The Volga River to which ocean basin belongs? Description and photo of the Volga River

One of the largest waterways of the world is the Volga River. Which ocean basin does she belong to? It is the most full-flowing river in Europe, which has no runoff. It flows into the Caspian Sea, and therefore belongs to its basin. Almost across the whole European part of Russia, this powerful river carries its waters. A lot of cities and villages are built on its banks. Long since it was for people and a wet nurse, and a transport artery.

Volga river

To the basin of which ocean this water artery belongs is studied at school. But not everyone imagines that the Caspian Sea, into which it flows, is internal and has no runoff. And the Volga is the largest river in Europe. It starts on the Valdai Upland near the village of Volgoverkhovye. From a small streamlet it turns into a mighty full-flowing river and flows into the Caspian Sea near the city of Astrakhan, forming a wide delta. Near the Volga River, the source and the estuary are separated from each other by more than three and a half thousand kilometers, so it is conventionally divided into three parts, which differ slightly in the hydrological and ecological conditions.

1. The Upper Volga is a section from the source to the confluence of the Oka River into it. Here it flows through dense forests.
2. From the Oka to the mouth of the Kama - the middle Volga. This site is located in the forest-steppe and steppe zones.
3. Lower Volga - from the Kama to the confluence of the Caspian Sea. Flows through the steppe and semi-desert zones.

Basin of the Volga River

About a third of the European territory of Russia is connected with this river. Its basin extends from the Valdai and Central Russian uplands to the Ural Mountains, occupying an area of almost one and a half million square kilometers. This full-flowing mighty river feeds mainly on account of thawed waters. It falls into several large rivers and many small ones - only about 200. The most famous of them are the Kama and the Oka. In addition, its tributaries are Sheksna, Vetluga, Sura, Mologa and others.

At the source, the Volga is divided into several branches. The largest of them is Akhtuba, which has a length of more than 500 kilometers. But not only the Volga River carries its waters to the Caspian Sea. To the basin of what ocean this water artery belongs, you can learn in any encyclopedia. But people connected it with other seas by means of channels: the Volga-Baltic and the Volga-Don are known. And through the Severodvinsk system it connects to the White Sea.

Interesting Facts

Every citizen of our country knows the Volga River. To the basin of which ocean this symbol of Russia belongs, they know, however, not all. There are also some interesting facts about this river, which are very few known:

1. Its name changed several times: in the 1st century AD. It was called Ra, then Itil.
2. The delta of the river is divided into 150 branches, and recently it has greatly expanded due to the lowering of the level of the Caspian Sea.
3. This river is one of the deepest in the world: its width reaches forty meters.
4. Every day the Volga carries about 250 cubic kilometers of water to the Caspian Sea.
5. In winter, throughout its entire length, it freezes.
6. Another fact will be of interest to those who do not know which river Volga belongs to the ocean basin - the largest water artery that does not have a runoff.

Economic importance

The Volga River basin has long been feeding and providing people living on its banks. In the forests there are many commercial animals, and the waters are rich in fish - about 70 species are found in it. Huge areas around the river are occupied with crops, and horticulture and melon growing are also developed. In the Volga basin there are large oil and gas fields, deposits of potassium and salt. This water artery also has a great importance as a transport highway. For navigation, the Volga has been used for a long time, huge caravans - up to 500 vessels - went around it. Now, besides this, several dams and hydroelectric power stations have been built on the river.