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Rybinsk Reservoir
Rybinsk Reservoir, the lock
Rybinsk ReservoirShow map of Yaroslavl OblastRybinsk ReservoirShow map of Tver OblastRybinsk ReservoirShow map of Vologda OblastRybinsk ReservoirShow map of European Russia
Coordinates	58°22′N 38°26′E / 58.367°N 38.433°E / 58.367; 38.433
Type	Hydroelectric reservoir
Primary inflows	Volga, Sheksna, Mologa
Basin countries	Russia
Surface area	4,580 km (1,770 sq mi)
Average depth	5.6 m (18 ft)
Max. depth	30 m (98 ft)
Water volume	25.4 km (6.1 cu mi)
Surface elevation	102.4 m (336 ft)
Settlements	Cherepovets Vesyegonsk

Rybinsk Reservoir (Russian: Рыбинское водохранилище, romanized: Rybinskoye vodokhranilishche, IPA: [ˈrɨbʲɪnskəɪ vədəxrɐˈnʲilʲɪɕə]), informally called the Rybinsk Sea, is a water reservoir on the Volga River and its tributaries the Sheksna and Mologa, formed by Rybinsk Hydroelectric Station dam, located in the Tver, Vologda, and Yaroslavl Oblasts. At the time of its construction, it was the largest man-made body of water on Earth. It is the northernmost point of the Volga. The Volga–Baltic Waterway starts from there. The principal ports are Cherepovets in Vologda Oblast and Vesyegonsk in Tver Oblast.

The construction of the dam in Rybinsk started in 1935. The filling of the reservoir started on April 14, 1941, and continued until 1947. Some 150,000 people had to be resettled elsewhere, and the historic town of Mologa in Yaroslavl Oblast along with 663 villages completely disappeared under water. Today the dam is less important for hydroelectric power supply (output is 346 MW) than it used to be.

References

1. Paul R. Josephson. Industrialized Nature: Brute Force Technology and the Transformation of the Natural World. Island Press, 2002. ISBN 1-55963-777-3. Page 31.

External links

• Detailed map of the reservoir (in Russian)
• Webpage of the Leushino Monastery, now submerged under the waters of the Rybinsk Sea (in Russian)

v t e Volga River
Tributaries	Selizharovka Tudovka Vazuza Tvertsa Shosha Dubna Medveditsa Nerl Kashinka Sit Mologa Suda Sheksna Sogozha Korozhechna Kotorosl Kostroma Nyomda Unzha Uzola Oka Kudma Kerzhenets Sura Vetluga Rutka Tsivil Great Kokshaga Little Kokshaga Anish Ilet Sviyaga Sumka Kazanka Kama Aktay Bezdna Bolshoy Cheremshan Sok Samara Chapayevka Little Irgiz Irgiz Tereshka Yeruslan Akhtuba (distributary)
Reservoirs	Lake Volgo Ivankovo Uglich Rybinsk Gorky Cheboksary Kuybyshev Saratov Volgograd
Hydroelectric stations	Ivankovo Uglich Rybinsk Nizhny Novgorod Cheboksary Zhiguli Saratov Volga
Canals	Moscow Canal Volga–Baltic Waterway Volga–Don Canal
Cities	Astrakhan Volgograd Saratov Samara Kazan Ulyanovsk Nizhny Novgorod Yaroslavl Tver

• Reservoirs built in the Soviet Union
• Reservoirs in Russia
• Reservoirs in Tver Oblast
• Reservoirs in Vologda Oblast
• Reservoirs in Yaroslavl Oblast
• Volga basin