Kursk Oblast

Kursk Oblast (Russian: Курская область, tr. Kurskaya oblast; IPA: [ˈkurskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ]) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Kursk. Population: 1,127,081 (2010 Census).

Geography

The oblast occupies the southern slopes of the middle-Russian plateau, and its average elevation is from 177 to 225 meters (580–738 ft). The surface is hilly, and intersected by ravines. The central part of Kursk oblast is more elevated than the Seym Valley to the west. The Timsko-Shchigrinsky ridge contains the highest point in the oblast at 288 meters (945 ft) above the sea level. The low relief, gentler slopes, and mild winter make the area suitable for farming, and much of the forest has been cleared.

The chernozem soils cover around 70% of the oblast's territory; podsol soils cover 26%.

Kursk

Kursk (Russian: Курск; IPA: [ˈkursk]) is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was the site of a turning point in the Soviet–German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history. Population: 415,159 (2010 Census); 412,442 (2002 Census); 424,239 (1989 Census).

History

Archaeology indicates that the site of Kursk was settled in the 5th or 4th century BCE. The settlement was fortified and included Slavs at least as early as the 8th century CE.

The first written record of Kursk is dated 1032. It was mentioned as one of Severian towns by Prince Igor in The Tale of Igor's Campaign: "Saddle, brother, your swift steeds. As to mine, they are ready, saddled ahead, near Kursk; as to my Kurskers, they are famous knights—swaddled under war-horns, nursed under helmets, fed from the point of the lance; to them the trails are familiar, to them the ravines are known, the bows they have are strung tight, the quivers, unclosed, the sabers, sharpened; themselves, like gray wolves, they lope in the field, seeking for themselves honor, and for their prince, glory."

Russian submarine Kursk (K-141)

K-141 Kursk (full Russian name Атомная Подводная Лодка «Курск» (АПЛ «Курск»), Atomnaya Podvodnaya Lodka "Kursk" (APL "Kursk"), meaning "Nuclear-powered submarine Kursk") was an Oscar-II class nuclear-powered cruise-missile submarine of the Russian Navy which was lost with all hands when it sank in the Barents Sea on 12 August 2000. It was a Project 949A Антей (Antey, Antaeus; NATO reporting name "Oscar II") submarine.

It was named after the Russian city of Kursk, around which the largest tank battle in history, the Battle of Kursk, took place in 1943. One of the first vessels completed after the end of the Soviet Union, it was commissioned into the Russian Navy's Northern Fleet.

Construction

Work on building Kursk began in 1990 at Severodvinsk, near Arkhangelsk. Launched in 1994, it was commissioned in December of that year. It was the penultimate Oscar II class submarine designed and approved in the Soviet era.

Capabilities

The Antey design represented the highest achievement of Soviet nuclear submarine technology. They were the largest attack submarines ever built. It was built to defeat an entire United States aircraft carrier group. A single Type 65 torpedo carried a 450 kg (990 lb) warhead powerful enough to sink an aircraft carrier. Both missiles and torpedoes could be equipped with nuclear warheads. She was 30 ft (9.1 m) longer than any other Oscar I-class submarine. The senior officers had individual staterooms and the entire crew had access to a gymnasium.

Kursk (disambiguation)

Kursk is a city in Russia.

Kursk may also refer to:

See also