The source of the Amur River is considered to be the confluence of the Shilka and Argun rivers in the Transbaikal Territory. There are many ridges, in the valleys of which numerous streams flow. On the peaks and gentle slopes of granites and sandstones larch sparse taiga grows.
Source and current
The length from the source to the place where the Amur flows into is 2824 kilometers. The height of the terrain along the course varies greatly. The first 900 kilometers is a plateau where the channel is not suitable for shipping. At the same time, there are many small tributaries. In the area of Blagoveshchensk, numerous loops and lowlands begin. Krivuny are local attractions that surprise tourists.
Between Blagoveshchensk and Khabarovsk slow flow and lowlands. Here is a large tributary of Zeya. Some experts are inclined to believe that Amur is a tributary of Zeya, since at the confluence, the channel of the latter is wider and more full. One way or another, the discussion on this subject continues today.
The lower section is very marshy. On the area surrounding the mouth, where the Amur River flows, on waterproof clay there are grassy and mossy-grassy wetlands. Peatlands in the north of the Khabarovsk Territory form Mari. These are swamps with rare larches.
Mouth
In what direction does the Amur River flow? Where does one of the longest waterways of the country run into? The first question can be answered confidently, 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.
Regarding 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 is relatively low (about 10%), while the same indicator in the Sea of Okhotsk fluctuates at 30%.
The Amur estuary is attributed to the Sea of Okhotsk or the Sea of Japan. 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, is the city of Nikolaevsk-on-Amur. Until 1926, it was called Nikolaevsky and received its name in honor of Emperor Nicholas I, in whose rule it was founded. Until 1870, it was the main port in the Russian Far East, from where it then moved to Vladivostok.
Swimming pool
The rivers flowing into the Amur River form an extensive 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, to the tributary of Zeya, the middle, to Ussuri, and the lower - to the mouth.
The total area of the basin is 1 855 000 km 2. By this indicator, Amur is in fourth place among the rivers of Russia, yielding to 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 km 2.
Climate and minerals
Due to the climate, the water level fluctuates significantly throughout the year. So, monsoon rains make up about 75% of the annual runoff. Periodically flood floods can reach 10-30 kilometers. That is why Amur’s nutrition is rain.
More recently, in 2013, heavy rains led to massive flooding of settlements and large-scale evacuation of the population. More than a hundred people died, 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. The approximate navigation season is 150–170 days.
The bowels near the places where the Amur flows into, as well as the depths of the river itself, are rich in the gifts of nature. These are minerals such as iron ore, coal, antimony, tin, graphite, gold, molybdenum, lead and graphite. A large number of chalk, limestone, marble, cement raw materials, etc.
The border position, where several natural zones are adjacent, enriched the 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 of it already makes the environment unsuitable for his life. On the contrary, for tropical fish, the local waters are the coldest of those 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, in contrast to warm-blooded, for example, mammals.
Settlements
From the source to the place where the Amur River flows, there are several cities. 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, once played a major role in the development of the land. Often their life consisted of a hastily set hut among desert and alien swamps. Such buildings XVII-XVIII centuries. are a local attraction (for example, in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur).
An interesting distinctive feature is that this waterway, on a significant area, is the state border between Russia and China. Historically, up to the 17th century, lands in the lower reaches of the river were under the jurisdiction of the Middle Kingdom. On the right bank of the Amur, there are also Chinese cities, for example, Heihe.
