APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110023-8
FIGURE 3. Village in the northern plains (U/OU) (photo)
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FIGURE 4. Steep forested slopes along the Elbe River (C) (photo)
feet have occurred in the southern hills. Thunderstorms are fairly common in late spring and summer, when they occur on 3 to 7 days per month.
Average cloud cover is mostly 50% to 80% in summer and 70% to 90% in winter. Ceilings are lowest and visibilities poorest in late autumn, winter, and early spring. Fog, smoke, and haze are the chief obstructions to visibility.
Strong surface winds (28 knots or greater) are infrequent except at higher locations in the south, where they may occur on 10 to 15 days per month in winter and on 2 to 6 days per month in summer.
B. Military geographic regions (C)
East Germany is one military geographic region. Throughout the country, the combination of environmental conditions would have a relatively uniform effect on military operations.
Conditions are generally suited for conventional ground operations. Fairly extensive areas of nearly flat to rolling cultivated plains are well drained and suitable for the cross-country movement of wheeled and tracked vehicles, particularly south of a line from Magdeburg to Bautzen. There are scattered areas fairly well suited for cross-country movement of tracked vehicles in the northern part of the plains. Extensive areas of marshes and lakes on the plains and tracts of dense forests in the central and northeastern parts of the country preclude or restrict all but local movement. In the hills, steep slopes generally greater than 30%, dense spruce and beech forests, and deep winter snows in the Thueringer Wald are the major hindrances to movement.
Most streams would be difficult to cross during high-water periods. Ice breakup and snowmelt cause high water from early February through April, highest levels are in late March. Heavy showers during July and August may cause short secondary high-water levels. Flooding is common along lower stream courses during these periods. Low water usually occurs from mid-June or early July through October. Most streams are 2 to 10 feet deep, and principal rivers are generally more than 5 feet in their middle and lower courses. Many streams are more than 200 feet wide, but only the Elbe and the Oder are more than 500 feet wide. Except in the southern hills, streams generally flow sluggishly between low, marshy banks through broad, shallow valleys. Most streambanks and bottoms are clay or sand. Only tributaries originating in the southern hills and the upper reaches of major streams (Figure 8) have high, steep banks and rocky or gravelly bottoms. Streambanks and canals are usually revetted within cities. Cross-country vehicular movement would be restricted and channeled or compartmented by numerous drainage features, especially the broad, deep Elbe south of Magdeburg, the Oder along the eastern boundary, the many lakes and interconnecting canals and rivers, the extensive canal system linking the Oder and Elbe and focusing
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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110023-8
