What is a cataract on the Nile river?
The Cataracts of the Nile are shallow lengths of the Nile River, between Khartoum and Aswan, where the surface of the water is broken by many small boulders and stones jutting out of the river bed, as well as many rocky islets.
Why does the Nile have cataracts?
Geology. Geologists indicate that the region of northern Sudan is tectonically active and this activity has caused the river to take on “youthful” characteristics. The Nubian Swell has diverted the river’s course to the west, while keeping its depth shallow and causing the formation of the cataracts.
What does the word cataract mean in ancient Egypt?
In fact, “cataract” means both an opacity of the lens and a torrent of water and is derived from the Greek word kataráktēs meaning the fall of water. A wall painting in an ancient tomb at Thebes (about 1200 B.C.) seems to reveal the treatment of an eye by an oculist.
What are cataracts and what effect do they have on Nile travel?
In the case of the Nile cataracts, large outcroppings of granite make the flow of the river unpredictable and much more difficult to traverse by boat. The cataract system created a natural boundary at Aswan, separating Egypt from its southern neighbor, Nubia.
What is a cataract in the Nile river make transportation difficult?
How did cataracts in the Nile River make transportation difficult? Cataracts caused parts of the riverbed to dry out. Cataracts contained rocks and boulders that made the river impassable.
What is the difference between a cataract and a waterfall?
Cataract: A large, powerful waterfall. Multi-step: A series of waterfalls one after another of roughly the same size each with its own sunken plunge pool. Block: Water descends from a relatively wide stream or river.
Why were cataracts important to ancient Egypt?
They block the waterway, since boats cannot safely carry cargo though. The six first cataracts of the River Nile were the main obstacles for boats sailing on the Nile in antiquity.
How did cataracts in the Nile river make transportation?
How did cataracts in the Nile River make transportation difficult? Cataracts caused parts of the riverbed to dry out. Cataracts contained rocks and boulders that made the river impassable. Cataracts changed the directional flow of the water.
How did cataracts affect the transportation of goods?
Cataracts contained rocks and boulders that made the river impassable. Cataracts shallow depth and rushing water made the river impossible.
Why are waterfalls called cataracts?
It’s a derivative of katarassein, from kata– “down” plus arassein “strike, smash”. It was soon after applied to a large waterfall, strictly one in which the water plummets over a precipice; this came from a Latin use of the word to describe the Cataracts of the Nile.
What is cataract and Cascade?
Cataract: A large, powerful waterfall. Cascade: Water descends a series of rock steps. Segmented: Distinctly separate flows of water form as it descends. Tiered: Water drops in a series of distinct steps or falls.
How did having the cataracts on the Nile river protect the Egyptians?
Nile’s cataracts helped and hurt Egypt by flooding every year and bringing down boulders and trees. The Egyptians were protected from invaders due to their geographical features. Furthermore, the cataracts in the Nile to the south protected the Egyptians from lands below them.