Dniepropetrovsk or Dnepropetrovsk is Ukraine`s third largest city with 1.1 million inhabitants. It is located southeast of Ukraine`s capital Kiev on the Dnieper River, in the south-central region of the country. Dniepropetrovsk is the administrative center of the Dniepropetrovsk Oblast (province).
Within the Dniepropetrovsk Metropolitan area there are 1,860,000 people (2001)
A vital industrial center of Ukraine, Dniepropetrovsk was one of the key centers of the nuclear, arms, and space industries of the former Soviet Union. In particular, it is home to Yuzhmash, a major space and ballistic missile designer and manufacturer. Because of its military industry, the city was a closed city until the 1990s.
Dniepropetrovsk has a highly-developed public transportation system, including the Dniepropetrovsk Metro, which consists of one metro line with a total of 6 stations.
The city is built mainly upon the banks of the Dnieper river, in the loop of a major meander where the river changes its course from the north west to continue southerly and later south-westerly through Ukraine, ultimately reaching Kherson where it discharges into the Black Sea. This location always provided significant opportunities for the advancement of agriculture, mainly thanks to the natural irrigation provided by the river and the resulting fertile soils.
During the summer, Dniepropetrovsk is very warm (average day temperature in July is +24 to +27 °C (75 to 81 °F)), and in the winter, it is cold (average day temperature in January is −3 to +4 °C (+27 to +39 °F).
The best time for visiting the city is in late spring — second part of April and May, and early in autumn: September, October, when the city`s trees turn yellow. Long periods of rain are normal in autumn. Other times are mainly dry with a few showers.
The climate is a mixture of temperate and continental climates and sometimes in the winter it is very cold and snowy (sometimes dropping down to −10 to −15 °C), and in summer, the city is not very hot (up to +29 to +30 °C).