:: wikimiki.org ::
| Rapido River |
Rapido RiverThe Rapido is a river in Italy, which flows near Sant'Angelo.
It was the site of a bloodliy repulsed assault by the U.S. 36th Infantry Division in January 1944. The Allies were attempting to establish a bridgehead to launch attacks on the Gustav Line near Monte Cassino.
River:For the Second World War frigate class, see River class frigate. For the state of Nigeria, see Rivers State.
MyScene.]]
A river is a large natural waterway. It is a specific term in the vernacular for large streams, stream being the umbrella term used in the scientific community for all flowing natural waterways. In the vernacular, stream may be used to refer to smaller streams, as may creek, run, fork, etc.
Passage via a river or stream is the usual way rainfall on land finds its way to the ocean or other large body of water such as a lake. A river consists of several basic parts, originating from headwaters or a spring at the source, that flow into the main stream. Smaller side streams that join the river are tributaries. Water flow is normally confined to a channel, with a bottom or bed between banks. The lower end of a river is its base level, commonly called its mouth, a river typically widens at its end and forms what is known as a river delta or estuary.
Topography
estuary.]]A river conducts water by constantly flowing perpendicular to the elevation curve of its bed, thereby converting the positional energy of the water into kinetic energy. Where a river flows over relatively flat areas, the river will meander: start to form loops and snake through the plain by eroding the river banks. Loops that are formed are sometimes cut off, forming a shorter river channel and leaving a remnant, oxbow lake. Rivers that carry large amounts of sediment develop conspicuous deltas at their mouths. Rivers whose mouths are in saline tidal waters may form estuaries.
There are 4 main types of rivers. These types are:
- Youthful river - a river with a steep gradient that has very few tributaries and flows quickly. Its channels erode deeper rather than wider.
- Mature river - a river with a gradient that is less steep than those of youthful rivers and flows more slowly than youthful rivers. A mature river is fed by many tributaries and has more discharge than a youthful river. Its channels erode wider rather than deeper.
- Old river - a river with a low gradient and low erosive energy. Old rivers are characterized by flood plains.
- Rejuvenated river - a river with a gradient that is raised by the earth's movement.
Where a river descends quickly over sloped topography, rapids with whitewater or even waterfalls occur. Rapids are often used for recreational purposes (see Whitewater kayaking). Waterfalls are sometimes used as sources of energy, via watermills and hydroelectric plants.
Rivers begin at their source in higher ground, either rising from a spring, forming from glacial meltwater, flowing from a body of water such as a lake, or simply from damp, boggy places where the soil is waterlogged. They end at their base level where they flow into a larger body of water, the sea, a lake, or as a tributary to another (usually larger) river. In arid areas rivers sometimes end by losing water to evaporation and percolation into dry, porous material such as sand, soil, or pervious rock. The area drained by a river and its tributaries is called its watershed or catchment basin. (Watershed is also used however to mean a boundary between catchment basins.)
Starting at the mouth of the river and following it upstream as it branches again and again the resulting river network forms a dendritic (tree-like) structure that is an example of a natural random fractal.
Biology
The flora and fauna of rivers are much different from those of the ocean because the water is fresh (non-salty). Living things in a river must be adapted to the current of the moving water.
Pollution
Human pollution of rivers is common, and very few rivers in the world today are clean of man-made substances. The most common pollutant is sewage piped into rivers, but chemical pollution is also common, and industrial accidents (and/or negligence) account for much of the destruction of riparian biomes. Heated water dumped into rivers by power plants and factories also affects river life.
Navigation
The Rhine is the busiest river in the world for transport ships. Inland vessels use the river to reach the major cities in Germany, Eastern France and Switzerland to transport bulk goods, liquids, containers AND passengers into the hinterland of the Port of Rotterdam and the ports of Amsterdam and Antwerp. Many millions of tons of goods are transported upstream yearly from these three sea ports to the industries near Nijmegen, Duisburg, Düsseldorf, Neuss, Köln, Koblenz, Mainz, Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Strasbourg, Colmar, Mulhouse and Basel.
The lower part of the river is navigable for the largest inland vessels (up to 135 meters long and 17 meters wide) with an available depth of more than 2,50 even at the lower water levels. The further upstream, the more depth restrictions: at low water periods draught of ships is often limited to 1,90 m. for the stretch around Bingen (between the mouths of the Mosel and the Main).
Upstream from Karlsruhe the Rhine is the border between France and Germany. The French have canalized the river by means of a series of hydropower dams and double ship locks, thus ensuring a year round navigable depth of 3.50 meters. (Source: NoorderSoft Waterways Database)
Dams
In places where the elevation changes of a river are great, dams for hydroelectric plants and other purposes are often built. This disrupts the natural flow of the river, and creates a lake behind the dam. Often the building of dams affects the whole of the river, even the part above the dam, as migrating fish are hindered (see fish ladder), waterflow is no longer bounded by seasonal changes and sediment flow is blocked. Dams are useful in many ways, such as providing HEP, acting as regulator of river flow so as to regulate the occurrence of flooding, which is especially important to wet-rice agriculture, and also to improve navigation and transport on the river. Often, dams such as Hoover Dam along Colorado River become famous tourist attractions. However, critics of dams, especially 'Green' advocates, argue that dams remove upper-river biodiversity such as through deforestation and forced migration of rural villages and indigenous tribes. Furthermore, trapping of river sediments behind the dams lead to salination and loss of nutrients for down-water fish. It also raises concern of eathquakes due to instablity of incompetent dams which have to support thousands of tonnes of sediments behind them. One very famous, and problematic, dam is the Aswan High Dam in the Nile.
Flooding
Flooding is a natural part of a river's cycles. Human activity, however, has upset the natural way flooding occurs by walling off rivers and straightening their courses. Removal of bogs, swamps and other wetlands in order to produce farmland has reduced the absorption zones for excess water and made floods into sudden disasters rather than gradual increases in water flow. In ancient Egypt, life was made possible through the floods of the Nile and the accompanying silt and sediment which enriched the fields with fresh nutrients. Nowadays, since people have built on these floodplains, floods are disasters, causing untold property loss each year.
Human interference in the form of deforestation can also worsen conditions. The removal of vegetation leads to a reduction in Interception (vegetation stopping precipitation) and the 'weakening' of soil since plant roots no longer hold it together. As a result there is a reduced Infiltration capacity (how much water the soil can hold) and greater infiltration (precipitation going into the ground). This leads to faster soil saturation and therefore greater overland flow (also known as surface run off) and therefore, there are flash floods as the lag time decrease.
Logjams
Logjams are barriers within rivers, created by dead and uprooted trees. Over time, the obstruction prevents further logs to bypass, resulting in the creation of new network channels. According to author David R. Montgomery in his book, King of Fish, a logjam also causes water to buildup within a small space, forming peaceful pools within the main channel for young salmon to live within. The existence of these deep pools along with the complex web of channels creates an ideal salmon habitat. Today, many believe that the rebuilding of salmon runs is contingent upon reproducing the same environment shaped by logjams. As a result, many scientists have attempted to recreate artificial logjams. Marc Duboiski and Mike Ramsey of the Salmon Recovery Funding board staff, George Pess of the National Marine Fisheries Service, and Kevin Bauersfeld of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife have prepared the Report to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board On the Engineered Log Jam (ELJ) Workshop ([http://iac.wa.gov/Documents/SRFB/Log_Jam_Report.pdf#search='log%20jams%20and%20salmon']), with the hope of mimicking natural logjams.
Report to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board On the Engineered Log Jam (ELJ) Workshop."]]
Management
In its natural state a river may be inconvenient to man in a variety of ways. Rivers in inhabited areas have therefore been managed or controlled to make them more useful and less disruptive to human activity.
- The river channel may be dredged to make it deeper for navigation or to prevent flooding.
- Dams (see above) or weirs may be built to control the flow, store water, or extract energy.
- Levees may be built to prevent flooding.
- Sluice gates provide a means of controlling flow and adjusting river levels.
- floodways may be added to draw off excess river water in times of flood.
- Canals connect rivers to one another for water transfer or navigation.
- River courses may be modified to improve navigation, or straightened to increase the flow rate.
River management is an ongoing activity as rivers tend to 'undo' the modifications made by man. Dredged channels silt up, sluice mechanisms deteriorate with age, levees and dams may suffer seepage or catastrophic failure.
River lists
(See also :Category:Lists of rivers.)
The world's ten longest rivers
It is difficult to measure the length of a river, mainly because rivers have a fractal property, which means that the more precise the measure, the longer the river will seem. Also, it's hard to state exactly where a river begins or ends, as very often, upstream, rivers are formed by seasonal streams, swamps, or changing lakes.
This is an average measurement.
# Nile (6,690 km)
# Amazon (6,400 km)
# Yangtze (Chang Jiang) (6,380 km)
# Mississippi-Missouri (6,270 km)
# Ob-Irtysh (5,570 km)
# Huang He (Yellow) (5,464 km)
# Amur (4,410 km)
# Congo (4,380 km or 4,670 km). (The source of this river is disputed.)
# Lena (4,260 km)
# Mackenzie (4,240 km)
For a longer list see Longest rivers. This also gives more information on measuring river lengths.
Well-known rivers (in alphabetic order)
- Aa - multiple rivers in Europe
- Amazon - largest river in the world
- American
- Amu Darya
- Amur - principal river of eastern Siberia
- Arkansas - major tributary of Mississippi River
- Arno - river through Florence
- Arvandrud (Shatt al-Arab) the large border river between Iran and Iraq.
- Brahmaputra - principal river in North East India & Tibet
- Chao Phraya - principal river of Thailand
- Colorado (Argentina)
- Colorado (U.S.) - principal river of American West
- Columbia - principal river of Pacific Northwest
- Congo - principal river of central Africa
- Danube - principal river of central and southeastern Europe
- De La Plata - the widest river in the world. South America
- Ebro - river in northwest Spain
- Elbe - major German river, Hamburg is situated on it
- Euphrates - twin principal river of Mesopotamia(Iraq)
- Ganges - principal river of India
- Han-gang - river of Seoul
- Helmand River - Principle river of (Afghanistan)
- Hari Rud (Afghanistan)
- Huang He (Yellow) - principal river of China
- Hudson - principal river of New York
- Indus - principal river of Pakistan
- Jordan - principal river of Israel
- Karun - principal (navigable) river of southern Iran.
- Kaveri - principal river of South India
- Lena - principal river of northeastern Siberia
- Mackenzie - longest river in Canada
- Magdalena - principal river of Colombia
- Main - river in Germany
- Mekong - principal river of Southeast Asia
- Mersey - river on which sits the English city of Liverpool
- Meuse - principal river of the southern provinces of the Netherlands and eastern Belgium.
- Mississippi - principal river of central United States
- Missouri - principal river of the Great Plains
- Murray - principal river of southeastern Australia
- Niger - principal river of west Africa
- Nile - Possibly the longest river in the world (or second after the Amazon)
- Ob - large river of Siberia
- Odra - major river in Eastern Europe
- Ohio - largest river between Mississippi and Appalachians
- Orinoco - principal river of Venezuela
- Parana - major South American river
- Paraguay - principal tributary of Parana river and major South American river in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina
- Po - principal river of Italy
- Potomac River - principal river of the District of Columbia in the United States
- Rhine - principal river of northwestern Europe
- Rhône - principal river of southern France
- Rio Grande - border between United States and Mexico
- Saint Lawrence - drains Great Lakes
- Seine - river of Paris
- Segura- in southeast Spain
- Severn- longest river in Great Britain
- Shinano-gawa - longest river in Japan
- Snake - largest tributary to the Columbia river in Washington
- Tajo - largest river in the Iberian Peninsula
- Tay - largest river in Scotland
- Thames - river of London
- Tiber - river of Rome
- Tigris - twin principal river of Mesopotamia(Iraq)
- Tonegawa - largest river in Japan
- Vistula - principal river of Poland
- Volga - principal river of Russia
- Yangtze (Chang Jiang) - longest river in China
- Yenisei - large river of Siberia
- Yukon - principal river of Alaska and Yukon Territory
- Zambezi - principal river of southeastern Africa
Other lists
- List of waterways
- List of rivers by continent
- List of rivers of Europe
- Rivers of the United Kingdom
- List of rivers of Asia
- List of rivers of Africa
- List of rivers of Australia
- List of rivers of New Zealand
- List of rivers of the Americas
- List of rivers of Oceania
- List of river name etymologies
Rivers in myth and fiction
Real rivers
- The Thames in Edward Rutherfurd's London.
- The Thames in Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat.
- The Thames and the Congo in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness.
- The Mississippi in Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn.
- The River Liffey through Dublin in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake.
Mythological rivers
- In Greek mythology, the Acheron, Cocytus, Phlegethon, Lethe and Styx (the five rivers of Hades); and the Eridanus.
- The Alph, an underground river imagined by various mystics and mentioned in Coleridge's poem Kubla Khan.
- The Sambation river stops flowing every Saturday.
Fictional rivers
- River Ankh traversing the city of Ankh-Morpork in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series.
- Chocolate river in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
- River Djel in the country of Djelibeybi in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series.
- The River in the Riverworld novels of Philip José Farmer.
- Rivers of Middle-earth in various works of J. R. R. Tolkien.
See also
- Aquaduct
- Canal
- Drought
- Water dispute
Crossings
Rivers may be crossed by:
- bridges
- ferries
- fords
- tunnels.
Transport
- barge
- riverboat
- sailing
- towpath
External links
- [http://www.srbc.net/about.htm Management: River Basin Commissions].
Category:Bodies of water
Category:Geomorphology
zh-min-nan:Hô
ja:川
ko:강
ms:Sungai
simple:River
th:แม่น้ำ
BridgeheadA bridgehead is literally a military fortification that protects the end of a bridge that is closest to the enemy. The term has been generalized to mean any kind of defended area that is extended into hostile territory, in particular the area on the farside of a defended river bank or a segment of coastline initially seized by an amphibious assault.
A bridgehead typically exists for only a few days, the invading forces being either thrown back or expand the bridgehead to create a lodgement area before breaking out into open country as happened when the U.S. 9th Armored Division seized the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen in 1945 during World War II. In some cases, such as during the Gallipoli Campaign in World War I, a bridgehead may exist for months.
The term has also come to be used in a figurative sense, for instance in business, where a marketing "bridgehead" might be a specialized use of a new product in a particular market segment, in preparation for selling it against entrenched competitors across an entire market.
See also
- Airhead
- Beachhead
Category:Warfare
Battle of Monte Cassino
The strategic position of Monte Cassino has made it the repeated scene of battles and sieges from antiquity.
In World War II, the Battle of Monte Cassino (also known as the Battle for Rome) was a costly series of battles fought by the Allies with the intention of breaking through the Gustav Line, seizing Rome and linking up with Allied forces contained within the Anzio pocket.
The first battle started on January 4, 1944 and the monastery atop the hill was destroyed by Allied bombing on February 15. Allied aircraft heavily bombed the ruins of the monastery and staged an assault on March 15.
During three failed attempts to take the heavily-guarded monastery of Monte Cassino (January 17–25, February 15–February 18, March 15–March 25), the forces of the USA, the UK, India, Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand lost approximately 54,000 men yet did not manage to seize the city or the castle overlooking the Rapido River valley.
The so-called Fourth Battle of Monte Cassino was fought by the 2nd Polish Corps under General Władysław Anders (May 11–May 19). The Indian divisions stationed there helped in the capturing of the main Gunnery for which a member of the Indian armed forces were awarded with the Victoria Cross for his daring raid into the gunnery and killing all there.
The first assault (May 11–May 12) brought heavy losses but also allowed the British Eighth Army under General Sir Oliver Leese to break through German lines in the Liri river valley below the monastery.
The second assault (May 17–May 19), carried out at immense cost by the Polish troops and the key outflanking movement in the mountains by skilled Moroccan soldiers of the 4ème Division Marocaine de Montagne (French Expeditionary Corps CEF), pushed the German 1st Parachute Division out of its positions on the hills surrounding the monastery and almost surrounded them. In the early morning of May 18 a reconnaissance group of Polish 12th Podolian Uhlans Regiment occupied the ruins of the monastery after it was evacuated by the Germans.
The capture of Monte Cassino allowed the British and American divisions to begin the advance on Rome, which fell on June 4 1944 just two days before the Normandy invasion.
In the course of the battles the historic monastery of Monte Cassino, where St. Benedict first established the rule that ordered monasticism in the west, was entirely pulverized. Fortunately its irreplaceable library had been removed for safekeeping to Rome at the start of the Battle by the Germans. The site has since been rebuilt, but the historic buildings are utterly gone.
Image:Polish_Flag_Monte_Cassino2.jpg|The II Polish Corps hoisted the Polish banner over the ruins of the Monte Cassino monastery.
Image:Monte Cassino poster.jpg|German propaganda poster in Polish issued during the battle
Image:Monte Cassino troops.jpg|Allied soldiers at the foot of Monte Cassino
Image:Polish Bugler Monte Cassino.jpg|Polish bugler plays the Hejnał mariacki, announcing the Polish victory
Bibliography and references
English
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
German
#
#
#
#
Polish
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
Belarusian
#
#
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino
Transportation in BelizeTransport in Belize
Railways
None; 0 km
Highways
- total: 2,872 km
- paved: 488 km
- unpaved: 2,384 km
(1998 est.)
Highways include the Hummingbird Highway, Southern Highway, Western Highway, Northern Highway.
Waterways
825 km river network used by shallow-draft craft; seasonally navigable
Ports and harbours
Belize City, Big Creek, Corozal Town, Punta Gorda
Merchant marine
- total: 414 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,647,452 GRT/2,339,134 DWT
ships by type
bulk 36, cargo 275, chemical tanker 7, container 9, liquified gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 51, refrigerated cargo 14, roll-on/roll-off 9, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 4, vehicle carrier 2 (1999 est.)
note:
a flag of convenience registry; includes ships of 7 countries: Cuba 2, Cyprus 1, Greece 1, Singapore 2, UAE 12, UK 1, and US 1 (1998 est.)
Airports
44 (1999 est.)
The main international airport is Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport in Ladyville, outside of Belize City.
Airports - with paved runways
- total: 3
- 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
- under 914 m:2
(1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
- total: 41
- 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
- 914 to 1,523 m: 10
- under 914 m: 30
(1999 est.)
Reference
Much of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000.
:See also : Belize
-
gadu eurotax Varsavia appartamenti sem ebay
|
|
|
| :: RELATED NEWS :: |
Süden (Himmelsrichtung)
Süden oder Süd ist eine Haupthimmelsrichtung, die von überall auf der Erde auf den Südpol zeigt. Auch auf den anderen Planeten unseres Sonnensystems gibt es die Himmelsrichtung Süden, und auch dort zeigt sie auf den Südpol. Sie wird zur
|
Paul Silverberg
Dr. jur. Dr.-Ing. E.h. Dr. rer. pol. h.c. Paul Silverberg (
- 6. Mai 1876 in Bedburg; † 5. Oktober 1959 in Lugano) war ein deutscher Industrieller.
1903 wurde Silverberg in Nachfolge seines Vaters Generaldirektor der Fortuna AG für Bra
|
Calling Cards
Calling Cards (engl. "Anrufkarten") sind Telefonkarten. Man erwirbt mit der Karte ein vorausbezahltes Gesprächsguthaben, das abtelefoniert wird, bis das Guthaben erschöpft ist.
Das Telefonieren vom Festnetz oder mit dem Mobiltelefon ist heutzutage ein Grundbedürfnis unserer Zeit. Mit Calling Cards kann man die Gesprächsgebühren für Telefonate aus dem
|
|
Nachspeise
Eine Nachspeise oder ein Dessert ist eine meist süße ("Süßspeise"), kalte oder warme Speise, die in der europäischen Küche üblicherweise nach dem Hauptgericht und der Käseplatte gereicht wird. Desserts können sehr einfache Gerichte sein, jedoch sind gerade beim Dessert der Phantasie eines Read More... |
Ed Wood
Ed Wood, mit vollem Namen Edward Davies Wood jr., (
- 10. Oktober 1924 in Poughkeepsie, New York; † 10. Dezember 1978 in Hollywood, Kalifornien) war ein
|
Fahrzeugweihe
Die Fahrzeugweihe ist ein alter Brauch, bei welchem vor allem neue Kraftfahrzeuge in einem Gottesdienst gesegnet und einem Schutzpatron geweiht werden. Anders als nach dem weit verbreiteten katholischen Verständnis werden nach protestantischem Verständnis nicht die Fahrzeuge gesegnet, sondern die Menschen, die die Fahrzeuge benutzen.
Weihen von Einsatzfahrzeugen
Bei der Fahrzeugweihe von
|
Wadi
Der persische Ausdruck Wadi bezeichnet ein trockenliegendes Flussbett (Trockenfluss) in den Wüstengebieten Nordafrikas und Vorderasiens. Im Südwesten Afrikas nennt man solche Trockenflüsse Riviere.
Wadis sind nur nach starken Regenfällen vorübergehend mit Wasser gefüllt.
Sie können bis zu 100 m in die sie umgebende Wüste einschneiden und mit steilen Sei
|
Homunculus
Ein Homunculus (lat. „Menschlein“) ist ein künstlicher (aus einer Transmutation geschaffener) Mensch ohne Seele. Der Homunculus ist in der Kulturgeschichte ein weit verbreitetes Thema, das unter anderem Goethe in seinem Faust II aufnimmt.
In der Anatomie des Gehirns werden Repräsentationen von Kö
|
|
