The Amazon Basin
During this season of rising temperatures, increasing humidity, heavy rain and swollen rivers, we get a small taste of the Amazon Basin. Covering almost 2.75 million square miles (nearly the size of our lower 48 States), this geophysical province is bordered by the Guiana Highlands on the north, the Andes of southern Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and northern Bolivia on the west and the Brazilian Plateau on the south. Its vast tropical rainforest, representing 60% of that ecosystem on Earth, has spread across the Basin since the mid Cretaceous, 100 million years ago.
The Amazon River, the largest (by volume) on our planet, winds for more than 4000 miles, taking in flow from countless tributaries; the most prominent of these are the Rio Negro of northern Brazil, the Rio Madiera, which flows northeastward from Bolivia, and the Rio Tapajos, draining the northern edge of the Brazilian Plateau. The vast watershed of the Amazon transports 20% of Earth's river water and, at its mouth, discha…
The Amazon River, the largest (by volume) on our planet, winds for more than 4000 miles, taking in flow from countless tributaries; the most prominent of these are the Rio Negro of northern Brazil, the Rio Madiera, which flows northeastward from Bolivia, and the Rio Tapajos, draining the northern edge of the Brazilian Plateau. The vast watershed of the Amazon transports 20% of Earth's river water and, at its mouth, discha…