Uelkal
Uelkal (Russian: Уэлькаль; Yupik: Валъӄалыӄ, lit. Whale Jaw; Chukchi: Валӄалԓьан, Valḳalḷʼan) is a village (selo) in Iultinsky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia. Population: 243 (2010 Census);[3] [4] a slight reduction on a 2003 estimate of 258, of whom 208 were indigenous people,[10] which itself showed a slight increase, up from 202 the previous year.[10] The village is located approximately 100 kilometers (60 mi) away from the administrative centre of Egvekinot,[10] at the western side of the mouth of Kresta Bay. Municipally, Uelkal is subordinated to Iultinsky Administrative District and incorporated as Uelkal Rural Settlement.[6]
Uelkal
Уэлькаль | |
|---|---|
Location of Uelkal | |
  Uelkal Location of Uelkal  Uelkal Uelkal (Chukotka Autonomous Okrug) | |
| Coordinates: 65°32′N 179°17′W | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Chukotka Autonomous Okrug[1] |
| Administrative district | Iultinsky District[2] |
| Population | |
| • Total | 243 |
| • Estimate (January 2016)[5] | 191 |
| • Municipal district | Iultinsky Municipal District[6] |
| • Rural settlement | Uelkal Rural Settlement[6] |
| • Capital of | Uelkal Rural Settlement[6] |
| Time zone | UTC+12 (MSK+9  [7]) |
| Postal code(s)[8] | 689215 |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 42734[9] |
| OKTMO ID | 77715000136 |
Geography
Uelkal is situated on the south side of Cape Annyualkal spit at the entrance to Kresta Bay, by the Bering Sea, 174 km from the District centre Egvekinot. The village is the most western settlement in Russia in the western hemisphere and the most western Eskimo settlements in the world.
History
The village was founded in 1920 by settlers from Cape Chaplino. During World War II, this was the eastern stage on the ALSIB Uelkal-Krasnoyarsk route for US-made lend-lease warplanes to Russia.[11] During the mid-1950s, the Central Intelligence Agency suspected that a major bomber staging base was being built at Uelkal capable of reaching United States,[12] however the Soviets instead built the facility at Anadyr Ugolny Airport 102 miles (164 km) to the south and the Uelkal airfield fell into decline. Until the early 2000s near the village acted as tropospheric intermediate relay station number 20/103, part of the "North" link (call sign – "Kazan").[13] As of 2002, it had 258 inhabitants, of whom 202 were indigenous people,[10] though this has reduced significantly in the last decade, with 2014 estimates indicating a population of only 210.[14]
Economy
The village has a secondary school, a medical assistant-midwife centre, a pharmacy, a communications centre, and a store.[10] The main sources of livelihood for the residents of this town are hunting seals, walrus, and whales, which is done as part of the municipal agricultural enterprise "Nanuk" (Russian: Нанук).[15] In the village there is a high school, a kindergarten, a local hospital, pharmacy, home culture, communication center and shop as well as a rural folk club, the Chukchi-Eskimo group "Imlya", youth groups "Kiyagnyk" (lit. "Life") and "Avsinahak" (lit. "pups").[16]
Transport
Uelkal is not connected to any other part of the world by road however, there is a small network of roads within the village including:[17]
- улица Вальгиргина (Ulitsa Val′girgina)
- улица Набережная (Ulitsa Naberezhnaya, lit. Quay Street)
- улица Тундровая (Ulitsa Tundrovnaya, lit. Tundra Street)
- улица Центральная (Ulitsa Tsentralnaya, lit. Central Street)
Climate
Uelkal has a Continental Subarctic or Boreal (taiga) climate (Dfc).[18]
| Climate data for Uelkal | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 2 (36) |
7 (45) |
5.9 (42.6) |
10 (50) |
17.5 (63.5) |
26.2 (79.2) |
25.7 (78.3) |
25 (77) |
20.6 (69.1) |
8.9 (48.0) |
7.2 (45.0) |
6.3 (43.3) |
26.2 (79.2) |
| Average high °C (°F) | −16 (3) |
−13.4 (7.9) |
−12 (10) |
−6.3 (20.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
10.1 (50.2) |
13.5 (56.3) |
12.6 (54.7) |
7.2 (45.0) |
−1 (30) |
−7.7 (18.1) |
−13.4 (7.9) |
−2 (28) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −22.8 (−9.0) |
−20.8 (−5.4) |
−20 (−4) |
−13.9 (7.0) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
2.7 (36.9) |
7.3 (45.1) |
6.9 (44.4) |
1.7 (35.1) |
−6 (21) |
−13.6 (7.5) |
−19.6 (−3.3) |
−6.8 (19.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −46.1 (−51.0) |
−46.7 (−52.1) |
−40.6 (−41.1) |
−32.4 (−26.3) |
−23.5 (−10.3) |
−5.3 (22.5) |
−1 (30) |
−3 (27) |
−10 (14) |
−20.1 (−4.2) |
−30.7 (−23.3) |
−36.6 (−33.9) |
−46.1 (−51.0) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 32.7 (1.29) |
29.6 (1.17) |
34.5 (1.36) |
23 (0.9) |
32.9 (1.30) |
44.8 (1.76) |
71 (2.8) |
83.7 (3.30) |
52.7 (2.07) |
52 (2.0) |
48.5 (1.91) |
23.3 (0.92) |
528.7 (20.81) |
| Average snowy days | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 15 | 12 | 114 |
| Source: [19] | |||||||||||||
References
Notes
- Law #33, Article 12.2
- Law #33, Article 16.2
- Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1 [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года [2010 All-Russia Population Census] (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service.
- The results of the 2010 Census are given for Uelkal Rural Settlement, a municipal formation of Iultinsky Municipal District. According to Law #148-OZ, Uelkal is the only inhabited locality on the territory of Uelkal Rural Settlement.
- Chukotka Autonomous Okrug Territorial Branch of the Federal State Statistics Service. Численность постоянного населения Чукотского автономного округа по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2016 года (in Russian)
- Law #149, Article 8
- "Об исчислении времени". Официальный интернет-портал правовой информации (in Russian). 3 June 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
- Почта России. Информационно-вычислительный центр ОАСУ РПО. (Russian Post). Поиск объектов почтовой связи (Postal Objects Search) (in Russian)
- Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation Archived 2012-02-07 at the Wayback Machine Iultinsky District (in Russian)
- Red Cross of Chukotka. Iultinsky District (Archived)
- Strogoff, p.129
- Soviet Gross Capabilities for Attacks on the U.S. and Key Overseas Installations Archived 2012-05-31 at the Wayback Machine, National Intelligence Estimate 11-7-55, Central Intelligence Agency, 1955.
- Село Уэлькаль (Uelkal Village) trrlserver.org
- Chukotka Autonomous Okrug Territorial Branch of the Federal State Statistics Service. Численность постоянного населения Чукотского автономного округа по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2014 года (in Russian)
- Отраслевой бизнес-справочник предприятий России Directory of Russian Industrial Companies, actinfo.ru
- Екатерина Зиберт — Крайний Север, 11 декабря 2012 года Yekatarina Eibert, Karayny Sever, 11 December 2012
- Pochtovik Mail Delivery Service Iultinsky District (in Russian)
- McKnight and Hess, pp.232–5
- "Weather Averages for Uelkal from meoweather.com". meoweather.com. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
Sources
- Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №33-ОЗ от 30 июня 1998 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №55-ОЗ от 9 июня 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу по истечении десяти дней со дня его официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №7 (28), 14 мая 1999 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #33-OZ of June 30, 1998 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #55-OZ of June 9, 2012 On Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of after ten days from the day of the official publication.). (in Russian)
- Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №149-ОЗ от 24 ноября 2008 г. «О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Иультинского муниципального района Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №85-ОЗ от 20 октября 2010 г «Об упразднении сельского поселения Нутэпэльмен Иультинского муниципального района Чукотского автономного округа и о внесении изменений в отдельные законодательные акты Чукотского автономного округа». Вступил в силу через десять дней со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №46/1 (373/1), 28 ноября 2008 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #149-OZ of November 24, 2008 On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Iultinsky Municipal District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #85-OZ of October 20, 2010 On the Abolition of Nutepelmen Rural Settlement of Iultinsky Municipal District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and on Amending Several Legislative Acts of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Effective as of the day ten days after the official publication date.). (in Russian)
- McKnight, Tom L; Hess, Darrel (2000). "Climate Zones and Types". Physical Geography: A Landscape Appreciation. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-020263-0.
- M Strogoff, P-C Brochet, and D. Auzias Petit Futé: Chukotka (2006). "Avant-Garde" Publishing House.
External links
- Uelkal photo gallery (in Russian)