Mississippi River
Mississippi River carries the romantic aura of American history, culture and natural beauty. It passes throughout 10 U.S. states as the Mississippi River flows through the territory of North America.
The length of the Mississippi River is a significant 3778 Kilometers, which automatically makes it the second largest river on the mainland immediately after the Missouri River, which reaches 4130 km.
The truth is that the Missouri is a tributary to Mississippi and often both are viewed as one river system with a total length of 6270 km. Among the tributaries of the Mississippi River are Ohio, Arkansas and Illinois.
Besides the spirit of the American culture the river carries along with it an enormous biological and animal diversity.
The Mississippi River and its valley is home to many species of animals and plants, including freshwater fish, birds, deer, otters, mink, raccoons, and a great variety of trees that surround a beautiful coastline.
The huge problem, however, is that the flora and fauna of the Mississippi is polluted from the agricultural activity in the area, which lately is the cause of irreversible negative consequences in biological equilibrium of Mississippi .
Mississippi River water sources from Lake Itaska. From there onwards the river flows through the central and great plains and flows through the picturesque delta into the Gulf of Mexico. Mississippi delimits the eight U.S. states, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee. Mississippi also crosses Louisiana.
Mississippi is ranked third after those along the Amazon and the Nile with its total catchment area (with its largest tributary), which amounted to 3.225 million square kilometers. In other words, the length of the Mississippi River is about 6420 km.
For centuries, the Mississippi has important implications for economic development and many of its tributaries are used for shipping, production of electricity, irrigation and others. The first European to see the Mississippi River was, Hernando de Soto on May 8th, 1541. Inspired by the incredible atmosphere of the Mississippi , he named it Rio de Espiritu Santo, or translated, river of the Holy Spirit.
In 1682 French, René-Robert Cavelier and Henri de Tonti called the river, Colbert, the name of Jean-Baptiste Colbert. They are the French "culprits" for the name of Louisiana, that named that part of the coast of Mississippi to King Louis XIV, after declaring it French territory. The territory of Louisiana was again American property until 1803 when Napoleon Bonaparte sells it to U.S..
In 2008 the Mississippi River raised four meters above the normal height, and emerged from within its banks. As a result, Missouri was under water, along with a dozen locations. Mississippi flooded an area of 28 3000 sqkm in Missouri. This natural catastrophe was a result of storms, rains and floods, which did not end for months. As a result of the floods 24 Americans were killed, and thousands were left homeless.
