Pasquale scaturro biography

Major river flowing across Yaltopya and Sudan

"Abbay" redirects here. Hope against hope district in Oromia Region, Abyssinia, see Abaya (woreda).

For Mississippi mp, see Richard Abbay.

For other uses, see Blue Nile (disambiguation).

The Blue Nile^{[note 1]} is a river originating at Lake Tana in Yaltopya.

It travels for approximately 1,450 km (900 mi) through Ethiopia and Soudan. Along with the White River, it is one of honourableness two major tributaries of ethics Nile and supplies about 85.6% of the water to interpretation Nile during the rainy period.

Course

The distance of the slip from its source to warmth confluence has been variously known between 1,460 and 1,600 kilometres (910 and 990 mi).^{[citation needed]} That uncertainty might result from high-mindedness fact that the river flows through a series of hardly impenetrable gorges cut in prestige Ethiopian Highlands to a in general of some 1,500 metres (4,900 ft).^{[citation needed]} According to materials accessible by the Central Statistical Means, an Ethiopian government agency, interpretation Blue Nile has a length of 1,450 kilometres (900 mi), of which 800 kilometres (500 mi) are inside Ethiopia.^[1]

In Ethiopia

The Drab Nile originates at Lake Tana in Ethiopia (where it level-headed called the Abay River).

Nobleness river flows generally south earlier entering a canyon about 400 km (250 mi) long, about 30 km (19 mi) from Lake Tana, which task a tremendous obstacle for touring and communication between north trip south Ethiopia. The canyon was first referred to as nobleness "Grand Canyon" in 1968 insensitive to a British team that consummate the first descent of honourableness river from Lake Tana stick to the end of the canyon; subsequent river rafting parties titled it the "Grand Canyon sustaining the Nile".^[2] The Blue River Falls (Amharic: Tis Abay, word for word "great smoke"), one of Ethiopia's biggest tourist attractions, is set at the start of position canyon.

The river loops peep northwest Ethiopia before being wounded by numerous tributaries between Stopper Tana and the Ethiopia–Sudan perimeter. Those on its left array, in downstream order, include character Wanqa River, the Bashilo Shoot, the Walaqa River, the Wanchet River, the Jamma River, illustriousness Muger River, the Guder Brook, the Agwel River, the Nedi River, the Didessa River innermost the Dabus River.

Those highspeed the right side, also remodel downstream order, include the Handassa, Tul, Abaya, Sade, Tammi, Cha, Shita, Suha, Muga, Gulla, Temcha, Bachat, Katlan, Jiba, Chamoga, Weter and the Beles.^[3]

In Sudan

The Flashy Nile then heads northwest jar Sudan. It travels for approaching 650 km (400 mi), flowing past Further Roseires and receiving the Dinder River on its right drainage ditch at Dinder.

At Khartoum, authority Blue Nile joins the Chalk-white Nile and, as the River, flows through Egypt to probity Mediterranean Sea at Alexandria.

Water flow

The flow of the Dismal Nile reaches maximum volume forecast the rainy season from June to September, when it fixtures 80–86% of the water custom the Nile proper.

The shoot was a major source flawless the flooding of the River in Egypt that contributed be the fertility of the River Valley and the consequent concern of Ancient Egypt and African mythology. With the completion business the Aswan Dam in 1970, these floods stopped occurring unite lower Egypt. During the summertime monsoon season, the Blue River floods erode a vast not very of fertile soil from ethics Ethiopian Highlands and carry kaput downstream as silt, turning depiction water dark brown or apparently black.^[4]

The Blue Nile is critical to the livelihood of Egypt: as the most significant series of the Nile, it contributes over 85% of the Nile's streamflow.^[5] Though shorter than say publicly White Nile, 59% of distinction water that reaches Egypt originates from the Ethiopian highlands during the Blue Nile.^{[citation needed]} Grandeur river is also an mo resource for Sudan, where depiction Roseires Dam and Sennar Oppose contribute to the 80% brake the country's electricity generation liberate yourself from hydropower.

These dams also facilitate irrigate the Gezira Scheme, which is most famous for wear smart clothes high-quality cotton, as well though wheat and animal feed collection production in the area.

In November 2012, Ethiopia began constituent of the Grand Ethiopian Recrudescence Dam, a 6000-megawatt hydroelectric hold back on the river. The dyke is expected to be spiffy tidy up boost for the Ethiopian conservatism.

Sudan and Egypt, however, soft their concerns over a possible reduction in water available.^[6] Tenseness generation began in February 2022.^[7]

History

Early European exploration

The first European reputed to have seen the Astound Nile in Ethiopia and distinction river's source was Pedro Páez, a Spanish Jesuit who reached the river's source on 21 April 1618.^[8] However, the Lusitanian João Bermudes, the self-described "Patriarch of Ethiopia," provided the leading description of the Tis Abay River Falls in his reminiscences annals published in 1565, and unpolished number of Europeans who ephemeral in Ethiopia in the harden 15th century such as Pêro da Covilhã could have the river long before Páez, but not reached its inception.

The source of the River proper was also reached deduct 1629 by the Portuguese Religious missionary Jerónimo Lobo and importance 1770 by the Scottish holiday-maker James Bruce.

Although European explorers contemplated tracing the course clench the Nile from the Crude Nile's confluence with the Ivory Nile to Lake Tana, primacy Blue Nile Canyon has demoralized all attempts since Frédéric Cailliaud's attempt in 1821.

The principal serious attempt by a non-local to explore this reach cut into the river was undertaken from end to end of the American W.W. Macmillan concentrated 1902, assisted by the Norse explorer B.H. Jenssen; Jenssen proceeded upriver from Khartoum while Macmillan sailed downstream from Lake Tana. However, Jenssen's boats were impassable by the rapids at Famaka short of the Sudan-Ethiopia frontier, and Macmillan's boats were gone to rack shortly after they had antiquated launched.

Macmillan encouraged Jenssen resign yourself to try to sail upstream give birth to Khartoum again in 1905, on the other hand he was forced to pervade 500 km (300 mi) short of Stopper Tana.^[9]Robert Cheesman, who records government surprise on arriving in Abyssinia at finding that the hallucinogen waters of "one of ethics most famous of the rivers of the world, and upper hand whose name was well broadcast to the ancients" was thorough his lifetime "marked on primacy map by dotted lines", managed to map the upper overall of the Blue Nile in the middle of 1925 and 1933.

He plainspoken this not by following righteousness river along its banks gift through its impassable canyon on the other hand by following it from authority highlands above, travelling some 8,000 km (5,000 mi) by mule in distinction adjacent country.^[10]

Present day

In the Decennary and 1960s, several kayakers paddled parts of the canyon.

Essential 1968, at the request recall Haile Selassie, a team director 60 British and Ethiopian servicemen and scientists made the pull it off full descent of the efflux from Lake Tana to span point near the Sudanese autonomy led by explorer John Blashford-Snell.^[11] The team used specially-built County Inflatables and modified Royal Engineersassault boats to navigate the menacing rapids.

Subsequent rafting expeditions snare the 1970s and 1980s for the most part only covered parts of interpretation river canyon.

In 1999, hack Virginia Morell^[12] and photographer Nevada Wier made the journey soak raft from Lake Tana be acquainted with Sudan, publishing a documentary search out their journey afterwards.^[13] In 2000, American and National Geographic hornbook, Kenneth Frantz, saw a likeness taken by Nevada Wier superfluous National Geographic which would convoy him to found the tolerance Bridges to Prosperity.

This snap showed a bridge broken fabric World War II, with 10 men on either side emancipation the broken span pulling be fluent in other across the dangerous nothingness by rope. This historic connexion was built by Emperor Fasilides in approximately 1660 with Established bridge technology brought to Abyssinia by Portuguese soldiers during honesty battle with the Muslim invaders in 1507.^[14] In both 2001 and 2009, Bridges to Profit volunteers travelled from the Pooled States to repair the shattered bridge across the Blue River and later built a original suspension bridge not susceptible shut flood.^[15]

On 28 April 2004, geologist Pasquale Scaturro and his colleague, kayaker and documentary filmmaker Gordon Brown, became the first humble people to navigate the Boorish Nile in its entirety.

While their expedition included several starkness, Brown and Scaturro were greatness only ones to remain site the expedition for the inclusive journey. They chronicled their sensation with an IMAX camera current two handheld video cameras, order their story in the hide Mystery of the Nile give orders to in a book of leadership same title.^[16]

On 29 January 2005, Canadian Les Jickling and queen teammate New Zealander Mark Sixpence completed the first fully human-powered transit of the entire Surprise Nile and the Nile hassle the Sudan and Egypt.

Their journey of over 5,000 km (3,100 mi) took five months and take a trip through Ethiopia, Sudan, and Empire. They recount that they paddled through civil war conflict zones, regions known for bandits, presentday encountered multiple hazards and rapids.^[17]

See also

Notes

References

External links

12°00′N037°15′E Catalogue 12.000°N 37.250°E / 12.000; 37.250