Oymyakon
Encyclopedia
Oymyakon is a village (selo) in Oymyakonsky Ulus
of the Sakha Republic, Russia
, located along the Indigirka River
, 30 kilometres (20 mi) northwest of Tomtor
on the Kolyma Highway.
(Köppen climate classification
Dfd), Oymyakon is known as one of the candidates for the Northern Pole of Cold
, the other being the town of Verkhoyansk
.
In 1924, a Russian scientist (Sergey Obrychev) registered the lowest temperature −71.2 C.
On February 6, 1933, a temperature of -69.2 C was recorded at Oymyakon's weather station.
This is the lowest recorded temperature for any permanently inhabited location on Earth. It is also the lowest temperature recorded in the Northern hemisphere
. Only Antarctica has recorded lower official temperatures with the lowest being -89.2 C near the Russian station of Vostok. But on July 28, 2010 in Oymyakon recorded a highest temperature ever of 34.6 °C (94 °F). The actual weather station is in a valley between Oymyakon and Tomtor
. The station is at 750 metres (2,460.6 ft) and the surrounding mountains at 1100 metres (3,608.9 ft), causing cold air to pool in the valley: in fact, recent studies show that winter temperatures increase with altitude by as much as 10°C (18°F).
Its name in the Sakha language
means "non-freezing water"; due to the presence of a natural hot spring
nearby. The ground there is permanently frozen (continuous permafrost
).
Oymyakonsky Ulus
Oymyakonsky Ulus is an ulus of the Sakha Republic, Russia. The ulus is administratively divided into five naslegs and has jurisdiction over five settlements .-See also:...
of the Sakha Republic, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, located along the Indigirka River
Indigirka River
The Indigirka River is a river in the Sakha Republic in Russia between the Yana River and the Kolyma River. It is in length. The area of its basin is 360,000 km²...
, 30 kilometres (20 mi) northwest of Tomtor
Tomtor
Tomtor is the name of several rural localities in the Sakha Republic, Russia. The most notable one is on the Kolyma Highway. Thirty kilometers northwest is Oymyakon, known chiefly for recording the coldest temperature on Earth at a locality with permanent, year-round habitation...
on the Kolyma Highway.
Geography
Oymyakon is located to the east of Yakutia, the population of the village is 521 people. Oymyakon is located at high latitudes and the length of the day varies from 3 hours in December to 21 hours in the summer. The village is at an altitude of approximately 750 m above sea level.Climate
With an extreme subarctic climateSubarctic climate
The subarctic climate is a climate characterized by long, usually very cold winters, and short, cool to mild summers. It is found on large landmasses, away from the moderating effects of an ocean, generally at latitudes from 50° to 70°N poleward of the humid continental climates...
(Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Dfd), Oymyakon is known as one of the candidates for the Northern Pole of Cold
Pole of Cold
The Poles of Cold are the places in the Northern and Southern hemispheres where the lowest air temperatures have been recorded.- Northern hemisphere :...
, the other being the town of Verkhoyansk
Verkhoyansk
Verkhoyansk is a town in Verkhoyansky District of the Sakha Republic, Russia, situated on the Yana River, near the Arctic Circle, from Yakutsk. Population: There is a river port, an airport, a fur-collecting depot, and the center of a reindeer-raising area....
.
In 1924, a Russian scientist (Sergey Obrychev) registered the lowest temperature −71.2 C.
On February 6, 1933, a temperature of -69.2 C was recorded at Oymyakon's weather station.
This is the lowest recorded temperature for any permanently inhabited location on Earth. It is also the lowest temperature recorded in the Northern hemisphere
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is north of its equator—the word hemisphere literally means “half sphere”. It is also that half of the celestial sphere north of the celestial equator...
. Only Antarctica has recorded lower official temperatures with the lowest being -89.2 C near the Russian station of Vostok. But on July 28, 2010 in Oymyakon recorded a highest temperature ever of 34.6 °C (94 °F). The actual weather station is in a valley between Oymyakon and Tomtor
Tomtor
Tomtor is the name of several rural localities in the Sakha Republic, Russia. The most notable one is on the Kolyma Highway. Thirty kilometers northwest is Oymyakon, known chiefly for recording the coldest temperature on Earth at a locality with permanent, year-round habitation...
. The station is at 750 metres (2,460.6 ft) and the surrounding mountains at 1100 metres (3,608.9 ft), causing cold air to pool in the valley: in fact, recent studies show that winter temperatures increase with altitude by as much as 10°C (18°F).
Its name in the Sakha language
Sakha language
Sakha, or Yakut, is a Turkic language with around 360,000 native speakers spoken in the Sakha Republic in the Russian Federation by the Sakha or Yakuts.Sakha is an agglutinative language, and it employs vowel harmony.-Classification:...
means "non-freezing water"; due to the presence of a natural hot spring
Hot spring
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are geothermal hot springs in many locations all over the crust of the earth.-Definitions:...
nearby. The ground there is permanently frozen (continuous permafrost
Permafrost
In geology, permafrost, cryotic soil or permafrost soil is soil at or below the freezing point of water for two or more years. Ice is not always present, as may be in the case of nonporous bedrock, but it frequently occurs and it may be in amounts exceeding the potential hydraulic saturation of...
).
In the media
Oymyakon has also been featured in at least four television series:- The episode "The Winter's Tale" of the 1996 PBS weather documentary series Savage Skies.
- OxfordOxfordThe city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
geographer Nick MiddletonNick MiddletonNick Middleton is a physical geographer and supernumerary fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford. He specialises in desertification.Nick Middleton was born in London, England. As a geographer he has travelled to more than 50 countries...
's television series and accompanying book Going to Extremes, in which he discusses his visit to this village and describes ways in which inhabitants cope with the extreme cold. Middleton describes how Oymyakon lies between two mountain ranges, trapping cold air in between throughout the entire year. In the winter, once every two days, the village's cattle's herd bull was harnessed between the shafts of a sledge with a big water tank on it and led to the spring. The men broke the ice on the spring, let the bull drink its fill, filled the water tank from the spring, and let the bull pull the tanker sledge back into the warm. - Cameraman Geoff Mackley along with Rachael Wilson and Mark Whetu from New Zealand, made an episode for Discovery ChannelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
series Dangerman. They were accompanied by translator Rob Walker (USA) and Vyacheslav Ipatiev (TourServiceCenter). Geoff rode the water bull to the spring, and spent a night outside in a tent. - The episode "Hot and Cold" in the 2010 BBC series Extreme World features the village.
External links
- Oymyakon 1996/97 Expedition
- 2008/09 Expedition
- City map Oymyakon
- Video report from SkyNews
- Life in Oymyakon. AskYakutia.com
Further reading
- Middleton, NickNick MiddletonNick Middleton is a physical geographer and supernumerary fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford. He specialises in desertification.Nick Middleton was born in London, England. As a geographer he has travelled to more than 50 countries...
Going to Extremes: Mud, Sweat and Frozen Tears.- Channel 4 books, 2001, hardcover, ISBN 0-7522-2016-0
- Pan Books - Macmillan UK, 2003, paperback, ISBN 0-330-49384-1.