Why do some rivers flow faster than others?
I guess the actual size, width and depth has something to do with it, but I have seen three similar sized rivers in different places in the past year, and they all flow at differing speeds:
THAMES in London – quite sedately
SEINE in Paris – quicker than the Thames
ISAR in Munich – very fast, like white water rapids
All three rivers were of similar size and width in those places, but why do some flow faster than others?
Its to do with gradients and height.
Geographically speaking, London is lower than Paris and Munich. Paris is slightly higher than London but slightly lower than Munich. Munich is the highest of the 3, therefore the river flows faster as it has to drop a further distance on a steeper slope which brings us to gradients, the steeper the gradient, the faster the water will flow, so if both height and gradient are high, the water will flow faster.
6 responses so far
RUNOFF – A river is a component of the water cycle. The water within a river is generally collected from precipitation through surface runoff, groundwater recharge (as seen at baseflow conditions / during periods of lack of precipitation) and release of stored water in natural reservoirs, such as a glacier.
The rivers strength is based on it’s specific environment.
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Rivers always flow downhill.
But sometimes that "hill" may seem very flat; at other time it may be very steep. This is called the SLOPE.
Water moves fastest when the slope is steepest. Water running over a waterfall (very steep slope) runs very fast. Water meandering over the plain (very shallow slope) runs slow and quiet.
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it depends on several factors such as volume of water, restrictions, depth and so forth. basically the more down hill the course of the river is the faster the flow.
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Its to do with gradients and height.
Geographically speaking, London is lower than Paris and Munich. Paris is slightly higher than London but slightly lower than Munich. Munich is the highest of the 3, therefore the river flows faster as it has to drop a further distance on a steeper slope which brings us to gradients, the steeper the gradient, the faster the water will flow, so if both height and gradient are high, the water will flow faster.
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Now and then– not all of the time, it’s good to work things out and then check your answer. You may save time by just asking but it isn’t quite so much fun.
manadud…I like your answer. Its got me stumped because I can’t quite see how it’s wrong and I’m getting an ‘eadache. And that’s your fault.
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Nonsense the lot of you. Everyone knows that the moon controls the tides, well it also controls the rivers. Its obvious that Munich is closest to the moon so therefore the river there is fastest.
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Pullyourleg.com
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