Not being the longest in Africa, the Congo River, however, is notable for its other features. It slowly rolls its mighty waters through the territory of the hottest continent of our planet and gives life to millions of people living on its shores. However, there are still not as many facts about the Congo River as we would like, because in the old day’s scientists did not pay enough attention to it, and today the surrounding lands are not too safe for researchers.
20 Interesting Facts about the Congo River :
* In terms of the water content of all the rivers in the world, it bypasses even the Nile, and is second only to the Amazon.
* The Congo River is the deepest in the world. In some places, the depth of its channel reaches 230 meters or more.
* The locals call it the upper course of the Lualaba, but in the European classification, this whole river from the source to the mouth is called the Congo.
* Its length reaches 4374 kilometers, which makes it the 10th in this parameter.
* Of all the major rivers in the world, the Congo is the only one that crosses the equator twice.
* In addition to its impressive depth and length, it also has an impressive width, sometimes reaching 15 kilometers.
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* It is noteworthy that even in the dry period, the riverbed does not lose its fullness. The phenomenon is explained by the fact that in the course of its length, the river crosses the equator twice. The Congo River basin is alternately replenished with water from tributaries of the northern and southern parts of the continent.
* The Congo River has the largest hydropower reserve in the world. This is due to a significant drop in the riverbed right up to its mouth, as well as the amount of water transported.
* 3 hydroelectric power plants have already been built on the Congo River, and several more are planned to be built.
* Swimming is not recommended where — there are goliath fish, or tiger fish, in the local waters. This predator, which grows up to 1.5 meters in length, is very dangerous, and can easily attack an unwary person.
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* Almost the entire length of the river is accompanied by tropical jungles. Many rare tree species grow in the forests, such as hevea, eucalyptus, mahogany, as well as various shrubs and other representatives of the African flora.
* In the river basin, you can meet herds of wild zebras, giraffes, cheetahs, and if you are patient and wait for a little at the shore, then you can witness how elephants, hippos, gazelles, and other animals flock to the watering hole.
* The Congo coast is rich in minerals such as nickel, zinc, silver, copper ore, and radium.
* The Democratic Republic of the Congo, located on the banks of the river of the same name, could become the richest country in the world since 80% of the world’s uranium ore reserves are located on its territory. However, the country is one of the poorest in the world.
* Located in the heart of Africa, the Congo River basin is the second largest on Earth — more than 4 million square kilometers.
* Among all the rivers in Africa, the Congo ranks second, second only to the Nile. These are the two greatest rivers of the African continent.
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* Some local peoples living on its banks believe that the spirits of death live in the river. Perhaps these beliefs are associated with dangerous river predators.
* Flowing into the ocean, the Congo River desalinates it 70-75 kilometers from the shore, as it brings a lot of water into it.
* For the first time, Europeans explored the Congo River at least partially in the XV century, but they were able to fully map it only in the XIX century.
* Most of the water it receives is due to the rains.
* In total, there are more than 900 different species of fish in the Congo River. The species diversity here is quite large.
* The largest city on its shores is Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of the Congo. It is home to a third of the population of this country.
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Conclusion :
The total length of shipping lanes running along the Congo River reaches 20,000 kilometers. This is equal to the length of half of the Earth’s equator.
We hope every fact would be made you say wow. We have picked some more interesting articles for you.
