Editing Geography of Russia (section)

===Topography===
[[File:Kamchatka Volcano Koryaksky (24231533812).jpg|thumb|[[Koryaksky]] volcano towering over [[Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky]]]]

Russia's mountain ranges are located principally along its continental dip (the Ural Mountains), along the southwestern border (the [[Caucasus Mountains|Caucasus]]), along the border with [[Mongolia]] (the eastern and western [[Sayan Mountains]] and the western extremity of the [[Altay Mountains]]), and in eastern Siberia (a complex system of ranges in the northeastern corner of the country and forming the spine of the [[Kamchatka Peninsula]], and lesser mountains extending along the [[Sea of Okhotsk]] and the [[Sea of Japan]]). Russia has nine major mountain ranges. In general, the eastern half of the country is much more mountainous than the western half, the interior of which is dominated by low plains. The traditional dividing line between the east and the west is the [[Yenisei River]] valley. In delineating the western edge of the [[Central Siberian Plateau]] from the West Siberian Plain, the Yenisey runs from near the Mongolian border northward into the Arctic Ocean west of the [[Taymyr Peninsula]].

====Ural Mountains====
{{Main|Ural Mountains}}

[[File:Саблинский хребет.jpg|thumb|[[Yugyd Va National Park]].]]

The [[Ural Mountains]] form the natural boundary between [[Europe]] and [[Asia]]; the range extends about {{convert|2100|km|mi}} from the [[Arctic Ocean]] to the northern border of [[Kazakhstan]]. Several low passes provide major transportation routes through the Urals eastward from Europe. The highest 
peak, [[Mount Narodnaya]], is {{convert|1894|m|ft}}. The Urals also contain valuable deposits of minerals.

====West Siberian Plain====
{{Main|West Siberian Plain}}

[[File:Vasyugan.jpg|thumb|[[Vasyugan River]]]]

To the east of the Urals is the [[West Siberian Plain]], stretching about {{Convert|1,900|km}} from west to east and about {{Convert|2400|km}} from north to south. With more than half its territory below {{Convert|200|m}} in elevation, the plain contains some of the world's largest [[swamp]]s and [[floodplain]]s. The plain is largely flat and featureless. The only slightly elevated areas are the [[Siberian Uvaly]] across the central part and the [[Ob Plateau]] in the south.<ref name="GSEb">[https://www.booksite.ru/fulltext/1/001/008/092/860.htm Приобское плато]; ''[[Great Soviet Encyclopedia]]'' in 30 vols.  — Ch. ed. [[A.M. Prokhorov]]. - 3rd ed. - M. Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978. (in Russian)</ref> There are steppe areas in the southern part reaching into Kazakhstan, such as the [[Ishim Steppe]] with the [[Kamyshlov Log]] trench. Most of the plain's population lives in the drier section south of 77 degrees north [[latitude]].

====Central Siberian plateau====
{{Main|Central Siberian Plateau}}

The region directly east of the West Siberian Plain is the [[Central Siberian Plateau]], which extends eastward from the Yenisei River valley to the [[Lena River]] valley. The region is divided into several [[plateaus]], with elevations ranging between {{Convert|320 and 740|m}}; the highest elevation is about {{Convert|1,800|m}}, in the northern [[Putoran Mountains]]. The plain is bounded on the south by the [[Primorsky Range]] and the [[Baikal Mountains]], and on the north by the North Siberian Lowland, an extension of the West Siberian Plain extending into the Taymyr Peninsula on the Arctic Ocean.

====Sayan and Stanovoy Mountains====
[[File:Шавлинские озёра.jpg|right|thumb|[[Altay Mountains]]]]

In the mountain system west of [[Lake Baikal]] in south-central Siberia, the highest elevations are {{Convert|3300|m}} in the Western [[Sayan Mountains|Sayan]], {{Convert|3200|m}} in the Eastern Sayan, and {{Convert|4500|m}} at [[Belukha Mountain]] in the [[Altay Mountains]]. The Eastern Sayan reach nearly to the southern shore of [[Lake Baikal]]; at the lake, there is an elevation difference of more than {{Convert|4500|m}} between the nearest mountain, {{Convert|2840|m}} high, and the deepest part of the lake, which is {{Convert|1700|m}} below sea level. The mountain systems east of Lake Baikal are lower, forming a complex of minor ranges and valleys that reaches from the lake to the Pacific coast. The maximum height of the [[Stanovoy Range]], which runs west to east from northern Lake Baikal to the Sea of Okhotsk, is {{Convert|2550|m}}. To the south of that range is southeastern Siberia, whose mountains reach {{Convert|800|m}}. Across the [[Strait of Tartary]] from that region is [[Sakhalin|Sakhalin Island]], Russia's largest island, where the highest elevation is about {{Convert|1700|m}}. The small [[Moneron Island]], the site of the shootdown of [[Korean Air Lines Flight 007]], is found to its west.

====Caucasus Mountains====
[[File:Tsmity2.jpg|thumb|Caucasus Mountains]]

Truly alpine terrain appears in the southern mountain ranges. Between the Black and Caspian seas, the [[Caucasus Mountains]] rise to impressive heights, forming a boundary between Europe and Asia. One of the peaks, [[Mount Elbrus]], is the highest point in Europe, at {{Convert|5642|m}}. The geological structure of the Caucasus extends to the northwest as the [[Crimea]]n and [[Carpathian Mountains]] and southeastward into [[Central Asia]] as the [[Tian Shan]] and [[Pamir Mountains|Pamirs]]. The Caucasus Mountains create an imposing natural barrier between Russia and its neighbors to the southwest, [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Azerbaijan]].

====Northeast Siberia and Kamchatka====
Northeastern Siberia, north of the Stanovoy Range, is an extremely mountainous region. The long [[Kamchatka Peninsula]], which juts southward into the Sea of Okhotsk, includes many [[volcano|volcanic peaks]], some of which are still active. The highest is the {{Convert|4750|m|adj=on}} [[Klyuchevskaya Sopka]], the highest point in the [[Russian Far East]]. The volcanic chain continues from the southern tip of Kamchatka southward through the [[Kuril Islands]] chain and into [[Japan]]. Kamchatka also is one of Russia's two centers of seismic activity (the other is the Caucasus). In 1995, a major earthquake largely destroyed the oil-processing town of [[Neftegorsk, Sakhalin Oblast|Neftegorsk]]. Also located in this region is the very large [[Beyenchime-Salaatin crater]].