Rio de la Plata
The Rio de la Plata (or River Plate) is the estuary formed from the combination of the Uruguay River and the Parana River. It is a funnel-shaped indentation on the southern coast of South America, 290 km (180 miles) long. Where the rivers join it is 48 km (30 miles) wide, increasing to 220 km (136 miles) wide where it opens on the Atlantic Ocean. It forms part of the border between Argentina and Uruguay, with the major ports of Buenos Aires in the southwest and Montevideo in the northeast.
An estimated 57 million m³ (2 billion cubic feet) of silt is carried into the estuary each year, where the muddy waters are stirred up by winds and tides. The shipping route from the Atlantic to Buenos Aires is kept open by constant dredging.
The Rio de la Plata is also a habitat for the rare La Plata Dolphin.
See also Battle of the River Plate.
Reference
- NASA Space Shuttle Earth Observations Photography database, as of March 8, 2003; [1]
Referenced By
Argentina | Argentine Confederation | Argentine Republic | Battle of the River Plate | Buenos Aires City | Dirty War | Ferdinand Magellan | Fernão de Magalhães | ISO 3166-1:AR | ISO 3166-1:UY | Juan Diaz de Solís | List of United States Rivers | List of country name etymologies | List of rivers of the Americas | Montevideo | Rivers of America | Rivers of the Americas | Silver | The Battle of the River Plate | Uruguay | War of the Pacific
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