Yakutia is the coldest inhabited region in the Northern hemisphere. In January, the temperature in the village of Oimyakon can drop to minus 71 degrees Celsius (minus 95.8 Fahrenheit). Pictured: Sunset near Oimyakon.
Yakutia is the coldest inhabited region in the Northern hemisphere. In January, the temperature in the village of Oimyakon can drop to minus 71 degrees Celsius (minus 95.8 Fahrenheit). Pictured: Sunset near Oimyakon.
The indigenous nomadic peoples who live in Yakutia rely heavily on raising deer.
However, Yakutia has its industrial side, too: 98 percent of all diamonds mined in Russia come from Yakutia – 35 percent of the total global diamond production.
Diamonds were mined in open pits for 44 years. Pictured: The Mir diamond pipe mine.
The city of Yakutsk experiences some of the most extreme weather on the planet.
Most of Yakutia is forested, but the territory also has tundra, wooded tundra and arctic desert.
There was a time when fur from Yakutia was called “soft gold,” as it was the region’s main source of income.
The helicopter is the main form of transportation in Yakutia.
After diamond mining, coal is Yakutia’s second most important industry. The Elga coal deposit in Yakutia is Russia’s largest and one of the largest in the world.
Timber also plays an important economic role in the region.
Ysyakh is the Yakut New Year celebration – marked with prayers, hearty food, games, dances and horse races. It reportedly retained its authenticity throughout the Soviet era.
The small town Tiksi is located above the Arctic Circle. It was founded in 1933 as a point on the northern sea route.
The Lenskiye Stolby national park is located in the Lena’s middle basin. The unusual rock formations are the result of processes related to permafrost.
Yakutia, which boasts an amazing variety of flora and fauna, is one of the few places in the world where the nature is preserved in its pure, pristine state. The territory of Yakutia, over 90 percent is either totally unaffected or only slightly affected by industrial development, represents an untainted ecosystem conditioned only by natural processes.
Most of Russia’s roughly 700,000 rivers and 800,000 lakes are located in Yakutia. The total length of all the rivers in Yakutia put together is more than 2 million kilometers.
