Kolesovsky Islands

The Kolesovsky Islands (Колесовские острова; Kolesovskye Ostrova) is an island group in the East Siberian Sea. It is located close to the coast in the Kolyma Bay (Kolymskaya Guba), south of the Konechnaya Channel and 13 Km east of the mouths of the Indigirka River.

There are only two sandy and low islands in the group:

*Kolesovskaya Otmel, 6.3 Km in length and 1.4 Km across, is the largest island. In satellite pictures it appears as two separate islands, a large one at the northern end and a small one at the southern tip. Probably most of the island's surface is a large sandbank that changes shape seasonally.
*Kolesovsky Island is much smaller, being only 3 Km long. This island is only 0.7 Km across and it is located 4 Km to the NW of Kolesovskaya Otmel, very close to a coastal landhead.

The bay where the Kolesovsky Islands lie is a desolate place in the long winters, when it remains frozen to depths of several metres for about 250 days each year. It becomes free of ice only in early June and the thaw lasts typically until October. The area surrounding the Kolesovsky Islands comes to life during the summer when there is commercial fishing in the surrounding waters. [ [http://www.grida.no/ecora/pdfb/actreports/act5.doc Commercial fishing] ]

Administratively the Kolesovsky group belongs to the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) of the Russian Federation. This island group is named after Kolesovo coord|70.900|N|151.833|E, the nearest town.

References

* [http://worldmaps.web.infoseek.co.jp/russia_guide.htm Geographical data]
* [http://land.worldcitydb.com/kolesovskiye_ostrova_4105751.html Location]
* [http://travelingluck.com/Europe/Russia/Sakha+(Yakutiya)/_2124415_Kolesovskiye+Ostrova.html#themap Picture]