Rivers nourishing the crops and supporting life.There are 165 major rivers in the world. The number for smaller ones could be somewhere in the thousands.
Rivers can vary in size, length, width etc. Some flow peacefully, some violently. There is no definition or rule on how big a flow of water must be to be categorized as a river.
A river is a natural water source, a flowing, moving stream of water. Water from a river can come from rain, melting snow, lakes, ponds, or even glaciers. Rivers flow downhill from their source.
Usually a river feeds water into an ocean, sea, pond, lake or even another river.
They provide a source of drinking water, fertilization of land, transportation of goods in ships. People mostly live nearby the rivers. Most of the world’s major cities are located near the banks of rivers.
The 10 longest rivers in the world are:
1. Nile – The Nile River is 6,655 km long. It is located in the continent of Africa, mostly in the countries of Egypt and Sudan. It flows north into the Mediterranean Sea. It is in Africa and originates in Burundi, south of the equator. It flows northward through northeastern Africa, flowing through Egypt and finally draining into the Mediterranean Sea. White Nile originates at Lake Victoria and the Blue Nile originates at Lake Tans in Ethiopia to meet the Nile River at Sudan.
2. Amazon – The Amazon River is 6,405 km long. It is located in the continent of South America and flows through several countries including Brazil, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Ecuador. It ends at the Atlantic Ocean.
3. Yangtze – Located in China, the Yangtze River is 6,300 km long and flows into the East China Sea.
4. Mississippi, Missouri – The river system of the Mississippi River and the Missouri Rivers is the longest river system in North America at 6,280 km. It flows south into the Gulf of Mexico.
5. Yenisei- The Yenisei River starts in Mongolia and flows through Russia to the Kara Sea in the Arctic Ocean. It is 5,544 km long.
6. Yellow – At 5,468 km long, the Yellow river is the 6th longest river in the world, but only the 2nd longest in China. It ends at the Bohai Sea.
7. Ob, Irtysh – The river system of the Ob River and the Irtysh River is 5,414 km long. It flows through Russia, China, and Mongolia on its way to the Gulf of Ob.
8. Congo – The Congo River flows 4,700 km through several countries in Africa before reaching the Atlantic Ocean.
9. Amur – The Amur River is 4,446 km long. It flows through Russia, China, and Mongolia and ends at the Sea of Okhotsk.
10. Lena – The Lena River flows through Russia on its way to the Laptev Sea in the Arctic Ocean. It is 4,400 km.
Gulf: A gulf is an inlet of the ocean or sea water into the land through a small opening. The gulf is surrounded by more land hence less open to the ocean and is bigger and deeper.
Bay: A bay on the other hand is an inlet of ocean or sea water into the land through wider opening. The bay is usually covered with less land and hence more open to the ocean or sea and is smaller and shallow.
Strait: A narrow body of water connecting two larger bodies of water. strait of Gibraltar shown.
Zia Ahmed Khan, email: khanziaahmed50@gmail.com
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