The Magadan region is located in the Far East. In relation to the region, the toponym Kolyma is also used, after the upper reaches of the gold-bearing river located here.
The Magadan Region includes one city of regional significance (Magadan) and 8 districts, within the boundaries of which 9 urban districts are formed. In fact, there is Magadan with its surroundings and the rest of the region, where life is concentrated along the highways.
Magadan
Kadykchan
Magadansky Nature Reserve
Ola
Susuman
Talaya Resort
Ust-Omchug
Yagodnoye
By plane
Magadan International Airport "Sokol" (IATA:GDX) is the
largest in northeast Russia. The airport serves regular flights from
Moscow, Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, Yakutsk, Khabarovsk and Vladivostok.
Communication within the northeastern region is carried out to Anadyr,
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, as well as to several other settlements.
By car
The federal highway M56 “Kolyma” passes through the
region, which connects the Magadan region with Yakutia. It's mostly a
two-lane road. The track in the vicinity of Magadan is paved, but
outside it is a good grader. The road is mainly laid through valleys
with access to hills, and even mountain serpentines along passes. The
road is steep, unfenced and looks quite dangerous. Particular attention
and preparation should be given to driving in winter, including periods
of extremely low temperatures. Local cars even have a second windshield
to prevent freezing.
Due to the nature of supply, gasoline in the
region is quite expensive. If in Magadan the cost of A-92 can be about
45 rubles per liter (2017), then in the periphery it rises to 60 rubles.
Diesel fuel may cost more than gasoline. Another feature is the complete
absence of gasolines above A-92, which is why even new foreign cars are
downgraded at local official car services. Throughout the region, gas
stations are rare and are mainly associated with large settlements by
local standards. There are no branded gas stations from well-known
companies.
By train
There is no railway connection with the
region.
In recent years, the Magadan region has attracted extreme tourists. There is also organized hunting, however, this pleasure is not cheap.
Along the Kolyma highway, and just in the taiga, there are a lot of
bears, and there are cases of attacks on people. It is not recommended
to spend the night outside of populated areas, at least if you do not
have a weapon, and even just to walk into the forest on your own. At the
same time, the cold climate completely eliminates the tick threat.
Along the road 44 OP MZ 44N-4, better known as the “Tenkinskaya
highway”, there are beautiful landscapes. However, there, in the area of
Butugychag, during the Soviet years there were 5 camp points, a mining
and processing plant was operating and there were a bunch of abandoned
adits. The hands of prisoners mined tin and then uranium. In the area of
the ruins of the camp sites, drinking water from streams is not
recommended due to the increased radiation background (signs are
hanging), and in general it is better not to stay in the ruins of a
factory for a long time - the background is much higher than normal (up
to one and a half thousand microroentgen/hour, while the natural
background is not exceeds 25).
The coat of arms and flag were approved by the Law of the Magadan Region of December 28, 2001 N 219-OZ “On the Flag and Coat of Arms of the Magadan Region”.
It was formed by separating it from the Khabarovsk Territory on
December 3, 1953. Until June 1992, the Chukotka National District was
part of the Magadan Region. In this regard, the Magadan region was the
only one of all the regions of the USSR washed by the waters of two
oceans: the Pacific and the Arctic.
In 1967, the Magadan region
was awarded the Order of Lenin.
Located in the northeastern part of Russia. The southern borders of
the region run along the shores of the Sea of Okhotsk. The territory,
with an area of 462,000 square kilometers, stretches 930 kilometers from
north to south and 960 kilometers from west to east.
The
territory is roughly comparable to Papua New Guinea and Cameroon,
Uzbekistan and Sweden. Slightly smaller than the Kamchatka Territory
bordering it.
The Magadan region is located in the MSC+8 time
zone. The applied time offset relative to UTC is +11:00.
The extreme points, except for the southern one - Cape Alevin on the
Koni Peninsula, are not clearly defined. The northern point is located
in the upper reaches of the Mostakh River in the Srednekansky region.
The western extreme point is located in the Susumansky district in the
upper reaches of the Khinike River, and the eastern extreme point is in
the North-Evensky district in the upper reaches of one of the
tributaries of the Kegali River.
The highest point is an unnamed
peak in the Ohandya ridge in the north of the Susuman urban district
(2337 meters).
In the west it borders with the Khabarovsk Territory. In the northwest and north, the border passes with the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). At the sources of the Moustakh River the border with the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug begins, and at the sources of the Molongda River - with the Kamchatka Territory.
In the relief of the Magadan region, the main place is occupied by
mountain ranges, and only on the coasts of the Sea of Okhotsk, in the
lower reaches of the rivers, are small plains located.
The region
lies within the Chersky and Okhotsk-Anadyr seismic belts. The strength
of earthquakes can reach up to 8 points on the Chersky ridge, and up to
7 points along the coast.
The leading place in the region's
relief belongs to medium-altitude highlands. Most of the region is
located within the Yana-Kolyma fold system. In the west of the region,
the chains of the Chersky ridge stretch for more than 1,500 kilometers.
The territory of the Magadan region is covered with a dense and
branched river network. The Arctic Ocean basin includes the Kolyma River
and its tributaries - Detrin, Tenka, Bakhapcha, Buyunda, Balygychan,
Sugoi, Korkodon, Omolon, Taskan, Debin, Seymchan and others. The Pacific
Ocean basin includes rivers that are significantly inferior in length to
the tributaries of the Kolyma: Tauy, Yana, Arman, Ola, Yama, Gizhiga and
others.
The main sources of river nutrition are snow, rain and
groundwater. Naledi is a characteristic phenomenon for the Magadan
region. They form in places where the riverbed becomes clogged with
slush and freezes to the bottom.
The largest river in the region
is the Kolyma. The entire territory of the Magadan region belongs to the
regions of the Far North.
In the region, permafrost is widespread; Its power and temperature vary greatly. The permafrost reaches its greatest thickness in the mountains of the northern and northwestern parts of the region; in the southern coastal regions its thickness is much less, and sometimes it is completely absent.
Deposits of gold, silver, tin, and tungsten have been discovered in
the region. There are also deposits of copper, molybdenum, coal, oil and
gas condensate.
In 2015, gold mining in the region was carried
out by 183 companies, of which 130 specialized in placer gold mining. In
2015, Magadan subsoil users produced 24.5 tons of gold and 1,128 tons of
silver.
A special feature of the energy sector of the Magadan Region is its isolation from the Unified Energy System of Russia. As of 2019, 4 large power plants were operating in the Magadan region - two hydroelectric power plants and two thermal power plants, as well as several small diesel power plants, with a total capacity of 1549.4 MW. In 2018, they produced 2,546 million kWh of electricity (excluding the production of diesel power plants).
Fisheries are the second most important industry in the region. Its products are exported. The share of the fishing industry in the region's production volume is 18%.
In 2020, agricultural products amounted to 3,150.2 million rubles, of which crop production — 1,854.4 million rubles, livestock — 1,295.8 million rubles. The agricultural production index is 103.5%, including crop production - 107.1%.
As of January 1, 2021, on farms of all categories there were 3,920 heads of cattle, of which 1,680 heads were cows, 2,760 pigs, 106 thousand poultry, 601 sheep and goats, 176 horses and 6,933 reindeer.
In 1990, the region (excluding the Chukotka District) had a huge reindeer herd of 128 thousand heads, but in 2000 there were only 24 thousand deer in the region, and in 2010 - 19 thousand deer.
In 2020, gross yields of main agricultural crops in farms of all
categories:
potatoes - 7777 tons,
vegetables - 4393 tons, of
which: cucumbers - 834 tons, tomatoes - 401 tons, cabbage - 2107 tons,
carrots - 256 tons, beets - 185 tons, onions - 3 tons.
In 2015,
the Magadan region provided itself with potatoes by 90%, vegetables -
more than 40%, and chicken eggs - by 70%. In 2015, about 10 thousand
tons of potatoes, 1.7 thousand tons of cabbage, as well as 100 tons of
carrots and beets were harvested.
On November 13, 2023, a cooperation agreement was signed in Moscow between the Magadan and Gomel regions.
According to Dmitry Anuchin in 1912, “In the summer of 1911,
successful flights from Vladivostok to the mouth of the river began.
Kolyma, and what is meant (which was already started by the late Admiral
Makarov) is to use icebreakers to navigate the Arctic Ocean.”
The
main transport gateway of the region is the Magadan sea trade port.
The only specialized river transport enterprise in the Kolyma River
basin is the Kolyma Shipping Company, officially founded in 1992.
The main air port is Magadan International Airport named after V.S.
Vysotsky (Sokol Airport).
The length of paved roads is 2,323
kilometers. Including with an improved coating, that is, with asphalt
concrete and cement concrete pavement, crushed stone and gravel treated
with binders, 330 kilometers.
There are no railways in the
Magadan region. There are plans to extend the Amur-Yakutsk railway to
Magadan.
Magadan regional hospital - regional hospital of the Magadan region. On October 20, 1955, by order of the Ministry of Health of the RSFSR, the Magadan city hospital was reorganized into a regional hospital while simultaneously performing the functions of a city hospital, and it acquired regional status in January 1956.
As of 2021, the only higher education institution operating in the Magadan region is the North-Eastern State University.