Moscow- the capital ofRussia, the largestcityin the state, as well asindustrial, political,cultural and scientific center(oneof the most importantin the world).It is locatedin the Europeanpart of the country,on the riverMoscow,between the Volgaand the Oka.
Livein the Russian capitalabout12,769,000people, among them-Russian(84.8%), Ukrainians(2.4%), Armenians(1.2%), Azerbaijanis (0.92%), Jews(0.76%), Belarus(0.57%), Georgians(0.52%), Moldavians(0.35%), Tajiks(0.34%), Uzbeks(0.23%), Chechens(0.14%), Chinese (0.12%),Ossetians(0.1%), Kazakhs,Abkhazians, Turks,Iranians, Latvians,Lithuanians, Estoniansandpeople ofdozens of nationalitiesyet.
From the 13thcenturyit became thecenter of the principality,from the 14th-the capital cityof Northeast Russiafrom the end ofthe 15th-the capital of theRussianunified state.
Withtransferringthe status of capitalto St. Petersburg(1712).Moscowretainedvalue of the secondcapital city.
Moscow becamethe capital ofthe Russian Federationfrom 12March1918.,Russian Federation-since 1991.
Despite theconsiderable degree ofdevelopment,sizeof green areasin Moscow, according toMoscomarchitectureis about34,400hectares (3.1of the territory).The city has manyparks andforests,such asTemiryazevsky,Izmailovo Park, Filevsky,Lublin,Zamoskvoretskiy,Butovo,Bitsevskiyparks,Dull,botanicalgardens and other.
In the capital,there are more than200institutions of professionalhigher education;about 1.5 thousandcolleges,schools, high schools, boarding schools;more than 1.8thousandsof preschooleducation andabout 400municipal libraries.
Moscowis traditionallyconsidered to bethe country's largesttransportation hub.The city is locatedin the center ofthe intersectionof railways, highwaysFederation.At the momentin the Russian capitaloperatecontinuouslyninerailway stations, namely,Kazan, Belorussian,Paveletskiy,Kiev,Savelovskiy,Riga,Yaroslavl,KurskandLeningrad.182.1kilometers -is the length ofurbanrailways.
Our extensivecanal systemrecognizethe Russian capitalport of five seas.FromNorthernto the Southernriver stationscan be reached bycruise ships.Westernriver portin Moscowworkingas a cargosubsidiary.
Moscow region
Formed on January 14, 1929 . Area (no area of Moscow) 46 km2 . Population (excluding Moscow ), 6644 people ( 1995). Located in the center of the European part of Russia , between 54 and 57 ° north latitude and between 35 ° and 40 ° east longitude. The distance from the border area to the west of the state border of the Russian Federation ( with Belarus ) more than 250 km to the east (sea ) borders ( with Japan ) - more than seven thousand miles. Moscow region is bordered on the west by Smolensk , in the north- west and north by the Tver , north- east of Yaroslavl , on the east by Vladimir, on the south- east of the Ryazan region in the south with Tula , south- west of Kaluga regions. The administrative center of the Moscow region - Moscow .
Nature . The geographical position of the Moscow region as a whole determines the flat nature of the hilly terrain with alternating hills and flat lowlands . To the north of the border of the Moscow glaciation crossing the region from the south- west to north -east, dominated by glacial erosional landforms and moraines south - purely erosional landforms and covering loam .
In the far north of the region is almost flat, marshy places the Upper Volga lowland ( altitude 120 - 160 m) with a few low moraine hills. Within it are allocated separate lowlands - Shoshinskaya in the north- west and Dubninskaya in the northeast . South of the steep scarp rises 200 -kilometer Klin-Dmitrov Ridge - part stretching from the west to the north- east of the Smolensk- Moscow Upland ( 90-310 m in height ) , which occupies a large area field. Typical large moraine hills with flat tops and gentle slopes , interspersed with hollows , often swampy or filled lakes ( Trostenskoe , Senezh , made design , etc.) moraine- glacial origin. Deeply incised river valleys are narrow ( Iksha Yahroma , Istra , etc.) have in some areas lake- volume expansion, used under artificial reservoirs ( Mozhayskoe, Ruza , Ozerninskoe , Istra ) . Smolensk- Moscow Upland , coming spurs within the city in areas Tepliy Tushina and smoothly moves to the south in the erosion Moskvoretsko -Oka valley ( altitude 110-220 m), limited interfluve Moscow and Oka. The highest altitude recorded in the upper river. Lopasnya ( 236 m ) and Teplostanskoy hill (255 m) , which occupies the area of Moscow , Teply Stan .
For the central part of the Oka - Moskvoretsko characteristic undulating plains watershed , wide valleys and beams , in the southern part of the dismemberment becomes deeper and the surface is characterized by pologouvalistym relief, especially in the basins of Nara , Lopasnya , Severka and Kolomenka . There are landslides and sinkholes (near Serpukhov ) .
In the east, the area is flat and vast stretches Meshcherskaya lowland or Meschera (altitude 110-200 m) , with numerous swamps and shallow lakes, water- glacial origin ( Black , holy , great and so on). The western region of Meshchora comes in outside of Moscow from the north and north- east of the river valley . Jauzy to the valley of the Moscow River.
The extreme south of elevated north- eastern spurs of the Central Russian Upland ( up to 238 m, near the town of Pushchino ), which is slightly rolling erosion plain dissected by river valleys and gullies and ravines .
Minerals. In the Moscow region is extracted various minerals , there are more than 800 mineral deposits of different geological ages - pre-Quaternary and Quaternary . Proven reserves of sand Moscow region is one of the first places in Russia . The most valuable quality quartz sand used in glass industry since the end of the XVII century. ; Production is carried out in the area and Lyuberets Eganova . Widespread sand and gravel deposits , which are a source of raw materials for industry , including the production of silica brick , concrete, asphalt , etc. Especially rich deposits of construction sand and gravel of the Smolensk- Moscow Upland . Revealed numerous deposits of clay , among them - refractory and fusible clay used in the production of building ceramics , Kislotoupor ( near Kudinova and Gzheli ) . Unique field Gzhel clay, in the XIV century. marked the beginning of pottery , and in the XVI century. - A well-known ceramic Gzhelian fishing. In the Moscow region covering loam distributed on the basis of which work in brick factories Kuchinov , Mytishchi , etc. Among the carbonate rocks near the most valuable are limestone, dolomite , chalk , marl , calcareous tuffs , almost universally applicable as a natural building stone , technology rubble, in the manufacture of cement, lime , etc. It has long been appreciated by so-called white stone - platy in the treatment of soft limestone, which from the XIV century. used in the construction of " white- Moscow", its cathedrals and churches. Extraction was carried out in the quarries of the village Myachkovo ( myachkovsky limestone) , located on the bank of the river . Pakhra , near its confluence with the Moscow River. Received wide distribution in the XVIII-XIX centuries . "White stone" of Myachkovo went to the cover cap of the main facade of the old building of Moscow State University , the portico of the Bolshoi Theatre , Pashkov house walls , etc. The deposits of carbonate rocks are mainly concentrated in the south ( near Serpukhov , Kashira , Stupin , Silver ponds) , the south -eastern (near the train station and Voskresenska Sands) and east ( in the valley . Klyaz'ma ) parts of the suburbs. In the Moscow region deposits of phosphate rock , which, after appropriate processing are used as fertilizers - phosphate flour and superphosphate . In the area of Egoryevsk and the Resurrection are the largest in phosphate deposit - Egoryevskoe and Seversky . There are large deposits of peat , concentrated in the lake- marsh sediments of the Upper Volga and Meshcherskaia lowlands . There are also deposits of potassium salts (near Serpukhov , Kudinova , Egoryevsk ) , tripoli and flasks (district Khotkovo ), etc. An underground pools of saline waters (areas of Zvenigorod , Zelenograd , Klin , Serpukhov , etc.).