Kursk Oblast is a region in Russia's Chernozemye region, bordering Ukraine to the west, Bryansk Oblast to the northwest, Oryol Oblast to the north, Lipetsk Oblast to the northeast, Voronezh Oblast to the east, and Belgorod Oblast to the south.
Although Kursk Oblast is most famously associated with the Battle of Kursk — the biggest tank battle in history — the heart of the battle actually took place to the south of Kursk, near Prokhorovka, Belgorod Oblast.
Kursk Oblast is a major center for iron ore mining in Russia, and one of its most unusual features is the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly. The Kursk Magnetic Anomaly is the world's largest such anomaly (a local variation in the Earth's magnetic field resulting from variations in the chemistry or magnetism of the rocks).
Without any knowledge of Russian it's hard to get around in this region.