
The Poiana Ruscă Mountains (part of the
Western Carpathians)
are a
Carpathian mountain range in western
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
. The mountains are situated roughly south of the
MureÈ™ River MureÈ™ may refer to:
* MureÈ™ County, Romania
* MureÈ™ (river) in Romania and Hungary (''Maros'')
* MureÈ™ culture, a Bronze Age culture from Romania
See also
* Târgu Mureș, the capital of Mureș County
* Ocna MureÈ™, a town in Alba Cou ...
, northeast of the
TimiÈ™ River, and west of the
Strei River. The
Bega River emerges from these mountains. The nearest large towns are
Lugoj
Lugoj (; ; ; ; ; ) is a list of cities and towns in Romania, city in TimiÈ™ County, Romania. The TimiÈ™, TimiÈ™ River divides the city into two halves: the "Romanian Lugoj" that spreads on the right bank, and the "German Lugoj" on the left bank. Th ...
,
Hunedoara
Hunedoara (; ; ) is a municipiu, city in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in southwestern Transylvania near the Poiana Ruscă Mountains, and administers five villages: Boș (''Bós''), Groș (''Grós''), Hășdat (''Hosdát ...
, and
CaransebeÈ™.
The Poiana Ruscă Mountains cover an area of about , having mean altitudes from . The highest summit is the , at .
Mining
The mountains contain resources such as
magnetite
Magnetite is a mineral and one of the main iron ores, with the chemical formula . It is one of the iron oxide, oxides of iron, and is ferrimagnetism, ferrimagnetic; it is attracted to a magnet and can be magnetization, magnetized to become a ...
,
iron
Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...
,
thorium
Thorium is a chemical element; it has symbol Th and atomic number 90. Thorium is a weakly radioactive light silver metal which tarnishes olive grey when it is exposed to air, forming thorium dioxide; it is moderately soft, malleable, and ha ...
and
lead
Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...
, and as such are the site of many
mines. In the nineteenth century, the mountains were also centers of
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
,
silver
Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
, and
salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
mining and production.
However, after 1990 some mines were closed and others abandoned, leaving waste ore and radioactive mines still unprotected in the mountain range.
Divisions of the mountains
* Poiana Ruscă (literally: ''Ruscă Meadows'')
*
Lipova Plateau (''Podișul Lipovei'')
*
Bega-TimiÈ™ Groove (''Culoarul Bega-TimiÈ™'')
*
Orăștie Groove (''Culoarul Orăștiei''), including the
Hațeg Depression
Hațeg (; ; ) is a town in Hunedoara County, Romania with a population of 8,793 as of 2021. Three villages are administered by the town: Nălațvad (''Nalácvád''), Silvașu de Jos (''Alsószilvás''), and Silvașu de Sus (''Felsőszilvás''). I ...
(''Depresiunea Hațegului'')
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poiana Rusca Mountains
Mountain ranges of Romania
Mountain ranges of the Western Romanian Carpathians
Western Romanian Carpathians