Niagara falls why is it special

The volume of water in the Great Lakes would cover North America in about 3. Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean. Water always flows down to the sea, and the land slopes downward through the Great Lakes Basin from west to east — but the Niagara River actually flows north. Today less than one percent of the water of the Great Lakes is renewable on an annual basis precipitation and groundwater.

The brown foam below Niagara Falls is a natural result of tons of water plummeting into the depths below. It is not dangerous. The brown colour is clay, which contains suspended particles of decayed vegetative matter. It is mostly from the shallow eastern basin of Lake Erie. How was the Whirlpool created?

The huge volume of water rushing from the Falls is crushed into the narrow Great Gorge, creating the Whirlpool Rapids that stretch for 1.

The water surface here drops 15 m 50 ft and the rushing waters can reach speeds as high as 9 mps 30 fps. The Whirlpool is a basin m 1, ft long by m 1, ft wide with depths up to 38 m ft. This is the elbow, where the river makes a sharp right-angled turn.

When the Niagara River is at full flow, the waters travel over the rapids and enter the pool, then travel counterclockwise around the pool past the natural outlet.

Pressure builds up when the water tries to cut across itself to reach the outlet and this pressure forces the water under the incoming stream. The swirling waters create a vortex, or whirlpool. Then the waters continue their journey to Lake Ontario. If the water flow is low water is diverted for hydroelectric purposes after 10pm each night the reversal does not take place; the water merely moves clockwise through the pool and passes to the outlet.

Newly married couples began coming to Niagara Falls when it was still a secluded, peaceful and romantic spot. It is still popular with newly-weds as a relatively inexpensive and convenient place to spend their honeymoon. Besides being beautiful, Niagara Falls is also very useful. Their falling water is the power behind several of the largest hydroelectric stations in the world. Much of the electric power used in this part of North America comes from Niagara Falls.

In order to harness this power, half of the flow of water is channeled away from the falls during the night, and during the non-tourist season. Probably most visitors don't notice the difference. Niagara has attracted many kinds of people over the years.

Businessmen have come to profit from the tourists. Daredevils have come to make a name for themselves. Some have gone over the falls in a barrel, while others have walked above the falls on a tightrope. Poets and artists have visited here to capture its beauty. Lovers have come to gaze on its romantic scenery. Cliffs rise as high as 1, feet m , formed by thousands of years of erosion. The geologic forces that formed Niagara Falls started working about 16, years ago during the last Ice Age.

As the ice retreated, it carved out the Great Lakes. About 12, years ago, waters draining the lakes found a low-lying pathway and carved out a channel — the Niagara River.

Lake Erie and Lake Ontario were split between higher elevations and lower elevations and the water drained from the upper lake to the lower over the Niagara Escarpment and eventually created a waterfall. When Niagara Falls formed, it was about 7 miles 11 km downstream from where it is today. Even now, erosion continues to push the falls farther upstream at a rate of about a foot a year. By some estimates, the river will erode back to Lake Erie in about 50, years, cutting through an escarpment and through soft shale and beginning to drain Lake Erie.

Native Americans settled in the area between A. One of the first native tribes called themselves the Onguiaahra, which French explorers turned into "Niagara.

In the early s, the Neutrals had a population of 20, to 40, people. However, he left no written record, but he did report to his patron, Samuel de Champlain, who wrote about the falls.

In , Champlain was the first to draw and publish a map of Niagara. The first eyewitness account was written by Louis Hennepin, a priest who accompanied Robert de La Salle to the falls in , according to American Journeys. The fort didn't last long, and Fort Denonville was built in its place in That fort only lasted for about a year.

Fort Niagara, the first permanent fort, was built in The British captured Niagara Fort in during the French and Indian War, which broke out in and raged all across the Niagara region. Niagara Fort assumed American control in , was recaptured by the British in , and ceded back to the United States after the War of Between and , Niagara Fort served as a peaceful border post and as a barracks and training station for American soldiers.

Today, Niagara Fort is a popular place that tourists can stroll through while visiting the waterfalls.