The rivers of North America amaze with their beauty and diversity. Each of them has its own history of occurrence.
Educational History
When the water of the global flood left the lands of North America, or rather, at the end of the most ancient ice age, a great many rivers and lakes formed in the territory between the Atlantic, the Arctic and the Pacific oceans. These are lakes of glacial and tectonic origin. The retreating glacier left behind tectonic depressions along the way, which gradually filled with water.
Thanks to the glacier in the rivers and lakes of North America, there is such a large amount of water resource that it is second in volume only to Eurasia and slightly to South America. In their bulk, all the rivers and lakes of North America belong to the Atlantic basin, but a sufficient number of them belong to the basins of the other two oceans. The water in these lakes is s alty, streams and rivers do not flow from them.
The rivers of North America, belonging to the Pacific basin, flow through the plains up to the Cordillera. Beyond the Cordillera flow the rivers of the Atlantic basin. The mountains separate the two basins and are the largest watershed inNorth America. On the other hand, the Great Plains separate the rivers of the Atlantic basin from the rivers of the Pacific.
Appalachian Rivers of North America
In the east, where the Appalachian mountains stand, rivers born in these mountains flow from their slopes into the plains. An amazing fact: all the major rivers of the Appalachian region flow through the mountains. They cut the mountains with narrow but deep gorges. Those that are more authentic flow from the western slopes and fall directly into the Mississippi. One is Ohio, the other is Tennessee. These rivers feed only on rain and melt water. Tennessee is full of water and drains from the left side into Ohio. This river itself is formed, in turn, when the Holston River joins the French Broad River, falling from the western cliffs of the Appalachians. Since it does not rain every day, and the snow melts even less often, the feeding of these rivers cannot be called regular. We have to store water with the help of dams in some places and reservoirs in others. As a result, there are many scenic waterways between the rivers.
From the east, the rivers flow into the Gulf of Mexico almost parallel to the rivers flowing into the Atlantic. The largest and most significant of these rivers are the Savannah, Potomac, Roanoke, and James. And the longest of them is the Alabama River.
Rivers in the service of the people
These rivers are doing a good job of generating energy for North Americans. Somewhere in the seventh part, and this is at least, the energy resources of the United States provide water flowing from the mountains of the Appalachians.
The great rivers of North America supplymainland not only energy. They are still working, transporting on their waters a huge number of ships, steamboats, ferries and other water transport. Traveling by water is very attractive for tourists and other passengers who go about their daily business.
Great Lakes of North America
Besides the rivers, these places are famous for a large cluster of lakes. The Great Lakes of America are connected to the Atlantic Ocean. Michigan, a very beautiful lake called Ontario, also Huron, short Erie and above them Lake Superior, which is considered to be the largest freshwater lake in the world. These magnificent lakes are stepwise interconnected by rivers and canals, channels and streams. All this is combined into a beautiful system of river and lake routes. The name of St. Lawrence is the river that flows from the lake with the sonorous name of Ontario and flows into the bay, which, like the river, is called St. Lawrence. This is how the Great Lakes communicate with the Atlantic Ocean.
Between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, the famous Niagara River flows, falling like a waterfall from a height of 50 meters in three separate channels, into which the river is divided by Goat Island. It turns out three beautiful waterfalls, the largest in North America. These waterfalls attract a huge number of tourists from all over the world and provide energy at hydroelectric power plants built there.
Major rivers of North America
Behind the mountains of the Cordillera, on the eastern plains, the Missouri River stretches, which is replenished from all sides by the rivers flowing into it.plenty of water resources. There is no river in North America longer than the Missouri. For twelve thousand years she has been feeding many peoples on her shores. In its channel there are a large number of reservoirs and hydroelectric power plants. Floods are not uncommon on this river, although its most dangerous sections are fortified. The Missouri flows into the Mississippi. Every child knows its name because Tom Sawyer and his friend Huckleberry Finn sailed on it on a raft. This full-flowing river and one of the record holders for the length of rivers in the world. It flows from north to south, dividing the United States into two parts. Although these parts are not even, the river covers 10 states and is the border for some of them.
Furthest of all rivers to the north climbed Mackenzie. She has her own records. It bears the title of the longest river in the North and Canada. She also has a large supply farm. An endless number of rivers and streams feed the Queen of the North. The main part of its path, Mackenzie flows through the subpolar zones, flowing from the Great Slave Lake. The slave lake is unusually deep. It is deeper than its counterparts - the rest of the rivers and lakes of North America. The Mackenzie River plays a vital role in the country's economy. Ore and mined minerals are transported along it from the coast of Bear Lake. Along with the Mackenzie, another northern river - the Yukon - makes an important contribution to the economy, being a fishing one. Like Mackenzie, the Yukon is hidden under ice for many months, has many rapids in its channel, which makes these rivers of North America inconvenient for transporting people and goods. Yukon flows out of Lake Marsh and flows into the BeringStrait.
