Mahanadi River Delta

Last updated

Mahanadi River Delta - NASA satellite view Mahanadi-river-delta.jpg
Mahanadi River Delta - NASA satellite view
Mahanadi delta with nearby reservoirs Mahanadi Delta.jpg
Mahanadi delta with nearby reservoirs

Mahanadi River Delta in India is a basin of deposit that drains a large land mass of the Indian subcontinent into the Bay of Bengal. The alluvial valley is wide and relatively flat with a meandering river channel that changes its course. [1]

Contents

The Mahanadi River flows slowly for 900 kilometres (560 mi) and has an estimated drainage area of 132,100 square kilometres (51,000 sq mi). [2] It deposits more silt than almost any other river in the Indian subcontinent. [3]

The area of the drainage basin is 141,464 km2. The interior coastal plain has a relatively low elevation. The average elevation of the drainage basin is 426 m, with a maximum of 877 m and a minimum of 193 m.

Population density

The upper part of the delta plain is heavily populated. The population density exceeds 36 people per square kilometre, although moving toward the coast the population density falls.

The climate in the area is primarily sub-tropical. [4] Rainfall comes predominantly from the summer monsoon (June through September). The average annual rainfall in the basin is 1,463 mm. Rainfall is extremely low during the rest of the year, rarely exceeding 30 mm per month. [5]

Notes

  1. "Mahanadi River Delta on East Coast of India" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2005. Retrieved 22 September 2006. Archived 29 October 2005 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Mahanadi River (river, India)". britannica.com. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  3. "Mahanadi River". Archived from the original on 24 November 2006. Retrieved 22 September 2006.
  4. "WWD Continents". www.geol.lsu.edu. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  5. "Mahanadi River Delta" . Retrieved 22 September 2006.

20°26′26″N85°55′43″E / 20.440685°N 85.928511°E / 20.440685; 85.928511


Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Ghana</span>

Ghana is a West African country in Africa, along the Gulf of Guinea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of India</span>

India is situated north of the equator between 8°4' north to 37°6' north latitude and 68°7' east to 97°25' east longitude. It is the seventh-largest country in the world, with a total area of 3,287,263 square kilometres (1,269,219 sq mi). India measures 3,214 km (1,997 mi) from north to south and 2,933 km (1,822 mi) from east to west. It has a land frontier of 15,200 km (9,445 mi) and a coastline of 7,516.6 km (4,671 mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of China</span>

China has great physical diversity. The eastern plains and southern coasts of the country consist of fertile lowlands and foothills. They are the location of most of China's agricultural output and human population. The southern areas of the country consist of hilly and mountainous terrain. The west and north of the country are dominated by sunken basins, rolling plateaus, and towering massifs. It contains part of the highest tableland on earth, the Tibetan Plateau, and has much lower agricultural potential and population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Romania</span> Overview of the geography of Romania

With an area of 238,397 km2 (92,046 sq mi), Romania is the twelfth-largest country in Europe. It is a Balkan country located at the crossroads of Eastern and Southeast Europe. It's bordered on the Black Sea, the country is halfway between the equator and the North Pole and equidistant from the westernmost part of Europe—the Atlantic Coast—and the most easterly—the Ural Mountains. Romania has 3,195 kilometres (1,985 mi) of border. Republic of Moldova and Ukraine lies to the east, Bulgaria lies to the south, and Serbia and Hungary to the west. In the southeast, 245 kilometres (152 mi) of sea coastline provide an important outlet to the Black Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Sri Lanka</span> Geography of a country

Sri Lanka, formerly called Ceylon, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, southeast of the Indian subcontinent, in a strategic location near major sea lanes. The nation has a total area of 65,610 square kilometres (25,330 sq mi), with 64,630 square kilometres (24,950 sq mi) of land and 980 square kilometres (380 sq mi) of water. Its coastline is 1,340 kilometres (830 mi) long. The main island of Sri Lanka has an area of 64, 058 km2; it is the twenty-fifth largest island in the world by area. Dozens of offshore islands account for the remaining 1552 km2 area. The largest offshore island, Jaffna Island is separated by Chundikulam lagoon and Mannar Island, is linked to Adam's Bridge, a land connection to the Indian mainland, which is now mostly submerged with only a chain of limestone shoals remaining above sea level. According to temple records, this natural causeway was formerly whole, but was breached by a violent storm in 1480. The formation is also known as Rama's Bridge, as according to Hindu mythology, it was constructed during the rule of Lord Rama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Turkey</span> Overview of the geography of Turkey

The Anatolian side of Turkey is the largest portion in the country that bridges southeastern Europe and west Asia. East Thrace, the European portion of Turkey comprises 3% of the country and 10% of its population. East Thrace is separated from Asia Minor, the Asian portion of Turkey, by the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles. İskilip, Çorum province, is considered to be the geographical center of Earth. Turkey is very vulnerable to earthquakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of the United States</span>

The term "United States," when used in the geographical sense, refers to the contiguous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, the five insular territories of Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and minor outlying possessions. The United States shares land borders with Canada and Mexico and maritime borders with Russia, Cuba, The Bahamas, and many other countries, mainly in the Caribbeanin addition to Canada and Mexico. The northern border of the United States with Canada is the world's longest bi-national land border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Vietnam</span> Geographical features of Vietnam

Vietnam is located on the eastern margin of the Indochinese peninsula and occupies about 331,211.6 square kilometres (127,881.5 sq mi), of which about 25% was under cultivation in 1987. It borders the Gulf of Tonkin, Gulf of Thailand, and Pacific Ocean, along with China, Laos, and Cambodia. The elongated roughly S shaped country has a north-to-south distance of 1,650 km (1,030 mi) and is about 50 km (31 mi) wide at the narrowest point. With a coastline of 3,260 km (2,030 mi), excluding islands, Vietnam claims 12 nautical miles as the limit of its territorial waters, an additional 12 nautical miles as a contiguous customs and security zone. It has an exclusive economic zone of 417,663 km2 (161,261 sq mi) with 200 nautical miles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Bangladesh</span> Geography of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a densely populated, low-lying, mainly riverine country located in South Asia with a coastline of 580 km (360 mi) on the northern littoral of the Bay of Bengal. The delta plain of the Ganges (Padma), Brahmaputra (Jamuna), and Meghna Rivers and their tributaries occupy 79 percent of the country. Four uplifted blocks occupy 9 percent and steep hill ranges up to approximately 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) high occupy 12 percent in the southeast and in the northeast. Straddling the Tropic of Cancer, Bangladesh has a tropical monsoon climate characterised by heavy seasonal rainfall, high temperatures, and high humidity. Natural disasters such as floods and cyclones accompanied by storm surges periodically affect the country. Most of the country is intensively farmed, with rice the main crop, grown in three seasons. Rapid urbanisation is taking place with associated industrial and commercial development. Exports of garments and shrimp plus remittances from Bangladeshis working abroad provide the country's three main sources of foreign exchange income.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahanadi</span> River in East Central India

The Mahanadi River is a major river in East Central India. It drains an area of around 132,100 square kilometres (51,000 sq mi) and has a total length of 900 kilometres (560 mi). Mahanadi is also known for the Hirakud Dam which was the first major multipurpose river valley project after India's independence in 1947. The river flows through the states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha and before finally ending in the Bay of Bengal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chota Nagpur Plateau</span> Plateau of India

The Chota Nagpur Plateau is a plateau in eastern India, which covers much of Jharkhand state as well as adjacent parts of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar. The Indo-Gangetic plain lies to the north and east of the plateau, and the basin of the Mahanadi river lies to the south. The total area of the Chota Nagpur Plateau is approximately 65,000 square kilometres (25,000 sq mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulf Coastal Plain</span> Coastal Plain in the Southern United States and Eastern Mexico

The Gulf Coastal Plain extends around the Gulf of Mexico in the Southern United States and eastern Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irrawaddy River</span> River in Myanmar

The Irrawaddy River is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar (Burma). It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Originating from the confluence of the N'mai and Mali rivers, it flows relatively straight north–south before emptying through the Irrawaddy Delta in the Ayeyarwady Region into the Andaman Sea. Its drainage basin of about 404,200 square kilometres (156,100 sq mi) covers a large part of Burma. After Rudyard Kipling's poem, it is sometimes referred to as 'The Road to Mandalay'.

The Utkal Plain is part of the East Coastal Plain of India. It is a coastal plain in the Odisha state of eastern India. It includes the delta of the Mahanadi River, Brahmani River, Baitarani River. The most prominent physiographic feature of this plain is the Chilka Lake. It is the biggest lake in the country and its area varies between 780 km2 in winter to 1,144 km2 in the monsoon months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baitarani River</span> River in India

The Baitarani is one of six major rivers of Odisha, India. Venerated in popular epics and legends, the Baitarani River is a source of water for agricultural irrigation. The coastal plain of Odisha has the name of "Hexadeltaic region" or the "Gift of Six Rivers". These deltas divide the coastal plain into three regions from north to south. The Baitarani, the Mahanadi and the Brahmani rivers form the Middle Coastal Plain, with evidence of past "back bays" and present lakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hirakud Dam</span> Dam in Odisha, India

Hirakud Dam is built across the Mahanadi River, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Sambalpur in the state of Odisha in India. It is the longest earthen dam in the world. Behind the dam extends a lake, Hirakud Reservoir, 55 km (34 mi) long. It is one of the first major multipurpose river valley projects started after India's independence. Hirakud Reservoir was declared a Ramsar site on 12 October 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilbert River (Queensland)</span> River in Queensland, Australia

The Gilbert River is located in Far North Queensland, Australia. When combined with the Einasleigh River, the river system is the largest river system in northern Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicol River</span> River in Bicol Region, Philippines

The Bicol River is the eighth largest river in the Philippines in terms of drainage basin size with an estimated catchment area of 3,770 square kilometres (1,460 sq mi). The river drains a large part of southwestern Bicol Peninsula of the island of Luzon and passes through Camarines Sur province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Odisha</span>

Odisha is one of the 28 states in the Republic of India. Odisha is located in the eastern part of the Indian peninsula and the Bay of Bengal lies to its East while Chhattisgarh shares its border in the west and north-west. The state also shares geographic boundaries with West Bengal in the north-east, Jharkhand in the north and Andhra Pradesh in the south. The state is spread over an area of 1,55,707 km2 and extends for 700 km from north to south and 500 kilometres from east to west. Its coastline is 450 km long. The state is divided into 30 districts which are further subdivided into 314 blocks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vellar River (Northern Tamil Nadu)</span> River in Tamil Nadu, India

The Vellar River is a river in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It originates in the Kalrayan Hills, and flows generally eastward through Salem, Perambalur, and Cuddalore districts, before flowing into the Bay of Bengal near Parangipettai. The river has a total length of 150 kilometres (93 mi), and its drainage basin covers an area of 7,504.346 square kilometres (2,897.444 sq mi) in Cuddalore, Perambalur, Salem, Kallakurichi, Ariyalur, Namakkal, Tiruchirappalli, and Dharmapuri districts.