Misplaced Pages

#660339

21-582: It is the source of the Anterior Rhine and is deemed to be the official source of the Rhine (the source of the Posterior Rhine is above Hinterrhein, Switzerland , at 46°29′56″N 9°03′54″E  /  46.499°N 9.065°E  / 46.499; 9.065  ( Source of Hinterrhein ) ). It is possible to reach the lake on a path from Oberalp Pass , suitable for most walkers although still

42-552: A confluence of tributaries can be a true river source, though both often provide the starting point for the portion of a river carrying a single name. For example, National Geographic and virtually every other geographic authority and atlas define the source of the Nile River not as Lake Victoria 's outlet where the name "Nile" first appears, which would reduce the Nile's length by over 900 km (560 mi) (dropping it to fourth or fifth on

63-463: A mountain trail. This article related to a lake in Graubünden is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Source (river or stream) The headwater of a river or stream is the point on each of its tributaries upstream from its mouth / estuary into a lake / sea or its confluence with another river. Each headwater is considered one of the river's sources , as it

84-485: Is considered a linear geographic feature, with only one mouth and one source. For an example, the Mississippi River and Missouri River sources are officially defined as follows: The verb "rise" can be used to express the general region of a river's source, and is often qualified with an adverbial expression of place. For example: The word "source", when applied to lakes rather than rivers or streams, refers to

105-638: Is the largest single inflow into the lake, contributing approximately 6.4 billion cubic metres of water a year (about 28 per cent of the lake's outflow ). The Kagera is formed by the confluence of the Ruvuvu and the Nyabarongo , close to the northernmost point of Lake Tanganyika . It forms parts of the Burundi– Tanzania , Rwanda –Tanzania, Burundi–Rwanda, and Tanzania– Uganda borders. It lends its name to Akagera National Park in northern Rwanda, as well as to

126-407: Is the place where surface runoffs from rainwater , meltwater and/or spring water begin accumulating into a more substantial and consistent flow that becomes a first-order tributary of that river. The tributary with the longest course downstream of the headwaters is regarded as the main stem . The United States Geological Survey (USGS) states that a river's "length may be considered to be

147-569: The Churn — although not without contention. When not listing river lengths, however, alternative definitions may be used. The Missouri River's source is named by some USGS and other federal and state agency sources, following Lewis and Clark 's naming convention, as the confluence of the Madison and Jefferson rivers, rather than the source of its longest tributary (the Jefferson). This contradicts

168-598: The Kagera Region of Tanzania. On the river are the Rusumo Falls , an important crossing point between Rwanda and Tanzania. It is near the town of Rusumo . The Kagera River basin is rich in fish. As of 2001 , there were at least 55 species known from the Rwandan section alone and the actual number is likely higher. Additionally, there are at least 15 undescribed species of haplochromine cichlids that are endemic to some of

189-608: The Smithsonian Institution , is also used by the National Geographic Society when pinpointing the source of rivers such as the Amazon or Nile . A definition given by the state of Montana agrees, stating that a river source is never a confluence but is "in a location that is the farthest, along water miles, from where that river ends." Under this definition, neither a lake (excepting lakes with no inflows) nor

210-733: The Kagera at Rusumo Falls, marking the Rwandan colonial era that officially started in 1899. And in 1916, during World War I , the Belgians defeated the Germans, entering Rwanda by the same route. The river gained international notoriety in 1994 for carrying bodies from the Rwandan genocide into Lake Victoria, causing a state of emergency to be declared in areas of Uganda, where these bodies eventually washed up. The Kagera rises in Burundi and flows into Lake Victoria. It

231-612: The Rwanda-Tanzania border, over Rusumo Falls and through Akagera National Park . It then takes a turn to the east, following the Tanzania- Uganda border and emptying into Lake Victoria in Uganda. In 1898, Richard Kandt was the first European to reach the source of the Kagera. The river has featured prominently in the histories of the countries it runs through, particularly Rwanda. In 1894, German Gustav Adolf von Götzen crossed

SECTION 10

#1733085587661

252-400: The combined Missouri—lower Mississippi length figure in lists of lengths of rivers around the world. Most rivers have numerous tributaries and change names often; it is customary to regard the longest tributary or stem as the source, regardless of what name that watercourse may carry on local maps and in local usage. This most commonly identified definition of a river source specifically uses

273-555: The distance from the mouth to the most distant headwater source (irrespective of stream name), or from the mouth to the headwaters of the stream commonly known as the source stream". As an example of the second definition above, the USGS at times considers the Missouri River as a tributary of the Mississippi River . But it also follows the first definition above (along with virtually all other geographic authorities and publications) in using

294-637: The lake's inflow . Kagera River The Kagera River , also known as Akagera River , or Alexandra Nile , is an East African river, forming part of the upper headwaters of the Nile and carrying water from its most distant source. With a total length of 597 km (371 mi) from its source located in Lake Rweru in Rwanda. The section of river named Kagera begins in Burundi , flowing out from Lake Rweru . From

315-574: The lake, it flows east along the Rwanda -Burundi and Rwanda- Tanzania borders to a confluence with the Ruvubu River . The waters of the Kagera are thus provided by two major tributaries, the Nyabarongo of Rwanda, which feeds Lake Rweru, and the Ruvubu of Burundi. It is unknown which of these two feeder rivers is the longer and hence the ultimate source of the Nile. From the confluence, the Kagera flows north along

336-479: The lakes in the upper parts of the river basin. Because of the many waterfalls and rapids, the various sections of the Kagera River basin are clearly separated, making movements by fish between them difficult or even impossible. During the Rwandan genocide of 1994, the Kagera was used to dispose of corpses as thousands of Tutsis and Hutu political moderates were murdered on the river banks. The river brought

357-613: The list of world's rivers), but instead use the source of the largest river flowing into the lake, the Kagera River . Likewise, the source of the Amazon River has been determined this way, even though the river changes names numerous times along its course. However, the source of the Thames in England is traditionally reckoned according to the named river Thames rather than its longer tributary,

378-598: The melting of glacial ice . Headwater areas are the upstream areas of a watershed , as opposed to the outflow or discharge of a watershed. The river source is often but not always on or quite near the edge of the watershed, or watershed divide. For example, the source of the Colorado River is at the Continental Divide separating the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean watersheds of North America . A river

399-636: The most common definition, which is, according to a US Army Corps of Engineers official on a USGS site, that "[geographers] generally follow the longest tributary to identify the source of rivers and streams." In the case of the Missouri River, this would have the source be well upstream from Lewis and Clark's confluence, "following the Jefferson River to the Beaverhead River to Red Rock River , then Red Rock Creek to Hell Roaring Creek ." Sometimes

420-496: The most distant point (along watercourses from the river mouth ) in the drainage basin from which water runs year-around ( perennially ), or, alternatively, as the furthest point from which water could possibly flow ephemerally . The latter definition includes sometimes-dry channels and removes any possible definitions that would have the river source "move around" from month to month depending on precipitation or ground water levels. This definition, from geographer Andrew Johnston of

441-501: The source of the most remote tributary may be in an area that is more marsh -like, in which the "uppermost" or most remote section of the marsh would be the true source. For example, the source of the River Tees is marshland . The furthest stream is also often called the head stream. Headwaters are often small streams with cool waters because of shade and recently melted ice or snow. They may also be glacial headwaters, waters formed by

SECTION 20

#1733085587661
#660339