Sovetskaya Gavan

Sovetskaya Gavan (English)
Советская Гавань (Russian)
-  Town  -

Administration building of the town
Sovetskaya Gavan
Coordinates:
Coat of arms
Administrative status
Country Russia
Federal subject Khabarovsk Krai
Administrative center of Sovetsko-Gavansky District
Municipal status
Mayor Pavel Borovsky
Statistics
Population (2010 Census,
preliminary)		 27,712 inhabitants[1]
Population (2002 Census) 30,480 inhabitants[2]
Time zone VLAST (UTC+11:00)[3]
Founded 1853
Postal code(s) 682880
Dialing code(s) +7 42138

Sovetskaya Gavan (Russian: Сове́тская Га́вань, lit. Soviet Harbor) is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, and a port on the Strait of Tartary which connects the Sea of Okhotsk on the north with the Sea of Japan on the south. Population: 27,712 (2010 Census preliminary results);[1] 30,480 (2002 Census);[2] 34,915 (1989 Census).[4]

The name of the town is often informally abbreviated to "Sovgavan".

Contents

History

The bay on which Sovetskaya Gavan is located was discovered on May 23, 1853 by Lt. Nikolay Konstantinovich Boshnyak (Николай Константинович Бошняк) in Russian-American Company ship "Nikolay", and named Hadji Bay. On August 4, 1853, Captain Gennady Nevelskoy founded a military post named after Admiral Grand Duke Konstantin, and renamed the bay to Imperatorskaya Gavan ('Emperor's Harbor'), after the then reigning emperor Nicholas I. Nikolay Boshnyak was appointed the commander of the post, which became the first Russian settlement in the area, and the predecessor of today's Sovetskaya Gavan.[5]

After the abandonment of the military post before 1900, the area became a center for timber production, including concessions to companies from other countries such as Canada.

The bay and the settlement were renamed to Sovetskaya Gavan ('Soviet Harbor') in 1922.

During World War II, construction was begun on a railway from the right bank of the Amur River near Komsomolsk-on-Amur to the Pacific coast, with Sovetskaya Gavan chosen as the endpoint. Sovetskaya Gavan was granted town status in 1941; the railway reached the town in 1945. This section of railway was the first section to be completed of what would later became the Baikal-Amur Mainline.

From 1950 until 1954, the city was the site of the prison camp Ulminlag of the gulag system.

In 1958, the city's northern neighborhood, on the Vanino Bay, was separated into a separate urban-type settlement of Vanino.

In 1963/64 6 sounding rockets of "Kosmos 2"-type were launched. They reached heights until 402 km [1]

It is served by Kamenny Ruchey naval airfield (also known as Mongokhto) as well as Maygatka Airport.

Climate

Sovetskaya Gavin has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb).

Climate data for Sovetskaya Gavan
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) −12
(10)		 −9
(16)		 −2
(28)		 6
(43)		 12
(54)		 17
(63)		 20
(68)		 21
(70)		 17
(63)		 10
(50)		 −1
(30)		 −8
(18)		 5.9
(42.7)
Average low °C (°F) −21
(−6)		 −19
(−2)		 −12
(10)		 −2
(28)		 2
(36)		 7
(45)		 11
(52)		 13
(55)		 8
(46)		 1
(34)		 −9
(16)		 −16
(3)		 −3.1
(26.5)
Precipitation mm (inches) 18
(0.71)		 21
(0.83)		 27
(1.06)		 39
(1.54)		 48
(1.89)		 42
(1.65)		 63
(2.48)		 111
(4.37)		 114
(4.49)		 75
(2.95)		 42
(1.65)		 30
(1.18)		 630
(24.8)
Avg. precipitation days 9 10 12 13 15 13 14 17 16 12 10 10 151
Source: World Weather Online

Economy and infrastructure

Sovetskaya Gavan's economy is largely dependent on the harbor and related activities; the town has a deep water port for cargo and fishing vessels, as well as ship repair facilities. There is also some foodstuffs production, such as fish processing.

In 1973 a rail ferry link to the island Sakhalin was opened, joining the mainland at Vanino, 30 km north of Sovetskaya Gavan. Whilst this diminished Sovetskaya Gavan's importance as a trading port, until the 1990s it remained an important supply harbor for the Russian Pacific Fleet.

Sovetskaya Gavan is connected by rail to Komsomolsk-on-Amur, the section of line being the most easterly section of the Baikal Amur Mainline.

References

  1. ^ a b Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2011). "Предварительные итоги Всероссийской переписи населения 2010 года (Preliminary results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (2010 All-Russia Population Census). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis-2010.ru/results_of_the_census/results-inform.php. Retrieved 2011-04-25. 
  2. ^ a b Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2004-05-21). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек (Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis2002.ru/ct/doc/1_TOM_01_04.xls. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
  3. ^ Правительство Российской Федерации. Постановление №725 от 31 августа 2011 г. «О составе территорий, образующих каждую часовую зону, и порядке исчисления времени в часовых зонах, а также о признании утратившими силу отдельных Постановлений Правительства Российской Федерации». Вступил в силу по истечении 7 дней после дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Российская Газета", №197, 6 сентября 2011 г. (Government of the Russian Federation. Resolution #725 of August 31, 2011 On the Composition of the Territories Included into Each Time Zone and on the Procedures of Timekeeping in the Time Zones, as Well as on Abrogation of Several Resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation. Effective as of after 7 days following the day of the official publication).
  4. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров. (All Union Population Census of 1989. Present population of union and autonomous republics, autonomous oblasts and okrugs, krais, oblasts, districts, urban settlements, and villages serving as district administrative centers.)" (in Russian). Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года (All-Union Population Census of 1989). Demoscope Weekly (website of the Institute of Demographics of the State University—Higher School of Economics. 1989. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus89_reg.php. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
  5. ^ Герб города Советская Гавань (The Coat of Arms of the City of Sovetskaya Gavan) (Russian)

External links

Cities and towns
Amursk · Bikin · Komsomolsk-on-Amur · Nikolayevsk-on-Amur · Sovetskaya Gavan · Vyazemsky
Administrative districts