12
Lowland is bordered by the Pamir and Tien Shan mountain ranges, with heights of
up to 7495 m (Somoni Peak, former Communism), and Kopet Dag, with heights of
up to 2000–3000 m. The northern part of the region known as Central Kazakhstan
is a semi-desert area. Here, along with steppe feather grass meadows, there are areas
of bare soil devoid of any vegetation (Alamanov et al. 2006).
Hydrologically, a scarce river network, mostly drying up temporary streams, an
abundance of saline, and self-flowing lakes characterize semi-deserts. For Central
Asia, vast deserts are characteristic, with mountain systems bordering it from all
sides: Kara-Kum, Kyzyl-Kum, Betpak-Dala, Moyun-Kum, and Takla-Makan.
Deserts are characterized by sparse vegetation. Transit large rivers – Amudarya, Syr
Darya, and Tarim – are characteristic of the hydrological network. In the mountainous areas of the Pamirs and Tien Shan, as in all mountain regions, a high-altitude
zoning of natural conditions exists.
The foothills of the mountains are occupied by semi-deserts, which are replaced
above by steppe and forest-steppe landscapes. Forests form above them, and then
subalpine and alpine meadows. The ridge of the mountain ranges is a rocky surface,
and in some places, it is covered with eternal snow and glaciers. The mountains in
Central Asia are among the regions of the globe with the most significantly developed glaciation. In Central Asia, the total number of glaciers reaches 17,000, and
the area of glaciation covers more than 17,000 km
2
. The largest glacier in the Pamirs
is the Fedchenko Glacier, which is 71-km long, and the South Engilchek Glacier in
Tien Shan, which is 60-km long. The snow frontier is at the level of 3000–3600 m
in the peripheral mountain ranges and 5500 m in the central parts of the Pamir
mountain ranges (Alamanov et al. 2006).
The significant differences in the height of the parts of this territory – from the
areas lying below the ocean to the highest mountain peaks – make here an extraordinary variety of surface shapes, climate and landscape. Having a lengthy and orographically complicated territory with extensive lowlands and high mountain
elevations in the south and southeast, Central Asia is characterized by a variety of
local climatic conditions.
The climate in Central Asia has a local feature, namely, high continentality,
which is characterized by a large amplitude of fluctuations in air temperature and
small precipitation (Alamanov et al. 2006). All the three types of climates mentioned above are formed due to the incoming solar radiation, physiographic conditions of the territory, and circulation of the atmosphere. Along with the circulation
of the atmosphere and radiation factors, its physiographic position in the center of
the largest continent – Eurasia and the surface structure – plays a significant role in
the vast plains and mountains in the south.
In most areas, the climate is dry and continental, with hot summers and cold
winters with occasional snowfalls. Outside the highlands, the climate is mostly
semi-arid to dry. In lower altitudes, summer is hot and accompanied by bright sunshine. In winter, it sometimes rains and snows from low-pressure systems that cross
an area from the Mediterranean. In most of the region, precipitation is at its maximum in spring, which is associated with the migration to the north of the Iranian
branch of the Polar Front (Lioubimtseva and Henebry 2009).
2 Natural Conditions in Central Asia
Lowland is bordered by the Pamir and Tien Shan mountain ranges, with heights of
up to 7495 m (Somoni Peak, former Communism), and Kopet Dag, with heights of
up to 2000–3000 m. The northern part of the region known as Central Kazakhstan
is a semi-desert area. Here, along with steppe feather grass meadows, there are areas
of bare soil devoid of any vegetation (Alamanov et al. 2006).
Hydrologically, a scarce river network, mostly drying up temporary streams, an
abundance of saline, and self-flowing lakes characterize semi-deserts. For Central
Asia, vast deserts are characteristic, with mountain systems bordering it from all
sides: Kara-Kum, Kyzyl-Kum, Betpak-Dala, Moyun-Kum, and Takla-Makan.
Deserts are characterized by sparse vegetation. Transit large rivers – Amudarya, Syr
Darya, and Tarim – are characteristic of the hydrological network. In the mountainous areas of the Pamirs and Tien Shan, as in all mountain regions, a high-altitude
zoning of natural conditions exists.
The foothills of the mountains are occupied by semi-deserts, which are replaced
above by steppe and forest-steppe landscapes. Forests form above them, and then
subalpine and alpine meadows. The ridge of the mountain ranges is a rocky surface,
and in some places, it is covered with eternal snow and glaciers. The mountains in
Central Asia are among the regions of the globe with the most significantly developed glaciation. In Central Asia, the total number of glaciers reaches 17,000, and
the area of glaciation covers more than 17,000 km
2
. The largest glacier in the Pamirs
is the Fedchenko Glacier, which is 71-km long, and the South Engilchek Glacier in
Tien Shan, which is 60-km long. The snow frontier is at the level of 3000–3600 m
in the peripheral mountain ranges and 5500 m in the central parts of the Pamir
mountain ranges (Alamanov et al. 2006).
The significant differences in the height of the parts of this territory – from the
areas lying below the ocean to the highest mountain peaks – make here an extraordinary variety of surface shapes, climate and landscape. Having a lengthy and orographically complicated territory with extensive lowlands and high mountain
elevations in the south and southeast, Central Asia is characterized by a variety of
local climatic conditions.
The climate in Central Asia has a local feature, namely, high continentality,
which is characterized by a large amplitude of fluctuations in air temperature and
small precipitation (Alamanov et al. 2006). All the three types of climates mentioned above are formed due to the incoming solar radiation, physiographic conditions of the territory, and circulation of the atmosphere. Along with the circulation
of the atmosphere and radiation factors, its physiographic position in the center of
the largest continent – Eurasia and the surface structure – plays a significant role in
the vast plains and mountains in the south.
In most areas, the climate is dry and continental, with hot summers and cold
winters with occasional snowfalls. Outside the highlands, the climate is mostly
semi-arid to dry. In lower altitudes, summer is hot and accompanied by bright sunshine. In winter, it sometimes rains and snows from low-pressure systems that cross
an area from the Mediterranean. In most of the region, precipitation is at its maximum in spring, which is associated with the migration to the north of the Iranian
branch of the Polar Front (Lioubimtseva and Henebry 2009).
2 Natural Conditions in Central Asia