1. Russia has 5 “largests”

2. Russia is the largest country in the world
It crosses two continents and 11 time zones.

3. The Volga River is the longest river in Europe
It begins in Moscow and flows 2,300 miles to drain into the Caspian Sea.

4. The Caspian Sea is the largest inland body of water.

5. Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world.
At it’s deepest point, it is a mile from the surface to the bottom and it stretches for nearly 400 miles.

6. Siberia is the world’s largest plain.
This is the part of Russia that lies in Asia.

7. Natural Resources
The Northern European Plain stretches from the western border of Russia to the Ural Mountains and provides over 1,000 miles of fertile soil.
Huge reserves of coal, iron ore and other metals as well as oil and natural gas.
Vast forests hold 1/5 of the world’s timber

8. Resource Management
Harsh climate, rugged terrain and vast distances make it difficult to remove the resources from the ground and transport them to market.

9. Climate ranges from very cold to desert areas.

10. Vegetation
4 major vegetation zones: tundra, forest, temperate grassland and desert

11. Aral Sea
Between 1960 and the present, the Aral Sea has lost 80% of its water due to large amounts being diverted to irrigate farming areas.

12. The retreating waters exposed fertilizers and pesticides, as well as salt. Windstorms picked these up and dumped them on nearby populations causing throat cancer and respiratory diseases.

13. The Russian Winter
More than 32 million make their homes in Siberia, where temperatures can go as low as -94.
These colds have also helped Russians during times of war. Napoleon lost 90,000 of his 100,000 men during his invasion of Russia due to the weather.