Yamal

a peninsula in Asia, in the northern part of Western Siberia; located within the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (formerly Yamal-Nenets National Okrug), Tiumen’ Oblast, RSFSR, and washed by Baidarata and Ob’ bays of the Kara Sea.

The Yamal Peninsula has a length of 700 km, a maximum width of 240 km, and an area of approximately 122,000 sq km. The coast is primarily low-lying. The peninsula has a level surface, with elevations ranging from 50 to 84 m. It is composed mainly of sandy-clayey marine deposits, with glacial deposits in the south. Permafrost is found throughout the peninsula. The average temperature in January ranges from –22°C in the west to –26°C in the east, and the average temperature in July ranges from 4°C in the north to 10°C in the south. Precipitation totals 240–250 mm a year.

Along the drainage divide of the Yamal Peninsula are many lakes, the largest of which are Iarroto, Iambuto, and Neito. The principal rivers are the Seiakha, Iuribei, and Kharasavei. Arctic tundra is found in the north. The central region is characterized by moss-lichen and shrub tundra, with grass and hypnum-grass bogs. Larch forest-tundra is found in the extreme south. The principal occupations are reindeer herding, hunting, and fishing.

Novyi Port is situated on Ob’ Bay. Natural-gas deposits include the Arkticheskoe and Sredneiamal’skoe deposits; petroleum is also found.