The Congo River
The Congo is the world's eighth-longest river at 2,914 miles long. it begins at the junction of the lualaba and Levee rivers, in the Altai Mountains, and flows southwest to the Atlantic Ocean. Major tributaries include the Aruwimi, kasai, and Lomami rivers.
The river forms most of the border between Zaire and the Republic of Congo and drains more than 1,600,000 square miles of land. The river has a width in a range of 0.5 to 10 miles.
The Congo River gets up to 90 inches of rainfall a year. It has within its banks 30 waterfalls and thousands of islands, at least 50 of which are more than 10 miles in length.
Because the river flows for the most part near the Equator, the area around it is very hot. Much of the land surrounding the river is tropical rain forest and is home to hundreds of kinds of animals, including hippos, manatees, water snakes, crocodiles, tortoises, pigs, elephants, and 200 species of fish. In addition, insects such as mosquitoes and gnats are prevalent in the hot, humid conditions.
It's not all tropical rainforest, though. Some parts of the surrounding land are full of long grass called "barnyard grass." Many animals graze in this tall grass, including buffalo, antelopes, zebras, gazelles, and giraffes.
People live along the river and in the river basin as well. They fish in the river. They use it for irrigation to help water their peanut, cotton, tobacco, and sugarcane crops, all of which grow quickly in the humid air.
Just as has been done for hundreds and hundreds of years, people today use the Congo River for transportation, of both people and goods. It is not an uncommon sight to see a barge that is carrying wood or fuel or crops going up or down the river. With gasoline-powered barges, however, comes pollution.
The river forms most of the border between Zaire and the Republic of Congo and drains more than 1,600,000 square miles of land. The river has a width in a range of 0.5 to 10 miles.
The Congo River gets up to 90 inches of rainfall a year. It has within its banks 30 waterfalls and thousands of islands, at least 50 of which are more than 10 miles in length.
Because the river flows for the most part near the Equator, the area around it is very hot. Much of the land surrounding the river is tropical rain forest and is home to hundreds of kinds of animals, including hippos, manatees, water snakes, crocodiles, tortoises, pigs, elephants, and 200 species of fish. In addition, insects such as mosquitoes and gnats are prevalent in the hot, humid conditions.
It's not all tropical rainforest, though. Some parts of the surrounding land are full of long grass called "barnyard grass." Many animals graze in this tall grass, including buffalo, antelopes, zebras, gazelles, and giraffes.
People live along the river and in the river basin as well. They fish in the river. They use it for irrigation to help water their peanut, cotton, tobacco, and sugarcane crops, all of which grow quickly in the humid air.
Just as has been done for hundreds and hundreds of years, people today use the Congo River for transportation, of both people and goods. It is not an uncommon sight to see a barge that is carrying wood or fuel or crops going up or down the river. With gasoline-powered barges, however, comes pollution.
The river and its tributaries flow through the second largest
rain forest area in the world, second only to the Amazon
Rainforest in South America.
The river also has the second-largest flow in
the world, behind the Amazon; the second-largest drainage
basin of any river, again trailing the Amazon; and is the
deepest river in the world, at depths greater than 230
metres 750 ft.Its drainage basin is slightly
larger than that of the Mississippi. Because large sections
of the river basin lie above and below the Equator, its flow
is stable, as there is always at least one river experiencing a rainy season.The Congo gets its name from the ancient Kingdom of Kongo which inhabited the lands at the mouth of the river. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, both countries lying along the river's banks, are named after it. Between 1971 and 1997 the government of then-Zaire called it the Zaire River.
The sources of the Congo are in the highlands and mountains of the East African Rift, as well as Lake Tanganyika and Lake Mweru, which feed the Lualaba River, which then becomes the Congo below Boyoma Falls. The Chambeshi River in Zambia is generally taken as the source of the Congo in line with the accepted practice worldwide of using the longest tributary, as with the Nile River.
The Congo flows generally northwards from Kisangani just below the Boyoma falls, then gradually bends southwestwards, passing by Mbandaka, joining with the Ubangi River, and running into the Pool Malebo (Stanley Pool). Kinshasa (formerly Léopoldville) and Brazzaville are on opposite sides of the river at the Pool, where the river narrows and falls through a number of cataracts in deep canyons (collectively known as the Livingstone Falls), running by Matadi and Boma, and into the sea at the small town of Muanda. Due to its flow through some of the highest canyons, it has recently been discovered that the Congo River is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of 230 metres 750 ft.
rain forest area in the world, second only to the Amazon
Rainforest in South America.
The river also has the second-largest flow in
the world, behind the Amazon; the second-largest drainage
basin of any river, again trailing the Amazon; and is the
deepest river in the world, at depths greater than 230
metres 750 ft.Its drainage basin is slightly
larger than that of the Mississippi. Because large sections
of the river basin lie above and below the Equator, its flow
is stable, as there is always at least one river experiencing a rainy season.The Congo gets its name from the ancient Kingdom of Kongo which inhabited the lands at the mouth of the river. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, both countries lying along the river's banks, are named after it. Between 1971 and 1997 the government of then-Zaire called it the Zaire River.
The sources of the Congo are in the highlands and mountains of the East African Rift, as well as Lake Tanganyika and Lake Mweru, which feed the Lualaba River, which then becomes the Congo below Boyoma Falls. The Chambeshi River in Zambia is generally taken as the source of the Congo in line with the accepted practice worldwide of using the longest tributary, as with the Nile River.
The Congo flows generally northwards from Kisangani just below the Boyoma falls, then gradually bends southwestwards, passing by Mbandaka, joining with the Ubangi River, and running into the Pool Malebo (Stanley Pool). Kinshasa (formerly Léopoldville) and Brazzaville are on opposite sides of the river at the Pool, where the river narrows and falls through a number of cataracts in deep canyons (collectively known as the Livingstone Falls), running by Matadi and Boma, and into the sea at the small town of Muanda. Due to its flow through some of the highest canyons, it has recently been discovered that the Congo River is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of 230 metres 750 ft.
By Molly Smout &
Andreas Solomou
Andreas Solomou
Here please write a little bit about what you learned