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Amazon May Steal Title of Longest River From the Nile
Saturday, June 16, 2007
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The title of longest river in the world may not actually belong to the Nile, as has long been believed, a new study claims.
Scientists in Brazil say that the Amazon, which is recognized as the world's largest river in volume, is also the longest, BBC News reported.
Click here to read the BBC's report.
The Amazon, the study said, is 4,250 miles long while the Nile in Egypt is 4,160 miles.
The extra distance of the Amazon was added after an expedition into Peru pinpointed the source of the Nile as further south than previously believed. The source was the river had been thought to start in the northern section of the country.
Although the exact start of the river has not been confirmed between two different locations, either would still make the Amazon longer than the Nile, BBC reported. After the expedition, the Amazon is said to begin in an ice-covered mountain in southern Peru called Mismi. The team of researchers traveled 14 days in sometimes freezing temperatures to reach an altitude of 16,404 feet.
Guido Gelli, director of science at the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, told the Brazilian network TV Globo that it could already be considered as a fact that the Amazon was the longest river in the world.
The study was conducted by the National Geographical Institute of Peru.
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