Geography Chapter – 14 : Major Strait & Rivers
17 August, 2024
Introduction: Major Strait & Rivers
Major Straits
Strait is a thin waterbody that connects two big water masses and separates two land masses. The following table enlists the major Straits* of the world
| Strait | Connects | Separates |
| Bab-el-Mandeb | Red Sea to Gulf of Aden | Yamen (Asia) from Djibouti & Eritrea (Africa) |
| Bass strait | Pacific Ocean (No other water body) | Tasmania from the Australian mainland |
| Bering Strait | Bering Sea (Pacific Ocean) to Chukchi Sea (Arctic Ocean) | Russia from Alaska (USA) |
| Bosphorus Strait | Black Sea to Sea of Marmara | Asian Turkey from European Turkey |
| Davis strait | Baffin Bay to Atlantic Ocean | Greenland from Nunavut (Canada’s Baffin Island) |
| Denmark strait | Atlantic Ocean (No other water body) | Iceland from Greenland |
| Dover strait | English Channel & North Sea | England from France |
| English Channel | North Sea & Atlantic Ocean | England from France |
| Florida Strait | Gulf of Mexico to Atlantic Ocean | Florida (USA) from Cuba |
| Gibraltar Strait | Atlantic Ocean to Mediterranean Sea | Spain (Europe) from Morocco (Africa) |
| Hormuz strait | Gulf of Oman to Persian Gulf | UAE & Oman from Iran |
| Hudson strait | Atlantic Ocean to Hudson Bay | Baffin Island from Quebec (in Canada) |
| Magellan strait | Pacific Ocean to Atlantic Ocean | Mainland South America from north and Tierra del Fuego to the south (South America) |
| Malacca Strait | South China Sea to Andaman Sea | Malay Peninsula from Indonesian island |
| Mozambique Strait | Indian Ocean (No other water body) | Madagascar from Mozambique |
| Palk Strait | Bay of Bengal to Gulf of Mannar | India from Sri Lanka |
| Sunda Strait | Indian Ocean to Java Sea | Islands of Java from Sumatra (Indonesia) |
Major Rivers
| River | Length (in KM) | Ending Point | Location |
| Nile | 6,650 | Mediterranean Sea | Africa |
| Amazon | 6,400 | Atlantic Ocean | South America |
| Yangtze | 6,300 | East China Sea | China (Asia) |
| Mississippi–Missouri | 6,275 | Gulf of Mexico | USA |
| Yenisei–Angara– Selenge | 5,539 | Kara Sea | Russia |
| Yellow River (Huang He) | 5,464 | Bohai Sea | China (Asia) |
| Ob–Irtysh | 5,410 | Gulf of Ob | Asia |
| Paraná – Río de la Plata | 4,880 | Atlantic Ocean | South America |
| Congo–Chambeshi (Zaïre) | 4,700 | Atlantic Ocean | Africa |
| Amur–Argun | 4,444 | Sea of Okhotsk | Asia |
Waterfalls
The following table enlists the major Waterfalls (Based on Height) of the world
| Waterfalls | Height (in Meters) | Location | On (River) |
| Angel Falls | 979 | Venezuela | Churun River (a tributary of Orinoco River) |
| Tugela Falls | 948 | South Africa | Tugela River |
| Tres Hermanas Falls | 914 | Peru | N/A |
| Olo’upena Falls | 900 | Hawaii (USA) | N/A |
| Yumbilla Falls | 896 | Peru | N/A |
The following table enlists the major Waterfalls (Based on Flow Rate) of the world
| Waterfalls | Mean annual flow rate (m3/s) | Width (m) | River |
| Boyoma Falls | 17,000 | 1,372 | Lualaba |
| Guaíra Falls | 13,300 | Parana | |
| Khone Phapheng Falls | 11,610 | 10,783 | Mekong |
| Niagara Falls | 2,407 | 1,203 | Niagara |
| Iguazú Falls | 1,746 | 2,700 | Iguazu |
Deserts
The following table enlists the major Hot Desert of the world −
| Hot Desert | Area (in Sq. km)* | Located in |
| Sahara Desert | 9,100,000 | North Africa |
| Arabian Desert | 2,600,000 | West Asia (Middle East) |
| Great Victoria Desert | 647,000 | Australia |
| Kalahari Desert | 570,000 | South of Africa |
| Great Basin Desert | 490,000 | North America |
| Syrian Desert | 490,000 | Middle East |
| Karoo Desert | 400,000 | South Africa |
| Thar Desert | 376,000 | India & Pakistan |
| Chihuahuan Desert | 362,600 | Mexico |
| Great Sandy Desert | 284,993 | Northwestern Australia |
| Sonoran Desert | 260,000 | USA & Mexico |
| Simpson Desert | 176,500 | Central Australia |
| Gibson Desert | 156,000 | Western Australia |
| Mojave Desert | 124,000 | USA |
| Atacama Desert | 105,000 | South America |
| Namib Desert | 81,000 | South-west of Africa |
The following table illustrates the major Cold Desert of the world −
| Cold Desert | Area (in Sq. km) * | Located in |
| Antarctica | 14,000,000 | Antarctica |
| Arctic Desert | N/A | Arctic |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 | Greenland |
| Russian Arctic | N/A | Russia |
| Gobi Desert | 1,300,000 | China & Mongolia (Asia) |
| Patagonian Desert | 670,000 | South America |
| Karakum Desert | 350,000 | Turkmenistan |
| Taklamakan Desert | 337,000 | China |
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