong natural phenomena such as volcanoes and earthquakes. The only thing that can pose a danger to a person is strong whirlwinds and tornadoes.
The climate on the plain was formed under the influence of external natural forces, namely - Quaternary glaciation. The largest lowland in Russia was exposed to glaciers from different directions.
They were approaching from the Scandinavian Peninsula and from the Urals. Over the centuries, depressions, reliefs were formed, rocks were deformed, and winding deep bays. As the glaciers retreated, clear lakes were formed and hills appeared, which to this day surround the largest lowland in Russia.
Natural areas in the largest lowland in Russia
Almost all types of natural zones existing in Russia are located on the territory of the East European Plain.
Tundra, coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests, forest-steppe and steppe zone, deserts and semi-deserts stretch from the shores of the Barents Sea to the lowest point on the Caspian coast.
Moderate rainfall, rich wildlife and flora, the diversity of landscapes combined with amazing beauty made the Russian Plain a populous area.
The largest lowland in Russia has long been developed by man. A considerable part of the Russian population is concentrated there.
Built a lot industrial enterprises and farms, the railway and automobile industries are developed, large number cities and villages. The human influence did not go unnoticed. Emissions, waste, deforestation, extermination of wildlife, pollution of soils and water bodies negatively affect the ecology of the Russian Plain.
Elevation, or high plain- a section of the earth's surface with an absolute height of ~200 to ~500 meters. Despite the fact that they are called plains, they do not always have a flat surface.
Plateau- this is an elevated plain, clearly distinguished by ledges from neighboring flat areas, and having a flat surface (in other words, a plateau is a small mountain with a cut off top).
Central Russian Upland
The Central Russian Upland is a large elevated plain with a length of about 1000 km and a width of up to 500 km.
Average height it is 200-300 meters, and the highest point is at 320 meters.
Valdai Upland
The Valdai Upland Plain is located in the northwestern part of Russia.
It is quite large in size and seems attractive for tourism. Perhaps because there are nature reserves and national parks on the hill.
Smolensk-Moscow Upland
Located on the territories of Russia and Belarus, it is usually divided into 2 hills, which are its components: Smolensk and Moscow. Their total length is about 500 km.
Laurentian Rise
Located in northeastern North America.
It is one of the largest hills in the world - an area of about 5 million km2.
Donetsk Ridge
It is located on the border of Russia and Ukraine and has a length of about 370 km.
Danilovskaya Upland
The Danilovskaya Upland is located in northwestern Russia.
Its average height is about 200 meters and has a wavy and gently undulating topography.
Volga Upland
The Volga Upland is located on the right bank of the Volga, for which it received its name.
It has a length of about 810 km and a width of up to 500 km (although in some places the width does not exceed 60 km).
Vyatsky Uval
It is a small elevated plain located on the territory of Russia, in the Kirov region and the Republic of Mari El.
Luga Upland
It is located in the north-west of Russia, in the Pskov region.
Its area is slightly less than 3 thousand km2.
Plateau- a transitional form between plains and mountains.
It is a section of mountainous terrain with an absolute height of ~500 to ~1000 meters and a relatively flat surface.
Vitim Plateau
Located in the southeastern part of Russia.
It is a territory with mixed relief (alternating ridges with depressions). Its height varies between 1000-1600 km.
Central Siberian Plateau
The Central Siberian Plateau is located in Eastern Siberia. Its length is about 1500-2000 km, and the average height is 500-700 meters.
The highest point is 1701 meters (Mount Kamen).
Deccan Plateau
The Deccan Plateau is located on the Hindustan Peninsula (India). Its area is approximately 1 million km2, and the average height is 500-1000 meters.
Nerskoye Plateau
The Nerskoye Plateau is located in the northeastern part of Russia.
Its length is twice the width and is 130 km. The maximum height is about 1500 meters.
Arabian plateau
Located on Arabian Peninsula, occupying almost its entire area. For this fact and got its name.
Guiana Plateau
It is a large plateau (about 1930 km), located in the northern part of South America.
Western Australian Tablelands
The plateau of western Australia.
It has an uneven terrain (height ranges from 400 to 900 meters), covered with a sandy and rocky surface.
East African plateau
Located in southeastern Africa. Has an area exceeding 800 thousand km2. It became famous due to the presence of unique natural objects on its territory: Lake Victoria and Mount Kilimanjaro.
Anadyr Plateau
In the northeast of Russia there is the Anadyr Plateau, bordering the ocean.
It is about 400 km long and reaches 1116 meters at its highest point.
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Business plan Biography Bulletin Quiz |
Plains and mountains of Russia
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1. Main features of orography.
2. The role of recent tectonics in modern relief.
3. The role of glaciations in modern relief.
4. Morphosculptural relief (fluvial, cryogenic, aeolian, etc.).
Main features of orography
The surface relief of Russia is extremely diverse.
It has the following features: 1) the predominance of plains in the western and central parts, and mountains along the eastern and southern outskirts; 2) a higher altitude position of the eastern part compared to the western part, the border between which runs along the Yenisei valley; 3) the general slope of the country's territory to the north and northwest. About 60% of Russia's territory is occupied by plains, 40% by mountains. The two largest plains in Russia belong to the greatest plains world: East European (Russian) and West Siberian.
The East European (Russian) Plain is distinguished by the most diverse relief; within its borders there are large hills up to 300-400 m.
The highest point of the plain is in the east – the Bugulma-Belebeevskaya Upland (almost 480 m). There are a number of lowlands on the plain, the lowest is the Caspian (-26 m, i.e. 26 m below the level of the World Ocean). The average height of the Russian Plain is 170 m.
The West Siberian Plain has a more uniform topography with slight fluctuations in elevation.
Only small areas in the outlying parts of the plain exceed 200 m. The maximum height of the plain is 285 m - the Verkhnetazovskaya Upland. Almost half of the plain's territory lies below 100 m above sea level. The average height of the West Siberian Plain is 120 m.
The Central Siberian Plateau is located between the Yenisei and Lena rivers. The average height of the plateau is almost 500 m. It reaches its greatest heights within the Putorana plateau (1700 m).
The plateau is dissected by deep and large river valleys.
To the east, the Central Siberian Plateau gradually passes into the Central Yakut Plain (Vilyui Plain), and to the north it steeply descends to the North Siberian Lowland.
The East European and West Siberian plains are separated by low (1000-1500m) Ural Mountains.
The highest point of the Urals is Mount Narodnaya - 1895 m.
In the southwest of Russia and the Russian Plain extend highest mountains Greater Caucasus, which stretches from the Black to the Caspian Sea.
Here is the highest point of the Caucasus and Russia - Mount Elbrus (5642 m).
On the Crimean peninsula - the Crimean Mountains.
A mountain belt stretches across the south of Siberia, which begins with the Altai Mountains, the highest point of Altai is Mount Belukha (4506 m). Further to the east are the Western and Eastern Sayans, even further east lies the Tuva highlands, then the mountains of the Baikal region and Transbaikalia.
Transbaikalia has the most highlands– Stanovoe (3073 m).
To the east of the Lena River there are medium-altitude ridges and highlands: Verkhoyansk ridge (2390 m), Chersky ridge (3000 m), Suntar-Khayata ridge (2960 m), Dzhugdzhur ridge (1906 m); Oymyakon, Kolyma, Chukotka, Koryak highlands. To the south they pass into the low and medium-altitude ridges of the Amur region, Primorye (Sikhote-Alin ridge) and Sakhalin.
Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands feature folded and volcanic mountains.
In Kamchatka - Sredinny ridge and many volcanic cones, among which the highest active volcano in Russia is Klyuchevskaya Sopka (4688 m). In general, Russia is characterized by the predominance of low and medium-high mountains.
The role of recent tectonics in modern relief
The presence of diverse relief on the territory of Russia is explained by a long history geological development and the interaction of endogenous (internal) and exogenous (external) processes, with the leading role of endogenous ones.
After a period of relative tectonic rest, at the beginning of the Cenozoic, low plains prevailed and almost no mountains remained (with the exception of low mountains in the area of Mesozoic folding), vast areas Western Siberia and the south of the Russian Plain were covered with shallow basins.
In the Neogene, the activation of tectonic processes (new tectonic movements) began, leading to a radical restructuring of the relief. It is the latest tectonic movements that formed the modern morphostructures of Russia. The latest tectonic movements are associated with the interaction of lithospheric plates. Mountains arose in the immediate zone of contact between lithospheric plates. All currently existing mountains are the result of recent tectonic movements, so they have the same age, but the morphostructures of these mountains are different, depending on the method of their origin.
Where mountains arose on young oceanic or transitional crust, with a thick cover of sedimentary rocks crumpled into folds, young folded mountains formed. These include the mountains of Alpine folding - the Greater Caucasus, the Crimean Mountains and the mountains of the Pacific belt (the ridges of Sakhalin, Kamchatka, the Kuril Islands, the Sakhalin Mountains, the Kuril Islands, including volcanic cones).
The mountain ranges here are linearly elongated along the margins of the lithospheric plates.
In territories where folding had already occurred (Baikal, Caledonian, Hercynian), over many millions of years the mountains turned into plains and a hard continental crust, which cannot be compressed into folds.
Here, the formation of mountains proceeded differently: with lateral pressure arising when the plates approached each other, the rigid foundation was broken into separate blocks, some of which were squeezed upward. This is how blocky, or more precisely folded-blocky, mountains arose - they are also called reborn - the Urals and all the mountains of southern Siberia (Altai, Sayan Mountains, the mountains of Tuva, the Baikal region and Transbaikalia, the Stanovoe Highlands).
These mountains are characterized by the absence of a single general orientation of the ridges and the combination of ridges with highlands and intermountain basins (Minusinsk, Tuva, Chui, etc.).
In places where, by the beginning of recent tectonic movements, the mountains were only partially destroyed (Mesozoic folding), block-folded mountains were formed - they are also called rejuvenated - the Sikhote-Alin, Dzhugdzhur ridges, mountains and highlands North-Eastern Siberia(Verkhoyansk Range, Chersky Range, Oymyakon Highlands, etc.).
In internal parts The Eurasian plate (plain) experienced very slight uplifts and subsidences; only the Picaspian Lowland sank intensively.
The West Siberian Plain experienced weak subsidence. On the East European Plain, uplifts of the Central Russian, Volga and Bugulma-Belebeevskaya uplands occurred. On the Central Siberian Plateau, the uplifts were greater; the Putorana Plateau was especially strongly elevated.
On the shields, which had a constant tendency to rise, basement plains (Kola Peninsula, Karelia) and basement plateaus (Anabar massif) were formed, and the Yenisei and Timan ridges were also formed.
In those areas of the platforms where there is a thick sedimentary cover, strata, accumulative plains and plateaus have formed.
Stratified plains are characteristic of most of the East European Plain, the southern half of Western Siberia, and partly of Central Siberia.
On the Central Siberian Plateau (Vitim Plateau) and other neighboring plateaus there are volcanic plateaus (Putorana, etc.). Accumulative plains are confined to areas of subsidence of the earth's crust in recent times.
They are characterized by a thick Neogene-Quaternary sedimentary cover. This is the average and Northern part Western Siberia, the Middle Amur Plain, the Caspian and Pechora lowlands.
Earthquakes and volcanism are associated with recent tectonic movements. Frequent and strong earthquakes characteristic of the Kuril Islands, Kamchatka, the Baikal region, Altai, the mountains of North-East Siberia, and the Greater Caucasus.
Modern volcanism in Russia manifests itself in Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands. The Kuril Islands are volcanic ridges and single volcanoes. In total, there are 160 volcanoes in the Kuril Islands, of which about 40 are active. The highest of them - Alaid volcano (2339 m) - is located on the island.
Atlasova. In Kamchatka there are about 130 extinct and 28 active volcanoes. The highest volcano is Klyuchevskaya Sopka (4688 m).
Active volcanoes in Quaternary times were Elbrus and Kazbek in the Caucasus.
The role of glaciations in modern relief
In addition to the latest tectonic movements (NTD), the formation of modern relief was also influenced by glaciations. There were several glaciations in Quaternary times; at least on the territory of Russia, traces of three glacial eras are clearly visible: the Oka, Dnieper and Valdai glaciations.
Glaciers covered over 20% of Russia's territory. The Dnieper glaciation was the largest in terms of territory coverage. Its border ran along the western edge of the Central Russian Upland, from the city of Sumy, further along the Oka-Don lowland, then through Penza to Kirov. The Urals were crossed by the glaciation boundary near 58° N latitude. Further, the border went to Western Siberia to the mouth of the Podkamennaya Tunguska River.
Oka glaciation in modern relief is poorly traced and is revealed only by the presence of a moraine lying under the Dnieper moraine.
The Valdai (Zyryansk) glaciation was the last, it occupied a smaller area. Its border ran along the line Smolensk - Rybinsk Reservoir– along the northwestern edge of the Dvina-Mezen Upland, further to the Pechora River, in Western Siberia – to the lower reaches of the Taz River and the coast of Taimyr.
IN ice ages To the south of the glacier boundary, deep soil freezing occurred.
Yes, during Valdai glaciation the permafrost boundary reached the lower reaches of the Don.
About 10,000 years ago, warming began (the end of the Pleistocene - the beginning of the Holocene), which caused the melting of glaciers.
Morphosculptural relief (fluvial, cryogenic, etc.)
Landforms created by glaciers (glacial forms) and melted glacial waters (fluvioglacial) occupy second place among morphosculptures in Russia after fluvial (water) forms.
The glacial forms of mountain and lowland areas are very different. Glacial erosional forms (exaration) are preserved on Kola Peninsula and in Karelia, these are sheep's foreheads and curly rocks.
Glacial-accumulative forms (moraine hills) are characteristic of the north of the Russian Plain, the north of Western Siberia, the north of the Central Siberian Plateau and the North Siberian Lowland: drumlins, eskers, kamas, moraine ridges.
Fluvio-glacial landforms formed at the edge of the glacier: these were predominantly outwash plains. They occur on the West Siberian and East European Plains.
Mountain glaciation is characterized by karas and trough valleys.
This type of relief occurs in the Caucasus, in the mountains of the Northeast and southern Siberia (Altai, Sayan, Baikal region).
Huge areas in Russia are occupied by fluvial morphosculptural relief. Its largest forms, river valleys, are distributed throughout the country. Non-glacial areas, especially the highlands of the south of the country, are characterized by gully-gully relief.
Karst landforms are confined to areas where soluble rocks occur. They take place on the Russian Plain, in the Cis-Urals and the Urals, as well as the Caucasus. Suffosion relief (steppe saucers, depressions, hearths) is associated with mechanical removal fine particles precipitation seeping through the soil, mainly on loess-like rocks. This is the south of Western Siberia and the south of the Russian Plain. Landslide relief is confined mainly to the middle zone of the East European Plain, especially to the Volga region.
Aeolian landforms (dunes) are not typical for Russia.
Currently they are developing in the Caspian lowland. But there are many fixed dunes along the pine forest terraces of rivers and seashores.
Cryogenic landforms are associated with permafrost. They are distributed mainly in Siberia, especially Eastern Siberia. On the European territory of the country they occur only along the coast of the North Arctic Ocean. These are thermokarst basins, heaving mounds, solifluction terraces, polygonal formations (for tundras), aufeis (taryns).
In the mountainous regions of Siberia and the Far East, in the Polar and Northern Urals, alpine relief - kurums - is common. These are placers of stone fragments covering the slopes of mountains.
