Irkutsk () is one of the largest cities in Siberia. It is a fortified military post, an archbishopric of the Russian Orthodox Church, and the administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast. It is situated at , 5,185 km by rail from Moscow. In the most recent Census, taken in 2002, the city's population was 593,604. This was an increase from a figure of 500,000 in 1975, and a great increase over the 1900 and 1875 levels of 49,106 and 32,512, respectively.

Geography and Climate

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The town proper lies at the Angara, a tributary of the Yenisei, 45 mi (72 km) below its outflow from Lake Baikal, and on the bank opposite the suburb of Glaskovsk. The river, which has a breadth of 1900 ft (579 m) is crossed by a flying bridge. The Irkut River, from which the town takes its name, is a small river which joins the Angara directly opposite the town. The main portion of the town is separated from several important landmarks - the monastery, the fort, and the port, as well as its suburbs by another tributary, the Ida, or Ushakovka River.

As a Siberian city, Irkutsk experiences a continental climate, characterized by extreme variation of temperatures between seasons. Temperatures can be very warm in the summer, and brutally cold in the winter. The warmest month of the year in Irkutsk is July, when the mean temperature is 18°C (64°F), and the coldest month of the year is January, when the mean temperature is only -19°C (-2°F). Precipitation also varies widely throughout the year, with the wettest month also being July, when precipitation averages 119 mm (4.70 in). The driest month is February, when precipitation averages only 7.6 mm (.30 in), mainly due to the fact that almost all precipitaion during the Siberian winter falls as fluffy, low moisture content snow.

More on [ Irkutsk ]

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