Victoria Falls is considered to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is claimed to be the largest. Victoria Falls has a width of 1.7 kilometers (1 mile) and height of 108 meters (360 ft), forming the largest sheet of falling water in the world.
Victoria Falls Water Fall
Victoria Falls, has been quoted to be so lovely, it must have been gazed by angels in their flight. David Livingstone, a Scottish explorer was indeed right about Victoria Falls located along the borders between Zimbabwe and Zambia in Africa. Its name was coined by Livingstone but the indigenous name of Mosi-oa-Tunya is the name in official use in Zambia. It is known locally by the Makololo people as Mosi-oa-Tunya, ‘the smoke that thunders.’
It rises up to a mile into the air and can be seen up to 25 miles away. The maximum flow rate of the falls compares well with that of other major waterfalls. Besides being the widest waterfall on the planet it is also one of the only two waterfalls known to regularly produce Moonbows. Moonbows are rainbows created by the light of the moon being prismed in mists surrounding the falls and creating the multicolored wonders. Perfect conditions must be met for this effect to occur regularly unimpeded by light from the moon and a lack of light pollution. Victoria Falls ability to produce moonbows makes all the more appealing to visitors.
The height of the river’s flow is in the month of April, while the lowest ebb is in October because the water flowing over Victoria Falls varies from season to season. In the wet season the volume of water can be as much as 320,000 cubic feet per second. In this occasion, the water falls over the cliff is in a continuous line. While the dry season in Africa reduces the flow of water to a mere 12,500 cubic feet per second.
There is a broad flat plain of water spilling into a narrow rift in the earth from above the river flowing into the falls resembles. An entrance to a gorge through which the water escapes once it falls into the rift is located in the cliff wall opposite Victoria Falls. The gorge river takes a zigzagged course as it continues on its way crisscrossing with a series of islands before the river meets the waterfall. In fact approximately four islands have formed on the edge of Victoria Fall essentially breaking it into a series of five falls. An interesting fact is that one of these islands is named Livingstone Island after the Scottish explorer. It is said that he actually rowed out to the island to get a better look at the falls.
Visitors of the Victoria Falls count to hundreds of thousands of tourists annually. People flock to Victoria Falls which lies on the border of two National Parks: the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia and the other Victoria Falls National Park in Zimbabwe.