Niagara Falls Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
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Is Niagara Falls the tallest in the world?   (Back to the list of questions).

No. Niagara Falls is certainly not the tallest waterfall in the world. That honor goes to Angel Falls in Canaima National Park, Venezuela. Angel Falls drops a total of 3,212 feet (979 meters) down the face of a mountain- that's 3,029 ft (923 meters) higher than the American Falls! In fact, many waterfalls around the world (at least a thousand) are taller than Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls is not even the tallest in the state of NY. Taughannock Falls, near Ithaca, is 32 feet taller. In the Genesee River Gorge at Letchworth State Park  there are six seasonal waterfalls that are at least double the height of Niagara Falls.

Despite these taller waterfalls' size, they pale in comparison to Niagara when it comes to volume of water. What makes Niagara so grand is its scale. With the largest freshwater system in the world passing over its wide crests, it creates a massive roar. Even with 75% of its water diverted for generating power, it it still an impressive site.

So is it the largest in the world?

Taking volume into consideration, Niagara Falls is still not the largest. It ranks in the top 10 in the world, with controversy surrounding which waterfall has the most flow. In the Congo there are a few that have been dubbed the largest in terms of flow- with Inga Falls taking the top spot with 1,500,000 cf/s (70,793 cm/s). Although if you are a purist, and require a waterfall to have a significant drop, then Para Falls, on the Caura River in Venezuela would be considered the largest. Its flow reaches 400,000 cf/s (11,327 cm/s) over its 211 ft (64 meter) drop.

Although Niagara Falls is neither the tallest or largest waterfall in the world, it is the most accessible of the giants. No other waterfall of this size and volume easily allows visitors from around the world to see it from all angles, get close, and even touch it.

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What shape are the Falls?  (Back to the list of questions).

The American Falls isn't exactly strait across. It's more like a zigzag, as shown in the diagram below.

American Falls Crest Shape (2007)

The Horseshoe Falls is shaped like a crude horseshoe, but it wasn't always this shape. When the first Europeans documented the falls, it seemed to have a shallower curve. In the 1800's, rock falls began to carve a V-shaped notch in the center of the falls, which led to faster erosion in the center, eventually forming a deeper curve.

Horseshoe Falls Crest Shape (2007)

How does it compare to a real horseshoe?

Not quite a horseshoe.

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Where does all the water come from?  (Back to the list of questions).

The water that passes over Niagara Falls comes from 4 out of 5 of the great lakes: Lake Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie. With a watershed reaching over 260,000 square miles (673,000 km²), the Great Lakes are the largest fresh water basin in the world. About 2/3 of the fresh water on the continent flows over the Falls - that's almost 1/5 of the fresh water on Earth.

Where does all this water end up?
From the Niagara River, it empties into Lake Ontario and continues east through the St. Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean.

Great Lakes Watershed

The diagram above illustrates how the Great Lakes collects water from all over the Great Lakes Basin and channels it from one lake to the next. On the way to Lake Ontario, and eventually the Atlantic Ocean, the water passes through the Niagara River and Niagara Falls.

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