When rivers flow back: where rare tidal waves can be seen on Earth

A significant tidal wave can be seen only in a few places on Earth. In order to curb this rare wave, surfers are ready to go to the ends of the world, and tourists for the sake of an exciting sight agree to get wet, because a tidal wave can cover them with their heads. But this type of wave is not only very spectacular, but also very dangerous.

A high tidal wave - boron - is formed at the mouths of some rivers of the planet with the combination of certain factors. For the appearance of such a spectacular natural phenomenon, it is necessary to have a gulf tapering towards the mouth, which at times increases the height of the wave of the ocean tide. A wave from the sea or ocean moves towards the river, enters the mouth and then continues to move against the current, while gaining a height of 2-6 meters. Especially high and high-speed waves are observed in conditions of a fair wind blowing from the sea. Similar waves, as well as numerous extreme sports enthusiasts with surfboards, can be seen in the lower reaches of the Amazon. Here, such waves are called vices and reach 4 meters in height. In addition to South America, such a phenomenon can be observed in Malaysia on the Batang River, in Turnagain Bay off the Alaska Peninsula, on the English River Severn.

But the highest waves of this type on the planet can be seen on the Qiantangjiang River, which carries its waters to the East China Sea. The local tidal wave rises 6-9 meters above the surface of the river and moves against the current at a speed of 45 km / h. Such an impressive sight even has its own name - the Silver Dragon - and attracts thousands of tourists during the annual festival.

Unfortunately, the tidal wave is not as harmless as it might seem. High-speed waves pose a threat to river vessels as well as to people on shore. Encountering obstacles in its way in the form of protruding parts of the coast, a tidal wave spills with force to the land, knocking people down. For this reason, caution must be exercised if you decide to observe such an attractive natural phenomenon.