Source: Suite101.com
The Amazon is the largest river in the world with a total discharge greater than the next ten largest rivers combined. It also has the largest drainage basin, about 7,050,000 square kilometers (2,720,000 sq mi), and accounts for approximately one-fifth of the world's total river flow.The width of the Amazon varies between 1.6 and 10 kilometers (0.99 and 6.2 mi) at low stage, but expands during the wet season to 48 kilometers (30 mi) or more. The river enters the Atlantic Ocean in a broad estuary about 240 kilometers (150 mi) wide.
Because of its vast dimensions, it is sometimes called The River Sea. At no point is the Amazon crossed by bridges. This is not because of its huge dimensions; in fact, for most of its length, the Amazon's width is well within the capability of modern engineers to bridge. However, the bulk of the river flows through tropical rainforest, where there are few roads and even fewer cities, so there is no need for crossings.
World`s Largest River
While the Amazon is the largest river in the world by most measures, the current consensus within the geographic community holds that it is the second longest river, just slightly shorter than the Nile. However, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries debate has intensified over the Amazon's true source and therefore its length. Some studies have concluded that the Amazon is longer than the Nile.
The quantity of water released by the Amazon to the Atlantic Ocean is enormous: up to 300,000 cubic meters per second (11,000,000 cu ft/s) in the rainy season, with an average of 209,000 cubic meters per second (7,400,000 cu ft/s) from 1973 to 1990. It is responsible for about 20% of the Earth's freshwater entering the ocean.
Source Of The Amazon
The most distant source of the Amazon was established in 1996, as a glacial stream on a snow-capped 5,597 m (18,363 ft) peak called Nevado Mismi in the Peruvian Andes, roughly 160 km (99 mi) west of Lake Titicaca and 700 km (430 mi) southeast of Lima, in the Apurimac district. The waters from Nevado Mismi flow into the Quebradas Carhuasanta and Apacheta rivers, which flow into the Río Apurímac, a tributary of the Ucayali which later joins the Marañón to form the Amazon proper.
Scientists are concerned about the behavior of the Amazon river, since its water level has been dropping during the last weeks ( s of August 20, 2010), and if this situation continues it is likely to affect all transport and commerce activities depending on navigation.
According to Marco Paredes Director of the national meteorologic service (Senamhi) in Loreto, the Amazon's waters level is dropping very fast, reports Peru21 magazine. “We are talking about approximately 25cm per day, which means one meter every four days. If this tendency continues, we will reach the minimum levels soon,” he warns.
“We are about to reach the most significant drop in decades, and this could have a negative effect because here all transportation activities are based on navigation”, he said.