Friday, February 11, 2011

Augrabies Falls

Augrabies Falls in flood
The Augrabies Falls  is a waterfall on the Orange River, South Africa, within the Augrabies Falls National Park. The falls are around 60m in height. The original Khoikhoi residents named the waterfall Ankoerebis, "place of big noises", from which the Trek Boers, who settled here later on, derived the name Augrabies.

The falls have recorded 7,800 cubic metres (280,000 cu ft) of water every second in floods in 1988 (and 6,800 cubic metres (240,000 cu ft) in the floods of 2006). This is over three times the average high season flow rate of Niagara Falls of 2,400 cubic metres (85,000 cu ft) per second, more than four times Niagara's annual average, and greater than Niagara's all time record of 6,800 cubic metres (240,000 cu ft) per second.

The gorge at the Augrabies Falls is 240 m deep and 18 km long, and is an impressive example of granite erosion.

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