Commander Islands
Commander Islands
1,846 km2 (713 sq mi)
613
The Commander Islands, Komandorski Islands, or Komandorskie Islands (Russian: Командо́рские острова́, Komandorskiye ostrova) are a series of islands in the Russian Far East, a part of the Aleutian Islands, located about 175 km (109 mi) east of the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Bering Sea. Treeless and sparsely populated, the islands consist of Bering Island (95 km (59 mi) by 15 km (9.3 mi)), Medny Island (55 km (34 mi) by 5 km (3.1 mi)) and fifteen islets and rocks. The largest of the latter are Tufted Puffin Rock (Kamen Toporkov or Ostrov Toporkov), 15 ha (37 acres), and Kamen Ariy, which are between 3 km (1.9 mi) and 13 km (8.1 mi) west of the only settlement, Nikolskoye. Administratively, the Commanders compose the Aleutsky District of the Kamchatka Krai in Russia.
In 2005 the Comandorsky State Nature Reserve was nominated for the List of World Heritage Sites in Russia of UNESCO.[1]
Climate[edit]
The climate is relatively mild for its latitude, and maritime, with 220–240 days of precipitation per year. The cool summers are notoriously foggy. The Köppen climate classification would be classed as Dfc bordering on Cfc and Dfb.
The only permanently inhabited locality is the village of Nikolskoye on the northwest end of Bering Island, with an estimated population of 613 as of 2009. This consists almost entirely of Russians and Aleuts.[2] The majority of the island chain’s area, as well as much of the adjacent marine habitat, 36,488 km2 (14,088 sq mi), is taken up by the Komandorsky Zapovednik, a natural preserve. The economy is based primarily on fishing, mushroom gathering, the administration of the zapovednik (i.e. strictly protected wilderness), ecotourism and government services.
The village has a school, a satellite tracking station and a dirt airstrip to its south.
The other settlements on the two islands are small villages or scattering of houses: