| Sillamäe linn Sillamäe |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|||
  Sillamäe linn
|
|||
| Coordinates: 59°24′N 27°45′E / 59.4°N 27.75°E | |||
| Country |  Estonia |
||
| County | Ida-Viru County | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 10.54 km2 (4.1 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| - Total | 16,567 | ||
| - Density | 1,571.82/km2 (4,071/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | ||
Sillamäe is a town in Ida-Viru County in the northern part of Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland.
During the Soviet regime in Estonia, Sillamäe was a closed town mainly because of the chemical factory in there which produced fuel rods and nuclear materials for the Soviet nuclear power plants and weapon facilities. At first, uranium was mined in the same location, later it was imported from various locations from the Eastern Bloc, mainly Czechoslovakia. Uranium ore from the Bihor mine operated by Sovromcuarţ (one of the SovRoms operated jointly by the Soviet Union and Romania) was also processed at Sillamäe.[1] Rumor has it that the first Soviet nuclear bomb was created from the uranium mined at Sillamäe.
Near the city, there is located a beach and a spa (Toila and Narva-Jõesuu), used during the Soviet period for Communist Party members and leaders.
In 2005, a port was opened in Sillamäe. From 2006 to 2007 there was a regular ferry service between Sillamäe and Kotka, Finland.
Demographics
|
Population: |
Ethnicity (2000): |
|
Notes
- ^ Diehl
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sillamäe |
- Official website (available in Estonian, Russian and English)
- Peter Diehl, "Uranium Mining in Europe", 1995. Chapter 1
 |
This Estonia location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
