Siberia: Russia's Vast Northern Asian Expanse from Urals to Pacific

Siberia is the vast region of northern Asia constituting 77% of Russia's land area (13.1M km² / 5.1M sq mi) but only ~27% of its population (~33M).

Boundaries

• West: Ural Mountains (divide from European Russia).
• East: Pacific Ocean (Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea).
• North: Arctic Ocean (Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi Seas).
• South: Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China borders.

Character

• Climate: Extreme continental — winters to -60°C (-76°F), summers to +35°C (95°F). Permafrost underlies 65%.
• Biomes: Tundra (north), Taiga (vast coniferous forest), Steppe (south).
• Resources: Oil, gas, coal, diamonds, gold, nickel, timber, hydro — economic backbone of Russia.
• Major Cities: Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Omsk, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Vladivostok.

Siberia is not a political unit but a geographic macroregion; administratively divided into federal districts (Urals, Siberian, Far Eastern).