Napo River Explained

Napo river
Map:Naporivermap.png
Map Size:250
Pushpin Map Size:250
Subdivision Type1:Countries
Length:[1]
Discharge1 Location:Francisco de Orellana, Maynas, Loreto Region (near mouth)
Discharge1 Min:[2]
Discharge1 Avg:(Period: 1971–2000)[3]
Discharge1 Max:[4]
Source1 Location:Confluence of Jatunyaçu and Anzu, Ecuador
Source1 Coordinates:-1.0468°N -77.8076°W
Source2 Location:Jatunyaçu–Verdeyaçu, Andes, Ecuador
Source2 Coordinates:-0.6396°N -78.0581°W
Source3 Location:Jatunyaçu–Mulatos, Andes, Ecuador
Source3 Coordinates:-0.8986°N -78.4091°W
Source4 Location:Anzu River, Andes, Ecuador
Source4 Coordinates:-1.3918°N -78.0802°W
Mouth:Amazon River
Mouth Location: downstream from Iquitos, Loreto Region, Peru
Mouth Coordinates:-3.4578°N -72.7175°W
Progression:Amazon → Atlantic Ocean
River System:Amazon
Basin Size:[5]
Tributaries Left:Jatunyaçu, Misahualli, Payamino, Coca, Aguarico, Tamboyaçu
Tributaries Right:Anzu, Llocullón, Tiputini, Yasuní, Anahiri, Curaray, Tacshacuraray, Mazán
Discharge2 Location:Mazán (Bella Vista), Loreto Region, Peru - 79,76 km upstream of mouth (basin size [6]
Discharge2 Avg:(Period: 1991–2009)[7] (Period: 1991/09–2023/08)[8]
Discharge3 Location:Santa Clotilde, Maynas, Loreto Region, Peru - 256.2 km upstream of mouth (basin size
Discharge3 Avg:(Period: 2002–2011)[9]
Discharge5 Location:Puerto Francisco de Orellana, Ecuador - 782 km upstream of mouth (basin size:
Discharge5 Avg:(Period: 2001–2009)[10]
Discharge4 Location:Nueva Rocafuerte, Ecuador - 574.1 km upstream of mouth (basin size [11]
Discharge4 Avg:(Period: 2001–2009)[12]
Discharge2 Min:MNQ (average): 3250m3/sNNQ (minimum): (2016/02)
Discharge2 Max:MHQ (average): HHQ (maximum) (2015/07), (2023/04)

The Napo River (Spanish; Castilian: Río Napo) is a tributary to the Amazon River that rises in Ecuador on the flanks of the east Andean volcanoes of Antisana, Sincholagua and Cotopaxi.

The total length is . The river drains an area of ca 103,000 km2. The mean annual discharge at Mazán .[13] [14]

Geography

Before it reaches the plains it receives a great number of small streams from impenetrable, saturated and much broken mountainous districts, where the dense and varied vegetation seems to fight for every piece of ground. From the north it is joined by the Coca River, having its sources in the gorges of Cayambe volcano on the equator, and also a powerful river, the Aguarico having its headwaters between Cayambe and the Colombia frontier.From the west, it receives a secondary tributary, the Curaray, from the Andean slopes, between Cotopaxi and the Tungurahua volcano. From its Coca branch to the mouth of the Curaray the Napo is full of snags and shelving sandbanks and throws out numerous canoes among jungle-tangled islands, which in the wet season are flooded, giving the river an immense width. From the Coca to the Amazon it runs through a forested plain where not a hill is visible from the river - its uniformly level banks being only interrupted by swamps and lagoons.From the Amazon the Napo is navigable for river craft up to its Curaray branch, a distance of about 216miles, and perhaps a bit further; thence, by painful canoe navigation, its upper waters may be ascended as far as Santa Rosa, the usual point of embarkation for any venturesome traveller who descends from the Quito tableland. The Coca river may be penetrated as far up as its middle course, where it is jammed between two mountain walls, in a deep canyon, along which it dashes over high falls and numerous reefs. This is the stream made famous by the expedition of the Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro.

Hydrometric stations on the Napo River:

Station River kilometer (rkm)Elevation (m)Drainage basin

(km2)

Average discharge(m3/s)
[15] ! [16] [17]
Lower Napo
Francisco de Orellana078103,307.797,147.86,611
Mazán79.7685100,5187,0336,464.5
Bellavista194.5110590,305.36,416.1–
Santa Clotilde256.2411385,7706,124.45,700
Campo Serio421.3514050,342.93,430.3–
Cabo Pantoja546.816644,698.23,007.53,280
Nuevo Rocafuerte574.117327,489.41,937.32,032
Pañacocha67320321,731.41,552.1–
Upper Napo
Puerto Francisco de Orellana78224312,3431,0161,105
Puerto Napo9504274,182.4260.9377.6

Discharge

Napo River at Bellavista average (Q), dominante (Qd) discharge (m3/s) and sediment load (S – million ton/year). Period from 1991/09–2009/08:

Water year QSQdWater year QSQd
1991/19925,66728.6086,0092001/20025,97932.4316,335
1992/19937,10447.7187,4472002/20035,66932.1546,312
1993/19948,01367.1598,5832003/20046,14841.9167,054
1994/19956,05534.8016,5252004/20056,45637.9536,767
1995/19965,95634.0176,4632005/20066,14334.776,523
1996/19976,26238.2586,7902006/20076,53540.3446,942
1997/19989,839105.95610,3542007/20086,61540.8326,977
1998/19996,83951.487,6862008/20097,42852.5047,749
1999/20006,72549.7357,576
2000/20016,45238.5276,810Average6,66044.9537,161
[18]

Napo River at Bellavista average, minimum and maximum discharge (m3/s). Period from 2009/09 to 2023/08:

Water year MeanMinMaxWater year MeanMinMax
2009/20107,1772016/20177,273.63,20011,150
2010/20115,768.21,64910,8602017/20187,2841,55013,500
2011/20127,447.42,89412,2302018/20198,2342,85012,200
2012/20137,452.73,10211,2302019/20208,1003,10012,700
2013/20148,6523,23013,7002020/20218,4103,62014,000
2014/20159,3364,81013,4502021/20226,8552,07813,500
2015/20165,761498.610,2002022/20235,8491,20115,200
Average (2009–2023)7,4002,41311,709
[19] [8]

Napo River at Bellavista average, maximum, minimum and multiannual average (normal) discharge (m3/s) and anomaly (%):

MeanMaxMinNormal(%)
2010/09 – 2011/08
SEP2,620.53,0891,9695,121.2–49
OCT2,413.53,0611,6494,898.6–51
NOV3,818.74,7782,6965,595.1–32
DEC4,774.16,2404,1485,660.6–16
JAN3,604.25,0012,1744,580.7–21
FEB2,480.73,4781,9204,386.9–43
MAR4,753.47,1273,7905,824.1–18
APR9,206.810,2407,8657,502.423
MAY9,561.510,0408,3488,941.37
JUN10,193.810,8608,8219,422.98
JUL9,846.310,5907,9048,844.711
AUG5,944.68,6583,7586,610.8–10
Mean5,768.26,9304,5876,449.1–12
2011/09 – 2012/08
SEP4,551.35,4413,7575,121.211
OCT5,344.96,9952,8944,898.69
NOV4,4276,8783,0235,595.1–21
DEC6,536.89,1605,2055,660.615
JAN7,998.79,5014,8684,580.775
FEB6,536.88,3025,1554,386.949
MAR9,557.212,1505,4175,824.164
APR11,843.712,23010,8707,502.458
MAY10,322.710,7909,7028,941.315
JUN8,878.89,9617,0119,422.9–6
JUL8,189.39,2287,1978,844.7–7
AUG5,1827,6053,9756,612.4–22
Mean7,447.49,0205,7566,449.215.5
2012/09 – 2013/08
SEP5,0377,8223,2495,096–1
OCT5,1136,4574,6324,9184
NOV4,1305,6603,1025,567–26
DEC4,7556,8383,5685,698–17
JAN7,5899,1833,8544,72361
FEB5,8519,0714,1704,46531
MAR10,06010,7409,1275,97368
APR9,405106108,6757,68322
MAY8,32210,5706,9328,999–8
JUN10,49511,2309,7439,40012
JUL9,67510,4108,4028,81710
AUG9,0019,7768,3866,55137
Mean7,452.79,0306,1536,490.815
[20] [21] [22]
Napo River mean annual and multiannual average discharge!Period!Discharge !Ref.
Francisco de Orellana (near mouth)
2010–2015[23]
[24]
1971–2000[25]
[26]
[27]
Bellavista (Mazán)
1930–2006[28]
1989–2010(Q–dominante: [29]
1991–2009[30]
1997–2015[31]
2000–2011[32]
2001–2012[33]
2001–2009[34]
2002–2008[35]
2003–2009[36]
2004–2010[37]
2001–2005[38]
2004–2006[39]
2016–2017[40]
1971–2000[41]

Tributaries

List of the major tributaries of the Napo River (from the mouth upwards):

Lefttributary ! RighttributaryLength (km) ! Basin size (km2)
  • Average discharge (m3/s)
Napo1,089.03103,307.797,147.8
Lower Napo
Sucusari590.739.8
Mazán509.117,721.3532.9
Yanayaçu1,34089
Zapote140.89.3
Papaya27817.5
Tacshacuraray203.12,760.5196.5
Huirina61033.2
Tamboryaçu4,958327.2
Pucara82750.4
Curaray772.7726,704.72,044.4
Tarapoto67946.1
Gomez424.832.6
Loro Caparin794.161.8
Anshiri2,682.5202.1
Santa Maria1,471.5107.8
Aguarico502.513,404.5889.3
Yasuní238.53,386.8237.7
Tiputini380.44,423.1320.2
Huiririma13.2
Cariyuturi253.518.3
Pañyaçu80876.768.4
Indillana71.8636.351.5
Itaya120.69.6
Jivino121.7707.956
Blanco24917.6
Coca245.15,308.1338.9
Upper Napo
Payamino110.42,012.6171.2
Suyunoyaçu198.816.8
Suno96.71,891.4161.2
Arajuno835.997.9
Pusuno160.215.2
Misahuallí68.71,659.6170.6
Jatunyaçu1073,221.2302.7
Anzu69.7817.175

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Ziesler . R. . Ardizzone . G.D. . The Inland waters of Latin America . 1979 . . 92-5-000780-9 . Amazon River System . https://web.archive.org/web/20141108152358/http://www.fao.org/docrep/008/ad770b/AD770B05.htm . 8 November 2014 . live.
  2. Book: Charles J.. Vörösmarty. Berrien. Moore. Annette L.. Grace. M. Patricia. Gildea. CONTINENTAL SCALE MODELS OF WATER BALANCE AND FLUVIAL TRANSPORT: AN APPLICATIONS TO SOUTH AMERICA. 3. 241-265. 1989.
  3. Web site: Amazon.
  4. Book: Charles J.. Vörösmarty. Berrien. Moore. Annette L.. Grace. M. Patricia. Gildea. CONTINENTAL SCALE MODELS OF WATER BALANCE AND FLUVIAL TRANSPORT: AN APPLICATIONS TO SOUTH AMERICA. 3. 241-265. 1989.
  5. Web site: Amazon.
  6. Web site: 6_1-6_Linea Ambiental . 2021-10-15 . 2014-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140607005732/http://www.minem.gob.pe/minem/archivos/6_1%20-%206_%20Linea%20Ambiental.pdf . dead .
  7. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  8. Web site: Reportes hidrológicos. 2023-10-03. 2023-10-03. https://web.archive.org/web/20231003234604/https://www.gob.pe/institucion/senamhi/tema/reportes-hidrologicos. live.
  9. Web site: 6_1-6_Linea Ambiental . 2021-10-15 . 2014-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140607005732/http://www.minem.gob.pe/minem/archivos/6_1%20-%206_%20Linea%20Ambiental.pdf . dead .
  10. Web site: 6_1-6_Linea Ambiental . 2021-10-15 . 2014-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140607005732/http://www.minem.gob.pe/minem/archivos/6_1%20-%206_%20Linea%20Ambiental.pdf . dead .
  11. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  12. Web site: 6_1-6_Linea Ambiental . 2021-10-15 . 2014-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140607005732/http://www.minem.gob.pe/minem/archivos/6_1%20-%206_%20Linea%20Ambiental.pdf . dead .
  13. Web site: Sediment budget of the Napo River, Amazon basin, Ecuador and Peru . www.academia.edu Hydrological …, 2009. January 2009 . Christophoul . Frédéric .
  14. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  15. Web site: Hydro-SHEDS.
  16. Web site: SO-HYBAM.
  17. Web site: Amazon.
  18. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  19. Web site: Senamhi. 7 September 2021. 28 March 2023. 28 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230328232315/https://www.gob.pe/senamhi. live.
  20. Web site: EVALUACIÓN HIDROLÓGICA DE LAS CUENCAS AMAZÓNICAS PERUANAS – OCTUBRE 2011. 2023-03-28. 2023-03-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20230328232316/https://www.yumpu.com/es/document/read/14521231/evaluacion-hidrologica-de-las-cuencas-amazonicas-peruanas. live.
  21. Web site: EVALUACIÓN HIDROLÓGICA DE LAS CUENCAS AMAZÓNICAS PERUANAS – OCTUBRE 2012. 2023-03-28. 2023-03-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20230328232316/https://docplayer.es/93480959-Boletin-extraordinario-de-la-evaluacion-hidrologica-y-pluviometrica-en-la-cuenca-amazonica-peruana.html. live.
  22. Web site: BOLETIN EXTRAORDINARIO DE LA EVALUACIÓN HIDROLÓGICA Y PLUVIOMÉTRICA EN LA CUENCA AMAZÓNICA PERUANA – AGOSTO 2013. 2021-11-02. 2021-11-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20211102101657/http://siar.regionloreto.gob.pe/documentos/boletin-extraordinario-evaluacion-hidrologica-pluviometrica-cuenca-0. dead.
  23. Book: William. Santini. 10.5194/esurf-2018-93. An index concentration method for suspended load monitoring in large rivers of the Amazonian foreland. 2019. free .
  24. Book: Charles J.. Vörösmarty. Berrien. Moore. Annette L.. Grace. M. Patricia. Gildea. CONTINENTAL SCALE MODELS OF WATER BALANCE AND FLUVIAL TRANSPORT: AN APPLICATIONS TO SOUTH AMERICA. 3. 241-265. 1989.
  25. Web site: Amazon.
  26. Web site: Oficina Nacional de Evaluación de Recursos Naturales (ONERN).
  27. Web site: Empresa de Electricidad del Perú S.A.-ELECTROPERU-Plataforma del Estado Peruano. 19 May 2023 .
  28. Web site: HYBAM.
  29. Book: Hydrodynamic and sediment transport modeling in a bend of napo amazonian river: Morphodynamics and infrastructure implications. 10.13140/RG.2.2.27735.68008. Julio Isaac. Montenegro Gambini. 2015.
  30. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  31. Web site: Assessing the performance of global hydrological models for capturing peak river flows in the Amazon basin . Jamie . Towner . 2019 . 28 March 2022 . 14 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231014093200/https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/23/3057/2019/hess-23-3057-2019-supplement.pdf . live .
  32. Web site: 6_1-6_Linea Ambiental . 2021-10-15 . 2014-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140607005732/http://www.minem.gob.pe/minem/archivos/6_1%20-%206_%20Linea%20Ambiental.pdf . dead .
  33. Preliminary Analysis of Potential for River Hydrokinetic Energy Tecnologies in the Amazon Basin. Filizola. Naziano. Melo. Edileuza. Armijos. Elisa. McGlynn. John. Idb Publications . 2015. 10.18235/0000222 .
  34. Book: ESTUDIO BINACIONAL DE NAVEGABILIDAD DEL RÍO NAPO. 2010.
  35. Chemical weathering and atmospheric/soil CO2 uptake in the Andean and Foreland Amazon basins. Alain. Laraque. Jean-Sébastien. Moquet. Chemical Geology . 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2011.01.005. 2011. 287 . 1–2 . 1–26 . 2011ChGeo.287....1M .
  36. Book: Modelado hidrológico distribuido de la cuenca amazónica peruana utilizando precipitación obtenida por satélite. Ricardo Zubieta. Barragán. 2013.
  37. Suspended sediment dynamics in the Amazon River of Peru. Philippe. Vauchel. Jorge Luis. Carranza Vasle. Alain. Crave. Journal of South American Earth Sciences . 2013. 44 . 75 . 10.1016/j.jsames.2012.09.002 . 2013JSAES..44...75A .
  38. Web site: Sediment budget of the Napo River, Amazon basin, Ecuador and Peru . www.academia.edu Hydrological …, 2009. January 2009 . Christophoul . Frédéric .
  39. Web site: Sediment budget of the Napo River, Amazon basin, Ecuador and Peru . www.academia.edu Hydrological …, 2009. January 2009 . Christophoul . Frédéric .
  40. Hydrological modeling of the Peruvian-Ecuadorian Amazon Basin using GPM-IMERG satellite-based precipitation dataset. 21. 7. 2017. Ricardo. Zubieta. Augusto. Getirana. Jhan Carlo. Espinoza. Waldo. Lavado-Casimiro. Luis. Aragon. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences . 3543–3555 . 10.5194/hess-21-3543-2017 . free . 32753831 . 7402198 . 2017HESS...21.3543Z .
  41. Web site: Amazon.
  42. Web site: Amazon.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Napo River".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.