Alazeya

The Alazeya (Russian: Алазея; Yakut: Алаһыай, romanized: Alahıay) is a river in the northeastern part of Yakutia, Russia which flows into the Arctic between the basins of the larger Indigirka to the west and the Kolyma to the east.

Alazeya
Location of the Alazeya in Far-East Siberia.
Native name	Алазея
Location
Country	Russia
Location	Yakutia
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Confluence of the Nelkan and Kadylchan
• elevation	116 m (381 ft)
Mouth
• location	East Siberian Sea
• coordinates	70°51′42″N 153°40′46″E
• elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	1,590 km (990 mi) (total)
Basin size	64,700 km^2 (25,000 sq mi)
Discharge
• average	320 m^3/s (11,000 cu ft/s)

Geography

The river is 1,590 kilometres (990 mi) long. The area of its basin is 64,700 square kilometres (25,000 sq mi).[1] The Alazeya is formed by the confluence of the rivers Nelkan and Kadylchan in the slopes of the Alazeya Plateau. It crosses roughly northwards through the tundra meandering among the flat, marshy areas of the Kolyma Lowland, part of the greater East Siberian Lowland. Mount Kisilyakh-Tas is a notable kigilyakh site on the right bank of the Alazeya River at 69°42′N 155°0′E.[2]

There are more than 24,000 lakes in its basin. The biggest tributary of the Alazeya is the Rassokha that joins it from the left in its lower course. Finally the Alazeya drains into the Kolyma Bay of the East Siberian Sea, close to Logashkino.

The river freezes in late September through early October and stays icebound until late May through early June.

Map of the Alazeya basin.

History

Dmitrii Zyryan was the first Russian to reach the Alazeya in 1641,[3] but did not found a permanent settlement.

See also

• List of rivers of Russia

References

1. Russian State Water Register - Alazeya River
2. Types of weathering
3. Lantzeff, George V., and Richard A. Pierce (1973). Eastward to Empire: Exploration and Conquest on the Russian Open Frontier, to 1750. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press.