Ulban Bay

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Ulban Bay
Mercury Bay

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Location of Ulban Bay south of the Shantar Islands
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Ulban Bay
Location in Khabarovsk Krai
Location Russian Far East
Coordinates 53°45′N137°54′E / 53.750°N 137.900°E / 53.750; 137.900 Coordinates: 53°45′N137°54′E / 53.750°N 137.900°E / 53.750; 137.900
River sources Ulban River, Syran River
Ocean/sea sources Sea of Okhotsk
Basin  countries Russia
Max. length 64 km (40 mi)
Max. width 43.4 km (27.0 mi)

Ulban Bay (Russian: Ul'bansky Zaliv) is a bay in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk, just south of the Shantar Islands. It is a southern branch of Academy Bay to the north. The Syran and Ulban rivers flow into its head.

Russian language East Slavic language

Russian is an East Slavic language, which is official in the Russian Federation, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as being widely used throughout Eastern Europe, the Baltic states, the Caucasus and Central Asia. It was the de facto language of the Soviet Union until its dissolution on 25 December 1991. Although, nowadays, nearly three decades after the breakup of the Soviet Union, Russian is used in official capacity or in public life in all the post-Soviet nation-states, as well as in Israel and Mongolia, the rise of state-specific varieties of this language tends to be strongly denied in Russia, in line with the Russian World ideology.

Sea of Okhotsk A marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Kamchatka Peninsula, the Kuril Islands, the island of Hokkaido, the island of Sakhalin, and eastern Siberian coast

The Sea of Okhotsk is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, the island of Hokkaido to the south, the island of Sakhalin along the west, and a long stretch of eastern Siberian coast along the west and north. The northeast corner is the Shelikhov Gulf. The sea is named after Okhotsk, the first Russian settlement in the Far East.

Shantar Islands Island group in Far Eastern Federal District, Russian Federation

The Shantar Islands are a group of fifteen islands located off the northwestern shore of the Sea of Okhotsk east of Uda Gulf and north of Academy Bay. Most of the islands have rugged cliffs, but they are of moderate height; the highest point in the island group is 720 metres.

Contents

Geography

Ulban Bay is entered between Cape Ukurunru to the west and Cape Tukurgu to the east, which are separated by 43.4 km (about 27 mi). The bay itself is nearly 64 km (40 mi) deep in a southwesterly direction. Ice usually leaves Ulban Bay by mid- or late June, but in some years may remain until August. The bay has no safe anchorage and is exposed to northeast winds. Tides are semidiurnal. Springs rise 4.9 m (16 ft) in the northern part of the bay and 5.4 m (17.7 ft) in the southern part, while neaps rise about 3 m (9.8 ft). Tidal currents vary from one to two knots. The flood current generally sets to the southwest, while the ebb flows in the opposite direction. [1] [2]

Cape Ukurunru is a cape in the western Sea of Okhotsk. It has sheer cliffs that are grayish-brown in color. It forms the western point to the entrance of Ulban Bay.

Sea ice Ice formed from frozen seawater

Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface. Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's oceans. Much of the world's sea ice is enclosed within the polar ice packs in the Earth's polar regions: the Arctic ice pack of the Arctic Ocean and the Antarctic ice pack of the Southern Ocean. Polar packs undergo a significant yearly cycling in surface extent, a natural process upon which depends the Arctic ecology, including the ocean's ecosystems. Due to the action of winds, currents and temperature fluctuations, sea ice is very dynamic, leading to a wide variety of ice types and features. Sea ice may be contrasted with icebergs, which are chunks of ice shelves or glaciers that calve into the ocean. Depending on location, sea ice expanses may also incorporate icebergs.

Tide The periodic change of sea levels caused by the gravitational and inertial effects of the Moon, the Sun and the rotation of the Earth

Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun, and the rotation of the Earth.

History

Between 1854 and 1885, American whaleships frequented the bay hunting bowhead whales. They called it Mercury or Dimon's Bay, after the ship Mercury (340 tons), of New Bedford, which visited the area during her voyage of 1852-1855, and Francis L. Dimon, her master at the time. [3] [4] They also anchored at the head of the bay to obtain wood and water. [5] On 9 July 1855, the ship Washington (340 tons), of Sag Harbor, was damaged by ice and run ashore, being sold at auction for $400 — the wreck was still visible in October. [6]

United States Federal republic in North America

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

Whaler specialized ship designed for whaling

A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized ship, designed, or adapted, for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. The former includes the whale catcher – a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bow. The latter includes such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early 20th centuries and the floating factory or factory ship of the modern era. There have also been vessels which combined the two activities, such as the bottlenose whalers of the late 19th and early 20th century, and catcher/factory ships of the modern era.

Bowhead whale Species of mammal

The bowhead whale is a species of the family Balaenidae, in parvorder Mysticeti, and genus Balaena, which once included the right whale.

Russian schooners and boat crews from Mamga also cruised for bowheads in the bay from 1865 to 1871. [7]

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel with fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts. The most common type has two masts, the foremast being shorter than the main. While the schooner was originally gaff-rigged, modern schooners typically carry a Bermuda rig.

Mamga Bay

Mamga Bay is a bay in the Tuguro-Chumikansky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russian Federation.

Wildlife

In the summer beluga whales aggregate in the mouths of the Syran and Ulban rivers at the head of Ulban Bay, [8] while bowhead whales are also common in the bay during that time of year. [9] In July 2011, an endangered North Pacific right whale was photographed in the bay – which is considered a vagrant to the region. [10] Waders use the southern part of the bay as a stopover during their summer migration. The most abundant species are Terek sandpiper, Great knot, and wood sandpiper. [11]

Beluga whale Species of whale

The beluga whale is an Arctic and sub-Arctic cetacean. It is one of two members of the family Monodontidae, along with the narwhal, and the only member of the genus Delphinapterus. It is also known as the white whale, as it is the only marine mammal of this colour; the sea canary, due to its high-pitched calls; and the melonhead, though that more commonly refers to the melon-headed whale, which is an oceanic dolphin.

North Pacific right whale species of mammal

The North Pacific right whale is a very large, thickset baleen whale species that is extremely rare and endangered.

Wader

Waders are birds commonly found along shorelines and mudflats that wade in order to forage for food in the mud or sand. They are called shorebirds in North America, where the term "wader" is used to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons. Waders are members of the order Charadriiformes, which includes gulls, auks and their allies.

Related Research Articles

Shelikhov Gulf bay

Shelikhov Gulf is a large gulf off the northwestern coast of Kamchatka, Russia. It is located in the northeastern corner of the Sea of Okhotsk and it branches into two main arms, Gizhigin Bay to the west and Penzhina Bay to the east. Its southwest corner is formed by the P'yagin Peninsula, Yam Gulf and the Yamsky Islands.

Penzhina Bay bay

Penzhina Bay is a long and narrow bay off the northwestern coast of Kamchatka, Russia.

Sakhalin Gulf is a gulf in the Sea of Okhotsk between continental Russia and the northern tip of Sakhalin Island. The width of the gulf reaches up to 160 km. It is covered with ice from mid-November until late April, but north winds can leave the bay blocked with ice until July.

Zavyalov Island island in Russia

Zavyalov Island, formerly Ola Island, is a relatively large island in the Sea of Okhotsk, northwestern Pacific. It is located on the eastern side of Taui Bay, 20 km west of Cape Taran, Koni Peninsula, about 50 km south of the city of Magadan.

Iony Island Island in Khabarovsk Krai, Russian Federation

Iony Island, or Jonas' Island, formerly Ostrov Svyatogo Iony, is a small island in the Sea of Okhotsk.

Nedorazumeniya Island island in Russia

Nedorazumeniya Island is an island on the north coast of the Sea of Okhotsk. It lies on the north side of Taui Bay, between Amakhton Bay to the west and Nagaev Bay to the east. It is about 20 kilometres (12 mi) west of the city of Magadan.

Taui Bay Bay in Far Eastern Federal District, Russian Federation

Taui Bay is a body of water in the Sea of Okhotsk off the coast of the Magadan Oblast in Russia. The bay opens to the south.

Gizhigin Bay bay

Gizhigin Bay is a wide bay northwest of Kamchatka, Russia. It is the northwest arm of Shelikhov Bay in the northeast corner of the Sea of Okhotsk. The settlements of Evensk and Gizhiga are located at the head of the bay.

Konstantina Bay is a small bay in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk, just south of the Shantar Islands. It is a western branch of the larger Academy Bay to the east. The bay is about 9.6 km (6 mi) in diameter and its entrance is about 4.8 km (3 mi) wide. Spring tides rise 3.8 m (12.5 ft), while neaps rise 2.7 m (9 ft).

Nikolaya Bay, formerly Usalginsky Bay, is a small, narrow bay in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk, just south of the Shantar Islands. It is a southeastern branch of the larger Academy Bay to the north. Its northern and southern points, Lamsdorf Point and Cape Grote, are separated by only 8 km (5 mi), while the bay itself is about 59.5 km (37 mi) deep in a southerly direction. The Tokara Peninsula separates it from Ulban Bay to the west. The Usalgin River runs into its head. Spring tides rise 5.5 m (18 ft), while neaps rise 2.4–3 m (8–10 ft). There is ice in the bay from mid-November to mid-July.

Tugur Bay

Tugur Bay or Tugursky Bay is a large bay in the Tuguro-Chumikansky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russian Federation.

The Shantar Sea is a small coastal sea in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk.

Maly Shantar Island Island in Far Eastern Federal District, Russian Federation

Maly Shantar Island is a small, narrow island in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk, one of the Shantar Islands.

Lindholm Strait is a strait in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk. It separates Malyy Shantar and Belichiy Islands to the north from the Tugur Peninsula to the south. At its narrowest it is only 3.2 km wide. Tides are semidiurnal. Springs rise 4.9 m, while neaps rise 3.6 m. The flood current sets west, while the stronger ebb current flows in the opposite direction. The former creates large eddies and whirlpools. Tidal currents vary from 3.5 to 6 knots.

Uda Gulf bay

Uda Gulf or Uda Bay is a bay or gulf in Khabarovsk Krai, Russian Federation.

Sakharnaya Golova Island

Sakharnaya Golova is a small island in the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk. It is part of the Shantar Islands National Park.

Academy Bay (Sea of Okhotsk)

Academy Bay is a large bay in the Tuguro-Chumikansky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russian Federation.

Severo-Vostochnaya Gavan' is a small bay on the north side of Uda Gulf, in the western Sea of Okhotsk. It lies 2.4 km (1.5 mi) west of Cape Nosorog. It offers shelter from northeast gales.

Commercial open-boat whaling by American and European ships occurred in the Sea of Okhotsk from the 1830s to the early 1900s. They primarily caught right and bowhead whales. Both populations of these species declined drastically, with the latter once thought to be extinct by western historians. Peak catches were made in the 1840s and 1850s. It's estimated that as many as 15,200 bowheads and 2,400 rights were taken in the sea.

References

  1. ↑ United States. (1918). Asiatic Pilot, Volume 1: East coast of Siberia, Sakhalin Island and Chosen. Washington: Hydrographic Office.
  2. ↑ National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. (2014). Sailing Directions (Enroute): East Coast of Russia. U.S. Government, Springfield, Virginia.
  3. ↑ Starbuck, Alexander (1878). History of the American Whale Fishery from Its Earliest Inception to the year 1876. Castle. ISBN   1-55521-537-8.
  4. ↑ Good Return, of New Bedford, Aug. 12-Sep. 13, 1854, Old Dartmouth Historical Society (ODHS); Frances Henrietta, of New Bedford, July 7, 1857, Nicholson Whaling Collection (NWC); Java, of New Bedford, July 5–20, 1867, NWC; Arnolda, of New Bedford, Aug. 24-26, 1874, ODHS; Mary and Helen II, of San Francisco, Aug. 13, 1885, Kendall Whaling Museum.
  5. ↑ Carolina, of New Bedford, Aug. 16-19, 1857, ODHS.
  6. ↑ Mary Frazier, of New Bedford, July 9, Oct. 19-21, 1855, NWC.
  7. ↑ Lindholm, O. V., Haes, T. A., & Tyrtoff, D. N. (2008). Beyond the frontiers of imperial Russia: From the memoirs of Otto W. Lindholm. Javea, Spain: A. de Haes OWL Publishing.
  8. ↑ Solovyev, B. A., Shpak, O. V., Glazov, D. M., Rozhnov, V. V., & D. M. Kuznetsova. (2015). "Summer distribution of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in the Sea of Okhotsk". Russian J. Theriol. 14 (2): 201-215.
  9. ↑ Shpak, O. V., Meschersky, I. G., Chichkina, A. N., Kuznetsova, D. M., Paramonov, A. Y., & V. V. Rozhnov. (2014). "New data on the Okhotsk Sea bowhead whales". Paper presented to the Scientific Committee of IWC 65. 5 pp.
  10. ↑ Ovsyanikova, E., Fedutin, I., Belonovich, O., Burdin, A., Burkanov, V., Dolgova, E., Filatova, O., Fomin, S., Hoyt, E., Mamaev, E., Richard, G., Savenko, O., Sekiguchi, K., Shpak, O., Sidorenko, M. and Titova, O. (2015). "Opportunistic sightings of the endangered North Pacific right whales (Eubalaena japonica) in Russian waters in 2003–2014". Mar. Mam. Sci. 31: 1559–1567.
  11. ↑ Pronkevich, V. V. (1998). "Migration of waders in the Khabarovsk region of the Far East". International Wader Studies 10: 425-430.
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