highest waterfall in the world
Highest Waterfall in the World
Angel falls of Venezuela is the highest waterfall in the world. Read the following article for some interesting facts about these scenic falls.
The people of Venezuela knew about the Angel falls, since the beginning of time. However, the entire world came to know about it after a United States pilot named Jimmie Angel, accidentally flew over these falls in the year 1935, when he was on a gold hunt expedition in that area.
Interesting Facts
- The Salto Angel falls is the world's highest waterfall. Its height is approximately 3212 feet (979 meters), and the single longest drop is 2648 feet (807 meters). This waterfall originates from the "Auyan-tepui" plateau, located in a highland area called La Gran Sabana. Angel Falls is actually located on one of the tributaries of the Rio Caroni river. It is formed when the tributary falls from Auyantepui. Auyan-Tepui in local language means "devil's mountain".
- The width of the Angel falls at the base is around five hundred feet. At the base lies the "Río Gauya" river, which further flows towards the Churun river; it is the tributary of the Carrao river.
- The unbelievable height of one of the most famous waterfalls of the world can be understood from the fact that, Angel falls is three times the height of the world's highest tower, i.e., the Eiffel Tower, and twenty times higher than that of the Niagara falls.
- Owing to its height, much of the water of this fall evaporates midway, or gets carried away by the strong winds that are present in this region. It is believed that the people who are within one mile radius of the falls can get sprayed by the mist coming from them.
- It is known by two other names- "Tulume Bena" and "Big River Falls". From a distance, it may seem that Angel falls is just one gigantic waterfall, but as one gets closer, there are a number of caves, canyons, and tunnels, in which the water enters and also exits out. The falls have an upper section, from where it plunges around 100 ft., and then enters a cave. Once it emerges from the cave, it takes another 150 ft. plunge. After this, the water directly falls along its long way to the surface. During the rainy season, the Angel Falls splits into a number of waterfalls.
- Today, it is included under the Canaima national park, which covers an area of three million hectares. This park is located in the south-western region of Venezuela. Angel falls is surrounded by tropical forests, grasslands, and mesas. There are numerous lagoons, rivers, waterfalls, and savanna all around it.