Saturday, 7 July 2012

Top 10 Longest Rivers of the World

Earlier civilizations used to live on islands or on the lands near waters/rivers to farm and have their livings. There are rivers having forests aside them. Life is in and around the water.
So just have a look on the ten longest rivers of the world.

10 – Irtysh (2,640 miles)

Irtysh (2,640 miles)
The Irtysh River’s source lies in the Altai Mountains, Russia and joins the Ob River over 2,640 miles away and is on 10th number. Passengers and tankers and freight boats navigate the river between April and October, when it does not freeze over.

9 – Zaire (2,920 miles)

Zaire (2,920 miles)
The ninth number on our list of the top ten longest rivers in the world is the Zaire or Congo River, which starts at the Confluence of Lualab and Luapula rivers, Congo and runs into the Atlantic Ocean. It is 2,920 miles in length. The river is a lifeline with rails and roads in it. It is also valuable for hydroelectric power.

8 – Paraná (3,032 miles)

Paraná (3,032 miles)
The Paraná River in Argentina starts its journey from the Confluence of Paranaiba and Grande rivers and terminates at the Río de la Plata. Its length is 3,032 miles. It first merges with Paraguay River and then with the Uruguay River to form Rio de la Plata and in the end empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

7 – Huang He (3,395 miles)

Huang He (3,395 miles)
The Huang He or Yellow river is on 7th number. It is one of the longest rivers in the world, begins its journey in the Eastern part of the Kunlan Mountains, West China and ends in the Gulf of Chihli. Its length is 3,395 miles. The earliest civilization in China settled on the banks of the Huang He. Since then, the river has been a source of life and death (in form of new soil and floods). The river is a bringer of commerce as well. Ships of many sizes sail up and down the river, just as they have been doing for centuries.

6 – Yenisei (3,442 miles)

Yenisei (3,442 miles)
The Yenisei River begins in the Tannu-Ola Mountains, western Tuva, Russia eventually running to the Arctic Ocean. It has a length of 3,442 miles having the 6th number on our list.it rises in Mongolia, then following a northerly course to Yenisei Gulf in Kara Sea and drains a large part of Central Siberia, which is the longest stream which follows the Yenisei- Angara- Selenga- Ider river system.

5 – Ob (3,459 miles)

Ob (3,459 miles)
The river Ob starts at the Altai Mountains, Russia and ends at the Gulf of Ob and the length is 3,459 miles. It remains frozen from 5 to 6 months of the year but it is an important trade and transport route; Barnaul, Kamen-na-Obi, Mogochin and Novosibirsk are the main ports. There is a large hydroelectric power station at Novosibirsk. The largest gas and oil deposits in Russia are found in basin of the middle and lower Ob.

4 – Mississippi (3,710 miles)

4 - Mississippi (3,710 miles)
The Mississippi river begins at the Source of Red Rock, Montana and ends in the Gulf of Mexico. The length of the Mississippi River 3,710 miles and is the fourth longest river. The River is a watershed having an area of 1.2 million square miles. Its tributaries merge from 32 states and 2 Canadian provinces. Mississippi and its tributaries drain almost all the land between the Appalachians and the Rockies. The drainage basin is the third largest in the world, smaller only than the Amazon and Congo rivers.

3 – Yangtze (3,915 miles)

Yangtze (3,915 miles)
The Chang Jiang or Yangtze River begins at the Tibetan plateau, China and leads to the China Sea. The third longest river having the length of approximate 3,915 miles is Yangtze River. It has huge inland waterway for travel and industry and has got the world’s biggest dam.

2 – Amazon (3,990 miles)

Amazon (3,990 miles)
The Amazon River starts in the Glacier-fed lakes, Peru and ends in the Atlantic Ocean. The river runs from the Andes to the sea, and it is the second longest river in the world, having the length of 3,990 miles. It is also the largest one in terms of size of its watershed, the number of tributaries, and the volume of water discharged into the sea. The Amazon basin covers more than two and a half million square miles, which is more than any other rainforests. Along its entire length, no bridge crosses the river.

1 – Nile (4,132 miles)

Nile (4,132 miles)
The river Nile is the longest river in the world. It starts at the Tributaries of Lake Victoria, Africa and runs into the Mediterranean Sea. It runs through the ten countries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Egypt, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. It is about 4,132 miles in length and is the longest river in Africa as well in the world. Only 22% of the Nile’s course runs through Egypt, but it is generally associated with Egypt.

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