Course Of The Paraná River

The course is formed by the confluence of rivers and Paranaiba Grande in southern Brazil. The confluence of the river flows in a general south-west about 619 km (385 miles) before the meeting with the city of Salto del Guaira, Paraguay. This was once the location of the cascade Sete Quedas Paraná fell on a series of seven waterfalls. This natural feature was said to rival the famous Iguazu Falls to the south. The falls were flooded, but the construction of the Itaipu dam, which began in 1984.

Next 200 km (125 miles) south of the Parana flows and forms a natural border of Paraguay and Brazil until the confluence of the Iguazu River. Just upstream of this Wiki, however, the river is dammed by the impressive Itaipu Dam, the second largest hydroelectric plant in the world (after the Three Gorges Dam in China), and create a massive, shallow reservoir behind it.

When the merger Iguazu, Parana, then becomes a natural border Paraguay and Argentina. Views of the Parana River in Encarnación, Paraguay, on the other side of the river is downtown Posadas, Argentina. The river continues south of the general rate of about 468 km (291 miles) before a gradual turn to the west another 820 km (510 miles) and then encounters the Paraguay River, the largest tributary of the river along the path. Before this confluence the river passes through another major hydroelectric project, Yaciretá dam, a joint project of Paraguay and Argentina. The huge reservoir formed by the project has been a source of some of the problems of residents along the river, especially the poor traders and residents of the lowest points, and Encarnación, a major city on the southern border of Paraguay. River levels rose rapidly at the end of the dam the flood out much of the lower parts of the city.

From the confluence of the Paraguay River Paraná turns south again for about 820 km (510 miles) through Argentina, making a slow turn toward the east, near the city of Rosario for the final stretch of less than 500 km (310 miles) before fusion of the Uruguay River to form the Río de la Plata and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. A part of its course, downstream of the town of Diamante, Entre Ríos, it splits into different forms of weapons and the Delta of Paraná, a river along which extends up to 60 km wide.

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