Orulgan Range

The Orulgan Range is a range of mountains in far northeastern Russia. Administratively, the range is part of the Sakha Republic, Russian Federation.

History

In 1932 Soviet geologist Ivan Atlasov, professor of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, carried out geological surveys in Yakutia. He explored and mapped most of the Orulgan Range between the 69th and 67th parallel north, correctly determining the direction and total length of the mountain chain.

Geography

The Orulgan Range is the largest subrange of the Verkhoyansk Range system. It is located in its northern section, running along the main ridge, stretching southwards to the south of the Kharaulakh Range. The Dzhardzhan Range rises to the west and the Sietinden Range to the east, running in a roughly parallel direction, while the smaller Byrandia Range and Kuyellyakh Range rise in the southeast near its southern end.
The highest point of the Orulgan Range is an unnamed -high peak located in its central section. It is an ultra-prominent summit, and one of the highest peaks of the Verkhoyansk Range. The range has 77 mountain glaciers with a total area of approximately. The largest glacier is Kolosov Glacier, with an area of.

Hydrography

The Orulgan Range is deeply cut by riverine intermontane basins with the Undyulyung, Uel Siktyakh, Begidyan, Sobolokh-Mayan, Menkere, Dzhardzhan, Byosyuke, Tikyan, and other right tributaries of the Lena River flowing westwards. To the east flow the Omoloy and its Sietinde, Kuranakh-Yuryakh, and Arga-Yuryakh left tributaries, as well as the Bytantay, a left tributary of the Yana River.

Flora

The mountain slopes of the Orulgan are covered with sparse larch forests up to heights between and, and with rocky mountain tundra at higher elevations.