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Native name: Белый остров | |
|---|---|
 Bely Island, Kara Sea | |
  Bely Island Bely Island, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (Russia) | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Kara Sea |
| Coordinates | 73°11′N71°17′E / 73.183°N 71.283°E /73.183; 71.283 |
| Area | 1,810 km2 (700 sq mi) |
| Length | 63 km (39.1 mi) |
| Width | 41 km (25.5 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Highest point | Bely HP |
| Administration | |
Russia | |
| Oblast | Tyumen Oblast |
| Okrug | Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug |
Bely Island (also spelled asBelyy andBeliy,Russian:Белый остров) is a relatively largeisland in theKara Sea off the tip of theYamal Peninsula,Siberia,Russia.[1] Close to the island's northwest tip, there is the Russian Experiment Station (Polyarnaya Stantsiya)Popov Station.
Bely Island covers an area of 1,810 square kilometres (700 sq mi). It is covered by tundra, but some lichens, grasses, and dwarf willow shrubs (Salix purpurea) grow during the warmer seasons.[2][3] It is separated from the mainland by theMalygina Strait, an 8-to-10-km-wide sound which is frozen most of the year. The land is rather flat, going only 12m above sea level, and the island is dotted by small lakes and ponds. Since it is in theArctic Circle, winters are long and frigid, the average annual temperature is a mere−10.6 °C. In February, temperatures average−24.2 °C reaching a record low of−59 °C. The summers are characterized by fog, with an average temperature of+5.3 °C. The area is subject topolar lows and general cyclonic activity.[3]
This island belongs to theYamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, which is the northern part of theTyumen Oblast administrative division of Russia.
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Within Bely Island's wide eastern bay, there is a 10-kilometre-long (6.2 mi) island calledBezymyannyy.Ostrov Tabango andOstrov Tyubtsyango are located 20 kilometres (12 mi) to the south of Bely Island's SE corner.
Bely Island has been the site of arctic research for its remote and unsettled nature. Research stations here are used to investigate changes in the Arctic Circle due toclimate change and the effects of the Russian petroleum industry, where its unaffected soil is used to measure trace elements in comparison to soil on the mainland.[3]
