Why is the Caspian Sea considered a lake? Caspian Sea (lake): recreation, photos and map, shores and countries where the Caspian Sea is located.

18.10.2019

Many geographical names, can mislead people who are not keen on geography. Could it be that an object designated as a sea on all maps is actually a lake? Let's figure it out.

The history of the appearance of the Caspian Sea?

14,000,000 years ago, the Sarmatian Sea existed on the planet. It included modern, Black, Caspian and Sea of Azov. About 6,000,000 years ago, due to the rise of the Caucasus Mountains and the decrease in water levels in the Mediterranean Sea, it divided, forming four different seas.

The Caspian is inhabited by many representatives of the fauna of Azov, which once again confirms that these reservoirs were once one whole. This is one of the reasons why the Caspian Sea is considered a lake.

The name of the sea comes from the ancient tribes of the Caspian Sea. They inhabited its shores in the first millennia BC and were engaged in horse breeding. But over the many hundreds of years of its existence, this sea has had many names. It was called Derbentsky, Saraisky, Girkansky, Sigai, Kukkuz. Even in our time, for residents of Iran and Azerbaijan, this lake is called Khazar.

Geographical location

Two parts of the world - Europe and Asia - are washed by the waters of the Caspian Sea. The coastline covers the following countries:

Turkmenistan
Russia
Azerbaijan
Kazakhstan

The length from north to south is about one thousand two hundred kilometers, the width from west to east is about three hundred kilometers. The average depth is about two hundred meters, the greatest depth is about a thousand kilometers. The total area of the reservoir is more than 370,000 square kilometers and is divided into three climatic and geographical zones:

Northern
Average
Southern Caspian

The water area includes six large peninsulas and about fifty islands. Their total area is four hundred square kilometers. The most large islands– Dzhambaisky, Ogurchinsky, Chechen, Tyuleniy, Konevsky, Zyudev and Absheron Islands. About one hundred and thirty rivers flow into the Caspian Sea, including the Volga, Ural, Atrek, Sefirud, Terek, Kura and many others.

Sea or lake?

The official name used in documentation and cartography is the Caspian Sea. But is this true?

In order to have the right to be called a sea, any body of water must be connected to the world's oceans. In the case of the Caspian Sea, this is not reality. The Caspian Sea is separated by almost 500 km of land from the nearest sea, the Black Sea. This is a completely enclosed body of water. The main differences between the seas:

The seas can be fed by waterways - rivers.
The external seas are directly connected to the ocean, that is, they have access to it.
Inland seas are connected to other seas or oceans by straits.

The Caspian received the right to be called a sea primarily because of its impressive size, which is more typical of seas rather than lakes. In area it surpasses even Azov. Also no small role was played by the fact that not a single lake washes the shores of five states at once.

It is worth noting that the structure of the Caspian Sea bottom is of the oceanic type. This happened due to the fact that it was once part of the ancient World Ocean.

Compared to other seas, the percentage of salt saturation in it is very weak and does not exceed 0.05%. The Caspian Sea is fed only by rivers flowing into it, like all lakes on the globe.

Like many seas, the Caspian is famous for its powerful storms. The height of the waves can reach eleven meters. Storms can occur at any time of the year, but they are most dangerous in autumn and winter.

In fact, the Caspian Sea is the most big lake in the world. Its waters are not subject to international maritime laws. The territory of waters is divided between countries on the basis of laws adopted for lakes, and not for seas.

The Caspian Sea has rich mineral resources such as oil and gas. Its waters are inhabited by more than one hundred and twenty species of fish. Among them are the most valuable sturgeons, such as stellate sturgeon, sturgeon, sterlet, beluga, and thorn. 90% of the world's sturgeon catch comes from the Caspian Sea.

Interesting features:

Scientists around the world have not yet come to a clear conclusion as to why the Caspian Sea is considered a lake. Some experts even suggest considering it a “lake-sea” or an “inland” sea, like the Dead Sea in Israel;
The most deep point Caspian Sea - more than one kilometer;
Historically, it is known that the total water level in the reservoir has changed more than once. The exact reasons for this are still not understood;
It is the only body of water separating Asia and Europe;
The largest water artery feeding the lake is the Volga River. It is this that carries the bulk of the water;
Thousands of years ago the Caspian Sea was part of the Black Sea;
In terms of the number of fish species, the Caspian Sea is inferior to some rivers;
The Caspian Sea is the main supplier of the most expensive delicacy - black caviar;
The water in the lake is completely renewed every two hundred and fifty years;
Japanese territory less area Caspian Sea.

Ecological situation

Intervention into the ecology of the Caspian Sea regularly occurs due to the extraction of oil and natural resources. There are also interventions in the fauna of the reservoir, cases of poaching and illegal fishing of valuable fish species are frequent.

The water level in the Caspian Sea is falling every year. This is due to global warming, due to the influence of which the water temperature on the surface of the reservoir increased by one degree and the sea began to actively evaporate.

It is estimated that water levels have fallen by seven centimeters since 1996. By 2015, the level of the fall was about one and a half meters, and the water continues to fall.

If this continues, in a century the shallowest part of the lake may simply disappear. This will be the part that washes the borders of Russia and Kazakhstan. If global warming intensifies, the process may accelerate and this will happen much earlier.

It is known that long before the onset of global warming, the water level in the Caspian Sea underwent changes. The water kept rising and then falling. Scientists still cannot say exactly why this happened.

The Caspian Sea is simultaneously located on the territory of 5 countries, including not only Russia and Kazakhstan, but also Turkmenistan, Iran and Azerbaijan. This is the world's largest enclosed body of water, which has long been characterized and known to everyone as a sea. But the question is, why is the Caspian Sea called a sea, because in reality it is a lake? And we’ll look into this situation today.

Why is the Caspian Sea called a sea?

Despite the fact that this body of water is a lake, it is often called the sea. A significant part of people do not even know that this is a lake. This can be explained very simply, because even at one glance at this body of water shown on the maps, its scale, characteristic mainly of the seas, catches the eye. A lake that washes the borders of five countries at once is something unthinkable.

Yes, this is something unthinkable, but it is true, because this is the largest, largest closed lake in the whole world. And its size is the brief and first reason why it is often called the sea. In addition, the fact that there are just over 50 islands on its territory also plays in favor of the fact that this lake can be called a sea. It is noteworthy that some of them are not just average in scale, but truly large in size, the area of which, imagine, reaches 350 square kilometers.

Why is the Caspian Sea called a lake?

As for the true name of this reservoir, it is classified as a lake for a number of reasons. They can be summarized in a short list below:

The lake bed is composed of the earth's crust, which is of an oceanic type;
Despite its size and similarity to full-fledged seas, the lake has almost fresh, slightly salted water;
Almost any sea is part of the world ocean, and Caspian lake, due to its geographical location, has no access to the open ocean.

It is also noteworthy that the status of the lake near the Caspian Sea is confirmed by the fact that its waters are not subject to the international UN regime, and the water area of the lake is divided between the states adjacent to it in a different way than in the case of seas.

It is interesting that the Caspian Lake is often called not only the Caspian Sea, but also the Caspian Sea. And now, after reading the text of this article, you will probably know that, despite its similarity with the sea, the presence of many properties and characteristics inherent only to the seas, the Caspian is still a lake, and this is a fact.

The Caspian Sea is a special body of water, since its nature is still debated. Some scientists believe that this is the most big lake on our planet, others call it an endorheic sea.

The unique fossil and biological resources of the Caspian Sea are shared among five coastal states: Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan. But besides natural resources This sea is fraught with many dangers. Oil and gas production poisons the ecosystem, industrial wastewater pollutes the coast, and dangerous microorganisms are regularly found in water samples.

Mining of oil and gas

Today, active hydrocarbon production is underway throughout the Caspian Sea. Back in 1820, the first well was drilled on the Absheron shelf. The news that oil had been found near Baku caused a real boom. The development of the mining industry has progressed by leaps and bounds. Moreover, according to geologists, about 20 billion tons of hydrocarbons are hidden in the depths of the Caspian Sea.

Oil and gas condensate production has led to a real environmental problem. We are talking not only about associated pollution and chemical spills as a result of man-made disasters, but also about the use nuclear charges during the construction of gas storage facilities.

The waters of the Caspian Sea are practically poisoned with arsenic, lead, and mercury. In addition, the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) of heavy metals, copper, barium and zinc is significantly exceeded here. Phenols, volatile and non-volatile derivatives of hydrocarbons, cause especially great damage to the marine ecosystem. These substances are waste from oil refineries and are extremely toxic.

Another danger facing hydrocarbon production in the Caspian Sea, scientists consider the possibility of release into the water. large quantity hydrogen sulfide, which will inevitably cause ecological disaster. Already now, in the areas of wells, the level of water pollution with oil products ranges from 30 to 100 (!) MPC.

Spilled oil prevents the growth of phytoplankton and phytobenthos, blue-green algae, which reduces the food supply of sea inhabitants and reduces the amount of oxygen produced. An oil film can cause death rare species fish, including sturgeon, waterfowl and other fauna.

Wastewater

Various pollutants enter the Caspian waters not only as a result of the work of oil and gas workers. The Volga and other rivers flowing into the sea annually bring thousands of tons of various waste into the Caspian Sea. Coastal cities often simply dump untreated sewage into the sea, and factories poison the water with waste chemicals.

For example, employees of the Dagestan department of Rospotrebnadzor do not recommend residents and tourists to swim in the sea near Derbent, Makhachkala, Izberbash and Kaspiysk. However, not all people are stopped by these warnings.

Almost half of Russia's industrial and agricultural enterprises are located in the Volga basin. This river flows through 15 regions of our country and poisons the Caspian Sea with pesticides, mineral fertilizers, nitrates, phosphates, heavy metal salts, and dioxins. According to scientists, the waters of the Volga mouth are firmly among the top ten most environmentally unfavorable water areas in the world.

Experts fear that such high levels of pollution in the rivers flowing into the Caspian Sea and problems in the sea itself could lead to the emergence of so-called oxygen-free zones. That is, under the influence of chemicals, the algae will finally die, there will be no one to produce oxygen, which will lead to the death of all the inhabitants of this area of the sea. The danger of the emergence of oxygen-free zones is especially relevant for the southern part of the Caspian Sea, where a noticeable imbalance between the synthesis and decomposition of organic substances has already been recorded.

Pathogenic bacteria

Some researchers fear that many dangerous viruses and bacteria that existed on our planet before the last ice age remained preserved in the depths of the sea. And the active extraction of hydrocarbon raw materials can “let the genie out of the bottle,” which is very dangerous, because modern people do not have immunity from ancient pathogens. But most scientists are skeptical about such fears, because nothing like this has happened yet, although Caspian oil production has been going on for almost 200 years.

However, even fully studied microorganisms can cause significant harm to human health. From year to year, in the waters of the Caspian Sea, scientists discover Vibrio cholerae and coli. According to the Dagestan department of Rospotrebnadzor, the number of pathogenic microorganisms in samples sea water sometimes exceeds the maximum permissible concentration by 28 (!) times.

In many samples, scientists discovered so-called rotaviruses, which cause acute intestinal infections that are quickly transmitted from person to person. This can provoke the emergence of mass outbreaks of the disease.

Experts say the main reason for the current situation is the banal discharge of human waste from the sewers of coastal cities without special cleaning and disinfection.

Caspian seal

Despite numerous media reports about mysterious predators, poisonous snakes and even sharks, which some tourists and local residents, the inhabitants of this sea do not pose a particular danger to people. There aren't even stinging jellyfish here.

True, there is still one predator that can cause damage to human health if handled carelessly. This is the Caspian seal - a small seal that lives only in this sea. The body length of this animal does not reach 1.5 meters, its weight is about 50 kg. Compared to other seals, the Caspian seal is a real baby. But still a predator.

During the mating season, males become very aggressive; a female, fearing for her cub, can bite an unwary person. These animals have very sharp teeth; if you are unlucky, you may end up without fingers. The bite is painful and may become inflamed. Health care in this case is required.

However, who would stick their limbs into the jaws of wild predators? And the seals themselves try to avoid people, often suffering from poachers.

The Caspian Sea is located on the continent of Eurasia. The surprising thing is that the Caspian Sea, with an area of 370 thousand square kilometers, is actually the largest lake, since it has no connection with the ocean. Although it is difficult to call it a lake, because the composition of the water, flora and fauna are similar to those of the sea. The salinity of the water is close to oceanic (from 0.05% to 13%).

Photo: Seagulls on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

About 50 million years ago in the territory of Eastern Europe The Tethys Sea was located, which dried up and divided into several large bodies of water - the Caspian, Black and Mediterranean seas.

Thanks to mineral waters and therapeutic mud The Caspian Sea has great recreational and health potential. Therefore, there is an increase in the popularity of the coasts of Turkmenistan, Iran, Azerbaijan and Russian Dagestan among tourists.

Particularly popular resort area in the Baku region, where the popular resort of Amburan is located, as well as the area of the village of Nardaran, sanatoriums in the villages of Zagulba and Bilgah. In the north of Azerbaijan, the resort in Nabran is gaining popularity.

Unfortunately, tourism in Turkmenistan is poorly developed, which is due to the policy of isolation. And in Iran, Sharia law prohibits foreign tourists from vacationing on the coast.

But if you decide to relax on the Caspian Lake, then you will like to walk in protected areas, you will see extraordinary floating islands, a variety of plants and animals that live in fresh and salt waters.

There is a greater variety of ways to have a good time throughout the year. For example, you can go on boat cruises, go fishing or waterfowl hunting, or you can simply enjoy the healing waters, looking at seals and a variety of birds. The protected areas of the sea coast are very beautiful, for example the Astrakhan International biosphere reserve and the Volga delta with lotus fields.

A special feature of the Caspian zone is the oriental flavor with hookah and mesmerizing dances. Traditional music will delight your ears, and East Asian cuisine will satisfy your hunger.

See where the Caspian Sea is located on the world map.

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Video: Caspian Sea. Storm. 07/08/2012.

The Black, Azov and Caspian Seas are all that remains of the ancient Tethys Ocean. Black Sea coast– these are the northernmost subtropics in the world, where amazingly beautiful nature, healing climate, warm sea and springs mineral waters. The Caspian Sea is sturgeon and oil. It was there that the film “White Sun of the Desert” was filmed.

Black Sea

The Black Sea is the Mediterranean Sea Atlantic Ocean, it is located between Europe and Asia Minor. The sea washes the shores of Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey. In the northeast the Black Sea Kerch Strait connects with the Sea of Azov, in the southwest by the Bosphorus Strait - with Sea of Marmara and further through the Dardanelles with the Aegean and Mediterranean seas. The length of the Black Sea is 1150 km, its width is bottleneck– 265 km, area 420.3 thousand km2, water volume 547 thousand km3, average depth 1300 m. The rivers Danube, Dniester, Southern Bug, Dnieper, Rioni and others flow into the Black Sea.

The shores of the Black Sea are little indented; the only one large peninsula- Crimean. total length coastline 3400 km. Some sections of the coast have their own names, South coast Crimea, the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, in Turkey - the Rumelian coast, the Anatolian coast. In the west and north-west the banks are low, steep in places, and estuary. Northern Shores Crimean peninsula low, southern - mountainous. In the east and south, the Greater and Lesser Caucasus mountains and the Pontic Mountains come close to the sea: small sections of low-lying shores are formed here by river deltas that extend into the sea near the capes of Pitsunda and Kodor in Georgia, Jiva and Bafra in Eastern Anatolia. The largest bays: Karkinitsiy, Kalamitsky, Dnieper-Bugsky, Dniester, Varna, Burgas in the northwestern and western shores, Sinopsky and Samsun - in the southern ones. There are few islands; the most significant are Berezan and Zmeiny.

The formation of the Black Sea depression is associated with the residual basin of the ancient Tethys Ocean. The contours of the modern depression were outlined in the Oligocene, when uplifts in Asia Minor gradually isolated it and the Caspian Sea from the ocean. In the Upper Miocene, the Black Sea was part of a chain of desalinated seas and lakes, the so-called Sarmatian basin. After a short contact with Mediterranean Sea a desalinated Pontic lake was formed. In the plitzone, the Black Sea was separated from the Caspian Sea. During the Middle and Upper Pliocene it was probably a desalinated flowing lake. In the mid-Pleistocene, for a short time, the Black Sea was connected twice with the Mediterranean and had saltier waters. During the last glaciation, a highly desalinated New Euxinian lake-sea was formed, which 6-7 thousand years ago connected with the Mediterranean Sea through the straits, giving rise to the modern Black Sea. Tectonic activity in this area manifests itself in earthquakes, the epicenters of which are located along the edges of the depression and in adjacent areas. The coastal zone is dominated by coarse sediments: pebbles, gravel, sands; As they move away from the coast, they are replaced by fine-grained sands.

Throughout the year, the Black Sea is influenced mainly by continental polar and maritime polar and tropical air masses. in winter air masses carry strong northerly and northeasterly winds, lower temperatures and clear precipitation; These winds reach especially great strength in the region of Novorossiysk, where they are called bora.

To the Aspian and Azov seas

The Caspian Sea is the world's largest enclosed body of water, located on the territory of Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Iran.

The Caspian Sea is sometimes incorrectly called a lake, but in terms of its size, the nature of its processes and the history of its development, it is a sea. The sea received its name from the ancient Caspian tribes who lived in the eastern part of the Caucasus. Other historical names - Hyrcanian, Khvalynian, Khazar - also after the names of the ancient peoples who lived on its shores. The Caspian Sea stretches from north to south for almost 1200 km, with an average width of 320 km. Area about 371 thousand km2; the level is 28.5 m below the level of the Peaceful Ocean. There are about 50 islands in the sea area, including Tyuleniy, Artem and Zhiloy. IN northern part the Volga, Emba, and Ural flow into the seas. The rivers of the Iranian coast provide a small flow.

Based on the nature of the relief and hydrological features, the Caspian Sea is usually divided into the North, Middle and South Caspian. The Northern Caspian Sea is the most accumulative water area with a series of banks and islands. The so-called Mangyshlak threshold separates the Northern Caspian from the Middle.

The weather over the Caspian Sea is determined by the Asian (winter) and Azores (summer) air masses. Characteristic features of the climate are: significant continentality, the predominance of anticyclones, dry winds, severe frosty winters, sharp temperature changes throughout the year, poor precipitation (except in the southwest).

The Sea of Azov is a Mediterranean sea in the Atlantic Ocean, connected by the Kerch Strait to the Black Sea. The ancient Greek name of the sea is Meotian Lake, the ancient Russian name is the Surozh Sea. Area 38 thousand km2, average depth 8 m, maximum 14 m. The shores are mainly low-lying, composed of sandy-shell deposits, only in the south they are steep. Characteristic feature The shores of the Sea of Azov are alluvial sand spits (Arabatskaya strelka, Fedotova, Berdyansk, Yeiskaya, etc.), separating a number of shallow bays (Sivish, Obitochny, etc.) and estuaries from the sea.

The climate in the Azov Sea region is continental. Winter is cold, relatively dry, with strong northeastern and eastern winds. The average winter temperature is up to -6 Celsius. Summer is hot, relatively humid, with westerly winds, average temperature in July 24.5 degrees. Precipitation falls up to 500 mm per year. The Sea of Azov is distinguished by its exceptional biological productivity.

A little history

In the 15th century The Black and Azov Seas came completely under control Ottoman Turkey. A vassal state of the Ottomans, the Crimean Khanate, established itself in the Northern Black Sea region. The Russian tsars tried to “recapture” these territories more than once. But it is interesting that these attempts found a warm response among ordinary Cossacks. One of the most striking episodes of Russian history was the Azov Seat. In 1637, the Cossacks (formally they were not Russian subjects) took the Turkish fortress of Azov, the “key” to ancient Meotida, as the Greeks called these places.

The Cossacks did not receive the tsar’s support, since Moscow did not want to quarrel with Turkey at that time, and did not have the opportunity. In 1641, the Cossacks withstood the siege of Azov, but in the summer of 1642 they were forced to leave it, destroying the fortifications. This unprecedented event was immortalized in the form of a poetic report to Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich - “The Tale of the Azov Siege of the Don Cossacks.”