1. World’s Great River Systems Explorers Club Ray Jackson

2. Five Great River Systems Nile – Africa Amazon – South America Yangtze (Chang Jiang) – China Mississippi & Missouri – United States Ob & Irtysh – Russia

3. Nile White Nile starts at Lake Victoria, Uganda Blue Nile starts at Lake Tana, Ethiopia –Join at Khartoum, Sudan to form the Nile –Flows south to north through Egypt –Empties into the Mediterranean Sea Supplies fresh water the countries in the Nile River Basin

4. Amazon Starts high in the Andes mountains –Flows west to east across northern South America –Empties into the Atlantic Ocean Most important river in South America –Contains about 50% of the world’s species –Contains about 20% of the world’s fresh water

5. Yangtze (Chang Jiang) Starts in the Kunlun Mountains, China –Flows west to east across central China –Empties into the East China Sea near Shanghai Longest river in China Provides huge hydroelectric capacity –Three Gorges dam is largest generator of electricity in the world

6. Mississippi & Missouri Mississippi River starts in northern Minnesota Missouri River starts in the Rocky Mountains –Join north of St. Louis, MO –Empties into the Gulf of Mexico World’s third longest river system –Working river system used for transportation and shipping

7. Ob & Irtysh Ob starts in south-central Siberia, Russia Irtysh starts in the Mongolian Altai mountains Largest river system in Asia –Join in western Siberia –Flows northwest then east –Empties into the Arctic Ocean –Parts are frozen several months of the year

8. Sources “Rivers of Life,” Hamline University Center for Global Environmental Education, 2001, http://cgee.hamline.edu/rivers/ (accessed May 2, 2006). http://cgee.hamline.edu/rivers/ “The Living Africa,” ThinkQuest Library, 1998, http://library.thinkquest.org/16645/the_land /nile_river.shtml (accessed May 2, 2006). http://library.thinkquest.org/16645/the_land /nile_river.shtml

9. Sources Rebecca Lindsey, “Amazonia,” NASA Earth Observatory, December 31, 2002, http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/LB A/ (accessed May 2, 2006). http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/LB A/ “Ob,” The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed., 2000, http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=81 69789 (accessed May 2, 2006). http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=81 69789

10. Sources “Irtysh River,” Wikipedia, April 7, 2004, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irtysh_River (accessed May 2, 2006). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irtysh_River