Belushya Guba Бeлyшья Гyбa | |
|---|---|
Work settlement[1] | |
  Belushya Guba shown on a map ofNovaya Zemlya | |
Location of Belushya Guba  | |
  Belushya Guba Location of Belushya Guba Show map of Arkhangelsk Oblast Belushya Guba Belushya Guba (Russia) Show map of Russia | |
| Coordinates:71°32′44″N52°19′13″E / 71.54556°N 52.32028°E /71.54556; 52.32028 | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Arkhangelsk Oblast |
| Administrative district | Novaya Zemlya District[2] |
| Founded | 1897[3] |
| Urban-type settlement status since | March 2005[1] |
| Elevation | 7 m (23 ft) |
| Population | |
• Total | 1,972 |
| • Urban okrug | Novaya Zemlya Urban Okrug[5] |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (MSK  [6]) |
| Postal code(s)[7] | 163055 |
| OKTMO ID | 11712000051 |
Belushya Guba (Russian:Белу́шья Губа́, lit.beluga whalebay), alsoBelushye (Белушье),[8] is awork settlement and theadministrative center ofNovaya Zemlya District ofArkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located on theGusinaya Zemlya peninsula of theYuzhny Island of theNovaya Zemlya arcticarchipelago.[2] Its population was reported as1,972 (2010 Census),[4] a decline of more than 20% from2,622 (2002 Census).[9] It is the largest settlement on the island, and is the main permanent settlement of the island territory of Novaya Zemlya.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 2,622 | — |
| 2010 | 1,972 | −24.8% |
| 2021 | 1,972 | +0.0% |
| Source: Census data | ||
A large proportion of its population is made up of military personnel associated with thenuclear test sites located on the island.
The whole Novaya Zemlya archipelago, including Belushya Guba, is an area of restricted access (formally, as part ofborder security zone), and a special permit is needed to visit the archipelago.
About 9 kilometers (5.6 mi) northeast of Belushya Guba is the settlement ofRogachevo, the second largest in the archipelago, along with theRogachevo air base.
Upon visiting Novaya Zemlya in 1894, Arkhangelsk GovernorAleksandr Engelgardt [ru] decided to create a new encampment. In 1896, an expedition conducted a survey of the west coast of Novaya Zemlya. The following year Belushya Guba was founded.[3]
DuringWorld War II, Belushya Guba was a focus of both German and Soviet attention. GermanU-boats usedBelushya Bay as a resting area in 1941. The German military contemplated establishing a weather station or other land-based facilities nearby, but increasing Soviet military presence in the area prevented that. On July 27, 1942,German submarine U-601 shelledMalye Karmakuly near Belushia Bay, damaging seaplanes, living huts, and storage huts.U-601 torpedoed and sank the Soviet merchant shipKrestianin, carrying coal, as it neared Belushya Guba. On August 19,U-209 tried to enter Belushya Guba, but was detected and attacked by a motor boat and two Soviet minesweepers.U-209 departed when a Soviet coast guard ship and icebreakerSKR-18 (formerlyFedor Litke) approached from Belushuya Guba. Belushya Guba was used as an anchorage by Russian convoys between the Barents Sea andArchangelsk. A Soviet naval base was established in Belushya Guba in 1944.[10]
The settlement started to flourish in 1954, when Novaya Zemlya became established as a nuclear test site. In 1956, the whole indigenous population of Novaya Zemlya, mostlyNenets, were evicted from the islands and then resettled.
The settlement gained international attention when it was invaded by polar bears in 2019[11]
Belushya Guba is located on a deepbay with the same name, within a geographical area that is influenced by warm ocean currents. The natural conditions allow year-round sailing of all types and classes of vessels with minimal cost for icebreaking support. The bay is well protected from high surf and drifting ice.[12]
The temperature in Belushya Guba ranges from −12 °C (10 °F) to +10 °C (50 °F) in the summer months.[citation needed]
The area of the southern island of Novaya Zemlya experiences from eight to ten cyclones per month during the winter, with the main direction of the cyclone trajectories from the west and south-west to north-east.[13] The "midnight sun" is above the horizon from 10 May to 3 August (86 days), and the period of continuous night is slightly shorter at 66 days. Thepolar night runs from 19 November to 23 January.[citation needed]
Mezhdusharsky Island is nearby the settlement.
Belushya Guba has schools, apartment buildings, three hotels, a cashpointATM, a television station, a 200-bed Naval Hospital, a polyclinic, military officers' center with a base sailor's club, 25-meter pool, recreational center, and an Orthodox church.[14]
There are two regular flights weekly fromArkhangelsk toRogachevo Airport, located 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north-east of the settlement (in the time-tables, Rogachyovo is designated as Amderma-2, though the settlement ofAmderma is not even located on Novaya Zemlya).[15] There is no regular passenger navigation.