The very existence of human civilization cannot be imagined without rivers, because it was along them that people always sought to settle, they became the pillar of civilization. They also provide the necessary water and watering for agricultural animals for agricultural activities.

To this day, in many countries, people tend to live near rivers, despite all the risks that may be associated with this. But what are the longest rivers of the planet?

Fifth place - Yenisei

The Yenisei is considered not as a single river, but as a whole system, which also consists of the Angara, the Selenga. In Russia, this system is the longest, and for the country is put in first place. The length of the entire system, which originates from the Khangai mountains of Mongolia, is 5.539 km The source streams create the Selenga River, which flows through Lake Baikal, becoming the Angara at the exit, and then passing to the Yenisei. After another 3,500 km, water flows into the Kara Sea.

This river system began to deteriorate greatly after the construction of the hydroelectric power station, and at the moment it causes serious concerns among ecologists who immediately see a list of problems.

Fourth Place - Mississippi - Missouri System

These rivers create a system in North America, and flowing from one another, have a length of 6.275 km. For North America, this is the largest river system, and one of its parts, it goes to Canada.The origins come from the Rocky Mountains, and crossing the mainland, pour into the Atlantic Ocean.

Each of the rivers has a length of about 3 thousand km, while the Mississippi has serious environmental problems - its waters are very heavily polluted with chemicals that enter the river from fields and agricultural facilities. Falling into the Gulf of Mexico, the river carries toxic substances into the oceans.

Third place - Yangtze

The Yangtze is a Chinese river, again, the longest in its country. Its name is translated from Chinese - “long river”, and it occupies the third place in the world ranking. The total length of this reservoir is 6.300 km, and throughout this length around the river people live.Overall, a third of the Chinese population lives in its basin., and the pool with numerous branches and rivulets occupies a fifth of the country's area.

The sources of the river are located at an altitude of 5,000 km in Tibet, some parts of the reservoir are reserved for nature protection zones. There are many endangered species, these are some fish, and even mammals.

Second Place - Nile

If some river has become the real cradle of civilization, then this is, first of all, the Nile, which nurtured Great Egypt. Its length is 6.852 km, and the origins of this mighty river are also at an altitude of 2,000 km - this is the African plateau, the old mountains of the continent.

The rains in this area do not stop almost never, and the water collects in the Nile and sets off on its journey to the Mediterranean Sea. In the lower reaches of the river, tributaries join it, but the last 3,000 km go through the desert, where there are no tributaries, and only evaporation and water intake are carried out.To this day, 97 percent of Egyptians live along the coast of this waterway.

The longest river in the world

Amazon is the longest river in the world. Children will learn about the great waterway of South America in their school years. The Amazonian lowland gave rise to an amazing river, which for the time being figured as the second longest, but now it has been proved that it is it that is the longest - and at the same time the most full-flowing. Amazonian waters cover 7,000 km, originating from the Ukayali river. In addition, the largest system of this river is considered to be 100 thousand square kilometers, and its delta is distinguished by the presence of the world's largest river island Marajo, which has 40 thousand square kilometers. Exploration of the rivers is far from its final stage, to this day expeditions go to the origins of some of them to find the starting point and calculate the exact length.

The calculation of lengths is also complicated by the tortuosity of the rivers and the terrain. However, modern equipment and the efforts of scientists allow us to find out fairly accurate coordinates, and in addition, useful data is added through satellite imagery.

Ponds located in impenetrable jungles still present new surprises to people in the form of newly discovered waterfalls, new streams and other objects, one after the other brought to the map. You can read more about the longest river in the world in our article:the longest river in the world.

The planet is still not fully explored, but the list of the largest rivers will probably remain unchanged.The Yenisei, Mississippi, Yangtze, the Nile and the Amazon top this list, although there are many other large rivers and systems that are worthy of attention and amaze the human imagination.