Uyedineniya Island
Encyclopedia
Uyedineniya Island is an island located in the central part of the Kara Sea
, roughly midway between Novaya Zemlya
and Severnaya Zemlya
. Its latitude is 77° 29' N and its longitude 82° 30' E. It is often labelled as Einsamkeit Island (from the German Einsamkeit Insel) and more rarely as Lonely Island or Solitude Island in English maps.
Owing to its extreme northerly location the weather is bleak and severe and the sea surrounding Uedineniya is covered with pack ice in the winter. Ice floes are commonly found even in the summer.
The nearest landmasses are the Izvestiy TSIK Islands
, located about 150 km to the SSE.
Uyedineniya belongs to the Krasnoyarsk Krai
administrative division of the Russian Federation.
explorer Captain Edvard Holm Johannesen from Tromsø
, named the island Ensomheden—"solitude" in Norwegian
—likely due to its isolated location in the Arctic
.
Soviet polar explorer Professor Vladimir Yulyevich Vize advanced the hypothesis that there was an extensive shallow area and perhaps more undiscovered islands near Uyedinenya. This was based on certain observations made by polar explorers:
During his expedition to Franz Josef Land
on ice-breaking steamer "Malygin" in 1931, Vize hoped to carry out oceanographic work in the Northern part of the Kara Sea, but his research was cut short by thick sea ice. Later expeditions and satellite pictures demonstrated that there were no other islands in the vicinity of Uedineniya.
A cervical vertebra of a plesiosaur
(Plesiosaurus latispinus) was discovered on the island during an expedition in the 1930s. It was studied by Soviet paleontologist A. N. Ryabinin.
At the time of World War II
, there was a small polar observatory on Uyedineniya built by the Soviet government. On September 8 1942, the German
submarine
U-251 (Lt. Captain Timm) surfaced close to the island and destroyed the weather station's small building and its garrison by firing grenades against those targets. This was one of the last actions of the Kriegsmarine
under Operation Wunderland
.
Since May 1993, Uyedineniya has been a part of the Great Arctic State Nature Reserve
, the largest nature reserve in Russia intended to preserve the habitat of the polar bear
s, pinniped
s (namely, walrus
es and seal
s), and the many kinds of birds that live on the island.
The polar observatory, which had been rebuilt during the Cold War
time, was abandoned in 1996. Presently there is no human habitation in Uyedineniya.
Kara Sea
The Kara Sea is part of the Arctic Ocean north of Siberia. It is separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya....
, roughly midway between Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya , also known in Dutch as Nova Zembla and in Norwegian as , is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the northern island...
and Severnaya Zemlya
Severnaya Zemlya
Severnaya Zemlya is an archipelago in the Russian high Arctic at around . It is located off mainland Siberia's Taymyr Peninsula across the Vilkitsky Strait...
. Its latitude is 77° 29' N and its longitude 82° 30' E. It is often labelled as Einsamkeit Island (from the German Einsamkeit Insel) and more rarely as Lonely Island or Solitude Island in English maps.
Geography
The island is barren and icy throughout the winter months, but some tundra vegetation grows on it in the summer. Its length is 18.5 km and its total area is 20 km². Compared to other Arctic islands it is flat and low-lying, with some swamps and small lakes and a long spit of land on its NE side. Its highest point is only about 30 m.Owing to its extreme northerly location the weather is bleak and severe and the sea surrounding Uedineniya is covered with pack ice in the winter. Ice floes are commonly found even in the summer.
The nearest landmasses are the Izvestiy TSIK Islands
Izvestiy TSIK Islands
The Izvestiy TSIK Islands or Izvesti Tsik Islands , also known as Izvestia Islands, is an archipelago composed of two large and two small islands covered with tundra vegetation, shingle and ice...
, located about 150 km to the SSE.
Uyedineniya belongs to the Krasnoyarsk Krai
Krasnoyarsk Krai
Krasnoyarsk Krai is a federal subject of Russia . It is the second largest federal subject after the Sakha Republic, and Russia's largest krai, occupying an area of , which is 13% of the country's total territory. The administrative center of the krai is the city of Krasnoyarsk...
administrative division of the Russian Federation.
History
The island was discovered on 26 August 1878 by NorwegianNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
explorer Captain Edvard Holm Johannesen from Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
, named the island Ensomheden—"solitude" in Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
—likely due to its isolated location in the Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
.
Soviet polar explorer Professor Vladimir Yulyevich Vize advanced the hypothesis that there was an extensive shallow area and perhaps more undiscovered islands near Uyedinenya. This was based on certain observations made by polar explorers:
The discovery of that solitary island called Einsamkeit, by Captain Johannesen... is of the greatest importance and significance, as indicating the presence of land hitherto unknown in that direction. Although it received the name it now bears from Captain Johannesen, a name signifying "lonely" or "solitary," it seems exceedingly unlikely that it will prove to be so isolated as is supposed... which would lead to the assumption that it might be the southern termination of a chain of islands eastward of Franz-Josef Land.
During his expedition to Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...
on ice-breaking steamer "Malygin" in 1931, Vize hoped to carry out oceanographic work in the Northern part of the Kara Sea, but his research was cut short by thick sea ice. Later expeditions and satellite pictures demonstrated that there were no other islands in the vicinity of Uedineniya.
A cervical vertebra of a plesiosaur
Plesiosaur
Plesiosauroidea is an extinct clade of carnivorous plesiosaur marine reptiles. Plesiosauroids, are known from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods...
(Plesiosaurus latispinus) was discovered on the island during an expedition in the 1930s. It was studied by Soviet paleontologist A. N. Ryabinin.
At the time of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, there was a small polar observatory on Uyedineniya built by the Soviet government. On September 8 1942, the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
U-251 (Lt. Captain Timm) surfaced close to the island and destroyed the weather station's small building and its garrison by firing grenades against those targets. This was one of the last actions of the Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
under Operation Wunderland
Operation Wunderland
Operation Wunderland was a large-scale operation undertaken in summer 1942 by the Kriegsmarine during World War II in the waters of the Northern Sea Route close to the Arctic Ocean...
.
Since May 1993, Uyedineniya has been a part of the Great Arctic State Nature Reserve
Great Arctic State Nature Reserve
The Great Arctic State Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia...
, the largest nature reserve in Russia intended to preserve the habitat of the polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
s, pinniped
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
s (namely, walrus
Walrus
The walrus is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and Odobenus genus. It is subdivided into three subspecies: the Atlantic...
es and seal
Earless seal
The true seals or earless seals are one of the three main groups of mammals within the seal superfamily, Pinnipedia. All true seals are members of the family Phocidae . They are sometimes called crawling seals to distinguish them from the fur seals and sea lions of the family Otariidae...
s), and the many kinds of birds that live on the island.
The polar observatory, which had been rebuilt during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
time, was abandoned in 1996. Presently there is no human habitation in Uyedineniya.
External links
- pictures of the abandoned weather station
- http://www.hamradio.ru/rrc/ARTICLES/li_e.htm
- Sverdrup Expedition investigations on Uyedinenya Island: http://www.yukoncollege.yk.ca/~agraham/nost202/1915_1924.pdf
- On the hypothesis that there were more islands near Einsamkeit Island: http://207.61.100.164/cantext/accounts/1895mark.html
See also
- Kara SeaKara SeaThe Kara Sea is part of the Arctic Ocean north of Siberia. It is separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya....