All the rivers of America, scientists refer to the basins of the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Some of them also have internal drains. The longest river system is located here - the Mississippi River and its significant tributary, the Missouri.
Where does this river flow?
Many are familiar with the book "Deniska's stories" since childhood, in particular, the story "Main Rivers of America". Dragunsky tells a very funny story, and those who read this work will forever remember the name of the main river in America.
Mississippi is the main communication water artery of the mainland North America. It originates in the state of Minnesota. The source of the river is Lake Itasca. It flows mainly in a southerly direction and exclusively through the United States, in 10 states. But its basin also extends to Canada. The main river of America flows into the Gulf of Mexico, forming a vast delta of 6 branches. The approximate length of each is 30-40 km. The territory of the Mississippi Delta covers approximately 32,000 square kilometers, mostly lakes and swamps. Its width is 300 km.
Some statistics
The Mississippi Basin spans 31 states from the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachian Mountains. The river is part of the borders or crosses states such as:
- Kentucky.
- Iowa.
- Illinois.
- Wisconsin.
- Missouri.
- Tennessee.
- Arkansas.
- Mississippi.
- Louisiana.
In the list of the world's most important waterways, America's most important river ranks fourth in length and ninth in full flow.
Characteristics of the channel
Mississippi is divided into two sections - the Upper and Lower parts. After the beautiful waterfall of St. Antonio near the city of Minneapolis, the main river of America becomes navigable. In this place the relief of the channel is flat. Soils are composed of alluvial deposits. The Mississippi bed there is winding with a large number of oxbow lakes. On the plain where the river flows, many intricate channels are formed. There are also many floodplain swamps in this area. During the flood period, they flood all nearby areas.
Almost the entire main river of America, or rather, its channel, is bordered by coastal ramparts. In order to protect the river bank from floods, entire systems of artificial dams with a length of more than 4,000 km have been created.
The Upper Mississippi is rich in rapids and rocky rifts. From Minneapolis to the mouth of the Missouri River, the channel is covered with locks. More than 20 dams have been built in this area. The Missouri pours muddy water into America's main river. For about 150 km, such a flowadjacent to the clear waters of the Mississippi.
During the flood season, the water level in the Mississippi rises sharply. Some of this water is discharged into Lake Pontchartrain, which is located near New Orleans. The remaining flood waters flow into the Atchafalaya River, which runs parallel to the Mississippi.
Sometimes floods become catastrophic. This happens during the coincidence in the Mississippi and Missouri basins of melting snow and rain streams coming from the Ohio River basin. Even modern hydraulic structures cannot protect fields and settlements from severe floods.
Water artery
Most of the water the great river receives from heavy rainfall and snowmelt. Interestingly, the right streams replenish the Mississippi more than the left ones. It is understandable, because these rivers were formed by the melting of snow from the Rocky Mountains.
Mississippi is America's main river. This is the most convenient way to the center. In addition, the Mississippi is an important transport artery of the United States, which connects the developed industrial regions of the country.
In the early 1860s, with the development of the railroad, the Mississippi waterway became less important. But in the process of development of the Great Lakes region, the importance of the great river has increased again. To date, the length of navigable routes is 25 thousand km. The cargo turnover of the river is about 7 million tons per year. The main cargo moving along the Mississippi is:
- Building materials.
- Chemicals.
- Petroleum products.
- Coal and others
Dragoonsky describes in great detail the main water artery of the United States, this story contains a lot of useful information. America's major rivers include, of course, not only the Mississippi. There are also a lot of such reservoirs in the northern part of the country.
If you look at the Missouri from above, from a bird's eye view, you will see how it meanders. It is very difficult for those people who "dared" to settle on its changeable shores.
