Outline of Tuva[edit]

Tyva, also spelled Tuva, also called Tannu-Tuva, republic in south-central Siberia, Russia. Tyva borders northwestern Mongolia and occupies the basin of the upper Yenisey River. Its relief consists of two broad basins, the Tyva and Todzha, drained by two main tributaries of the Yenisey River. High mountain ranges, including the Eastern Sayan and Western Sayan mountains to the north, enclose the basins. A continuous series of ranges also enclose the republic on the west, south, and southeast: the Altai, Tannu-Ola, and Sangilen mountains. The highest point is Mount Munku-Taiga (Mongun-Taiga; 13,044 feet [3,976 m]) in the extreme southwest. The climate is generally of the dry, sharply continental type, with severe winters and warm summers. Vegetation ranges from dry steppe in the basins to dense coniferous forests to alpine meadows that are succeeded by bare rock and snow at the highest elevations.