The main river of America - description, characteristics

All the rivers of America, scientists are referred to the basins of the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Some of them also have internal drains. The longest river system is located right here - this is the Mississippi River and its significant inflow of Missouri.

Where does this river flow?

Many people know from childhood the book "Deniskin Stories", in particular, the story "The main rivers of America." Dragoon is very funny narrates, and those who read this work forever remember the name of the main river of America.

Mississippi is the main communication waterway of the continent of North America. She started her career in the state of Minnesota. The source of the river is Lake Itasca. It flows mainly in a southerly direction and exclusively within the territory of the United States, in 10 states. But its pool 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 occupies approximately 32,000 square kilometers, mostly lakes and marshes. Its width is 300 km.

Some statistics

The Mississippi Basin covers 31 states from the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachian Mountains. The river is part of the borders or it crosses such states as:

1. Kentucky.
2. Iowa.
3. Illinois.
4. Wisconsin.
5. Missouri.
6. Tennessee.
7. Arkansas.
8. Mississippi.
9. Louisiana.

In the list of the most important waterways of the world, the most important river in America is the fourth in length and the ninth in terms of fullness.

Characteristics of the channel

Mississippi is divided into two sections - 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 bed is flat. Soils are composed of alluvial deposits. The Mississippi river bed is winding with a lot of old men. On the plain, where the river flows, a lot of tangled channels are formed. There are also many floodplain bogs in this area. They flood all adjacent areas during floods.

Almost the entire main river of America, or rather, its channel, is bordered by coastal ramparts. In order to protect the riverbank from flooding, entire systems of artificial dams with a length of more than 4000 km have been created.

Upper Mississippi is rich in rapids and rocky rifts. From Minneapolis to the very mouth of the Missouri riverbed is covered with locks. More than 20 dams have been built on this territory. Missouri pours muddy water into the main river of America. For about 150 km, this stream adjoins the clear waters of the Mississippi.

In the period of floods, the water level in the Mississippi sharply rises. Some of these waters are discharged into Lake Ponchartrain, which is located near New Orleans. The remaining flood waters flow into the Atchafalaya River, which flows parallel to the Mississippi.

Sometimes floods acquire catastrophic proportions. It happens during the coincidence in the Mississippi and Missouri basins of the descent of melting snows and rain streams coming from the Ohio river basin . Even modern hydraulic structures can not save fields and populated areas from the worst floods.

Waterway

Most of the water receives a great river from heavy rainfall and melting snow. It is interesting that the right streams replenish the Mississippi more than the left ones. It is understandable, because these rivers are formed by the melting of snow from the Rocky Mountains.

Mississippi - the main river of America. 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 rail transport, the waterway of the Mississippi became less important. But in the process of development of the Great Lakes region the value of the great river increased again. To date, the length of the shipping routes is 25 thousand km. The cargo turnover of the river is about 7 million tons per year. The main goods transported along the Mississippi are:

1. Construction Materials.
2. Chemicals.
3. Petroleum products.
4. Coal, etc.

Dragoon describes the main water artery of the United States in great detail, many useful information contain this story. The main rivers of America include, of course, not only the Mississippi. In the northern part of the country there are a lot of such reservoirs.

If you look at Missouri from above, from a bird's eye view, you will see how it winds. It is very difficult for those people who "dared" to settle on its volatile shores.