Ural Mountains

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Coordinates: 60°00′N, 60°00′E

The Ural Mountains (Russian: Ура́льские го́ры, Uralskiye gory) (also known as the Urals, the Riphean Mountains in Greco-Roman antiquity, and known as the Stone Belt) are a mountain range that runs roughly north and south through western Russia. They are sometimes considered as the natural boundary between Europe and Asia.

Geography

The Urals extend 2,500 km from the Kazakh steppes along the northern border of Kazakhstan to the coast of the Arctic ocean. The island of Novaya Zemlya forms a further continuation of the chain. Geographically this range marks the northern part of the (arbitrary) border between Asian and European sections of the Eurasian continent. Its highest peak is Mount Narodnaya (Poznurr, 1895 m). Erosion has exposed considerable mineral wealth in the Urals, including gems such as topaz and beryl. The Virgin Komi Forests in the northern Urals are recognized as a World Heritage site.

Etymology

The Urals were named after the Uralian tribe that was once native to the northern region of Asia. The Uralians were hunter-gatherers; however the lack of plenitiful resources in the area forced them to relocate, spreading throughout the Asian region.

Yekaterinburg is the largest city and the self-proclaimed capital of the Urals, though "Urals" is a geographical term, not an administrative one.

Geology

Main article: Uralian orogeny

The Urals are among the world's oldest extant mountain ranges. For its age of 300 until 250 million years, the mountains are yet unusually high. They were formed in the late Carboniferous period, when western Siberia collided with eastern Baltica (~connected to Laurentia (North America) to form the minor supercontinent of Euramerica) and Kazakhstania to form the supercontinent of Laurasia. Later Laurasia and Gondwana collided to form the supercontinent of Pangaea. Europe and Siberia have remained joined together ever since.

The Urals have large deposits of gold, platinum, ore, coal, steel, nickel, silver, and other minerals.

See also

• Pangaea
• Idel-Ural State

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