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Is the Amu Darya as long as the Syr Darya?

Is the Amu Darya as long as the Syr Darya?

With a length of 1,374 miles (2,212 km)—1,876 miles (3,019 km) including the Naryn—the Syr Darya is the longest river in Central Asia, but it carries less water than the Amu Darya. Its watershed is not clearly defined except in its upper course, where it drains a basin of 178,000 square miles (462,000 square km).

What is the meaning of Amu Darya?

Amu Darya in British English (Russian aˈmu darˈja) noun. a river in central Asia, rising in the Pamirs and flowing northwest through the Hindu Kush and across Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to its delta in the Aral Sea: forms much of the N border of Afghanistan and is important for irrigation. Length: 2400 km (1500 miles)

Which plain is drained by the Amu Darya and Syr Darya?

It is traversed by the lower courses of the Syr Darya and Amu Darya, both of which drain into the Aral Sea. The arid plain encompasses two deserts, separated by the valley of the Amu Darya: the Karakum and the Kyzylkum.

What is the Amu Darya river used for?

The Amu Darya river is important to the livelihoods of 43 million of people living in the Aral Sea Basin. The water resources are used mainly for agriculture, hydropower generation, industrial, domestic, and drinking purposes. Agriculture is an important sector for the economies of riparian countries.

What did humans do to the Aral Sea?

Intensive irrigation of cotton plantations in the deserts of the western Soviet Union prevented water reaching the Aral Sea, leading to the drastically low levels we see today. This in turn meant the highly-salty waters killed off many plants and animals.

Is the Amu Darya river without water sources?

Without its mountain water sources, the Amu Darya would not contain any water—would not exist—because it rarely rains in the lowlands through which most of the river flows. Of the total drainage area only about 200,000 square kilometres (77,000 sq mi) actively contribute water to the river.

How did the Amu Darya affect the Aral Sea?

Use of water from the Amu Darya for irrigation has been a major contributing factor to the shrinking of the Aral Sea since the late 1950s. Historical records state that in different periods, the river flowed into the Aral Sea (from the south), into the Caspian Sea (from the east), or both, similar to the Syr Darya (Jaxartes, in Ancient Greek ).

Where does the name Amu Darya come from?

The name Amu is said to have come from the medieval city of Āmul, (later, Chahar Joy/Charjunow, and now known as Türkmenabat ), in modern Turkmenistan, with Darya being the Persian word for “river”.

Where is the Amu Darya basin in Tajikistan?

Part of the Amu Darya basin divide in Tajikistan forms that country’s border with China (in the east) and Pakistan (to the south). About 61% of the drainage lies within Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, while 39% is in Afghanistan.