Cataracts of the Nile 2465387 223603024 2008-07-04T20:56:38Z 62.142.196.215 [[Image:Nubia today.png|thumb|The six cataracts of the Nile]] [[Image:Nile sunset dar almanasir.JPG|thumb|Fourth Cataract]] [[Image:Cataract6.jpg|thumb|Sixth Cataract]] The '''cataracts of the [[Nile River|Nile]]''' are shallow stretches between [[Aswan]] and [[Khartoum]] where the water's surface is broken by numerous small boulders and stones lying on the river bed, as well as many small rocky [[islet]]s. In some places, these stretches are punctuated by [[whitewater]] and are perhaps well characterized as [[rapids]], while in others the water flow is smoother. The six primary cataracts of the Nile were the main obstacles for boats sailing on the Nile in antiquity. Counted upstream (from north to south), the First Cataract is in modern [[Egypt]]; the rest are in [[Sudan]]. *The First Cataract is near [[Aswan]] ({{coor d|24.078|N|32.878|E|}}) *The Second Cataract (or Great Cataract) was in [[Nubia]] and is now submerged in [[Lake Nasser]] ({{coor d|21.48|N|30.97|E|}}) *The Third Cataract is around [[Tombos]] / [[Hannek]] ({{coor d|19.76|N|30.37|E|}}) *The Fourth Cataract is in the [[Dar al-Manasir|Manasir Desert]] and will be flooded by the [[Merowe Dam]] from 2006 onwards ({{coor d|18.91|N|32.36|E|}}) *The Fifth Cataract is near the [[confluence]] with the [[Atbara River]] ({{coor d|17.677|N|33.970|E|}}) *The Sixth Cataract is where the Nile cuts through the [[Sabaluka]] [[Intrusion|pluton]] near [[Meroe|Bagrawiyah]] ({{coor d|16.88|N|33.66|E|}}) The word cataract is derived from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''kataraktēs'', literally "down-rushing", meaning "waterfall" or "floodgate". However, none of the Nile's six primary cataracts would be accurately described as waterfalls, and given the broader definition, many minor cataracts should perhaps also be included in the count. Geologists indicate that the region of the northern Sudan is [[plate tectonics|tectonically]] active and this activity has caused the river to take on "youthful" characteristics.<ref>Thurmond, A.K., et al (2004). ''The Nubian Swell'', The Journal of African Earth Sciences 39 pp. 401-407. [http://www.utdallas.edu/geosciences/remsens/papers/Nubian_Swell.pdf] (accessed 10/21/2006)</ref> The [[Nubian Swell]] has diverted the river's course to the west, while keeping its depth shallow and causing the formation of the cataracts. Even as the river bed is worn down by [[erosion]], the land mass is lifted keeping parts of the river bed exposed. These distinctive features of the river between Aswan and Khartoum have led to the stretch being often referred to as the '''Cataract Nile''', while the downstream portion is occasionally referred to as the "Egyptian" Nile.<ref>The geological distinction between these two portions of the river is considerable. North of Aswan, the river bed is not rocky, but is instead composed of sediment, and far from being a shallow river, it is believed that the bedrock was previously eroded to be several thousand feet deep. This created a vast canyon that is now filled by the sediment, some of which originated from the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]]. For more information, see the [[Nile#The Eonile|Eonile]] as well as the [[Messinian salinity crisis]].</ref> Despite these characteristics, some of the cataracts which are normally impassable by boat, become navigable during the flood season. The six primary cataracts of the Nile are described extensively by European colonials, notably by [[Winston Churchill]] in ''[[The River War]]'' ([[1899]]), where he recounts the exploits of the British trying to return to [[Sudan]] between [[1896]] and [[1898]], after they were forced to leave in [[1885]]. [[Amelia Edwards]] in her book ''A Thousand Miles Up the Nile'' ([[1892]])<ref>Edwards, Amelia (1892). ''A Thousand Miles up the Nile'' [http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/edwards/nile/nile.html] (Full text and illustrations accessed 10/21/2006 from [http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/ A Celebration of Women Writers])</ref>, describes the now submerged second cataract as over sixteen miles in length. In ancient times, [[Upper Egypt]] extended from south of the [[Nile Delta]] to the first cataract, while further upstream, the land was controlled by the ancient [[Kush]] civilization, that would later take over [[ancient Egypt|Egypt]]. ==Notes== <!--<nowiki> See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref> and </ref> tags, and the template below. </nowiki>--> <references/> ==External links== * The Cataract Nile and the Great Bend (webpage) [http://www.utdallas.edu/dept/geoscience/remsens/Nile/cataracts.html] * The 1905-1907 Breasted Expeditions to Egypt and the Sudan: A Photographic Study [http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/PA/EGYPT/BEES/BEES.html] (See photos listed in the [http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/PA/EGYPT/BEES/BEES_All_Captions.html index] under "Nile, Third Cataract" and "Nile, Fourth Cataract") ;Photo links * Second Cataract: [http://www.travelhistory.org/people+places/ModernNile/ModernNile-05pic1.jpg] [http://www.galenfrysinger.com/sudan.htm] * Third Cataract: [http://www.flickr.com/photos/laeli/119534367/] [http://www.utdallas.edu/geosciences/remsens/Nile/Cataract-Hume.html] [http://www.utdallas.edu/geosciences/remsens/Nile/Cataract-Hannek.html] * Fourth Cataract: [http://www.haberlah.com/galleries/catr/pages/ca_001.html] * Fifth Cataract: [http://www.utdallas.edu/geosciences/remsens/Nile/Cataract5B.html] * Sixth Cataract: [http://www.pbase.com/alunmcdonald/image/61666128/original] [http://www.haberlah.com/galleries/catr/pages/ca_011.html] [[Category:Landforms of Egypt]] [[Category:Landforms of Sudan]] [[Category:Nile]] [[cs:Nilské katarakty]] [[fr:Cataracte du Nil]] [[nl:Cataract (Nijl)]] [[simple:Cataracts of the Nile]]