Lake Nasser
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| Lake Nasser | |
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| Coordinates | 22°25′N 31°45′E / 22.417°N 31.75°ECoordinates: 22°25′N 31°45′E / 22.417°N 31.75°E |
| Lake type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Nile |
| Primary outflows | Nile |
| Basin countries | Egypt, Sudan |
| Max. length | 550 km (340 mi) |
| Max. width | 35 km (22 mi) |
| Surface area | 5,250 km2 (2,030 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 25.2 m (83 ft) |
| Max. depth | 180 m (590 ft) |
| Water volume | 132 km3 (51,000 sq mi)[1] |
| Shore length1 | 7,844 km (25,730,000 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 183 m (600 ft) |
| References | [1] |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Lake Nasser (Arabic: بحيرة ناصر; transliterated: Buhayrat Nasir) is a vast reservoir in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. Strictly, "Lake Nasser" refers only to the much larger portion of the lake that is in Egyptian territory (83% of the total), with the Sudanese preferring to call their smaller body of water Lake Nubia (Arabic: بحيرة نوبية; transliterated: Buhayrat Nubiya).
It was created as a result of the construction of the Aswan High Dam across the waters of the Nile between 1958 and 1970. The lake is named after President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who initiated the controversial High Dam project.
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[edit] Description
The lake is some 550 km long and 35 km across at its widest point, which is near the Tropic of Cancer. It covers a total surface area of 5,250 km² and has a storage capacity of some 157 km³ of water.
[edit] History
The Egyptian name is in honor of President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who was the mastermind behind the controversial High Dam project.
When Lake Nasser was being created as a result of the construction of the Aswan High Dam, across the Nile, between 1958 and 1970, the anticipated rising waters behind the dam required major relocation projects that were carried out during the 1960s. There were 18 ancient temples in the area.
Several important Nubian and Ancient Egyptian archaeological sites were dismantled block by block and moved to higher ground, most notably Abu Simbel. The prior Sudanese river-port and railway terminal of Wadi Halfa was lost beneath the waters, and a new town was built nearby; and Egypt's entire Nubian community from the upper reaches of the Nile – numbering several hundred thousand people – saw their villages disappear and were forced to relocate.
Rising lake levels through the 1990s resulted in what the Egyptians term the spilling over of waters, others claim deliberate leakage, westwards into the Sahara Desert, forming the Toshka Lakes beginning in 1998.
Ferries take passengers and road vehicles between Aswan in Egypt and Wadi Halfa, from where the railway goes to Khartoum, capital of Sudan. Since it is prohibited to cross the Sudan-Egypt border on land, and no paved roads connect the two countries, the ferries are the only alternative to air travel; currently, they constitute a link in the Cairo-Cape Town Highway.
[edit] Sportfishing in the lake
Sportfishing among tourists, especially for Nile Perch, has become increasingly popular, both on the shore and from boats.
