# 43 The Mighty Amazon
The longest river in the world is the Nile. Its length is 4,160 miles. But the Nile is not the mightiest river. The Amazon is. The Amazon is also the second longest river in the world. It is 3,900 miles long. How long is that? It is longer than a road going from New York City to San Francisco.
The Amazon is mightiest for this reason. It flows the greatest amount of water. More water flows out to sea than from the Nile, Mississippi, and Yangtze rivers combined. That's a lot of fresh water! The force of its current is great too. The current can be seen 200 miles out in the sea. Here's a story to show the Amazon's amazing current. A sailing ship was far out of sight of Brazil. It ran out of drinking water. A passing ship drew alongside. The captain of the first ship asked for water. The captain of the second ship said, "Just dip your buckets over the side."
Here are a few more facts. At its mouth, the Amazon is 90 miles wide. Even up the river, you can't see the opposite bank. The river is also very deep—from 75 to 250 feet! During rainy season, the river rises about 53 feet more. Big ocean ships can sail about 1,800 miles upstream. Smaller ships can sail 1,000 miles farther.
What's the most bloodthirsty fish in the world? No. It's not the shark. It's the Amazon's piranha. It is only about four to eight inches long. It has razor-sharp teeth. And its jaws are massive. Thousands travel in a group. No animal can swim across the river. The fish will attack it. A 1,000-pound horse would be just bones in three minutes.
Are you planning a trip to the Amazon? Here's a good tip. Leave your bathing suit at home.
# 43 強大的亞馬遜河
世界上最長的河流是尼羅河。它的長度是4,160英里。但尼羅河不是最強大的河流。亞馬遜河才是。亞馬遜河也是世界第二長的河流。它長3,900英里。那有多長？它比從紐約市到舊金山的道路還要長。
亞馬遜河之所以最強大，是因為這個原因。它輸送的水量最大。流入海洋的水量比尼羅河、密西西比河和長江的總和還要多。那是大量的淡水！它的水流力量也很大。在離海200英里處仍能看到這股水流。這裡有一個故事可以說明亞馬遜河驚人的水流。一艘帆船遠在巴西視線之外。它耗盡了飲用水。一艘經過的船靠了過來。第一艘船的船長要求供水。第二艘船的船長說：「只要把你們的水桶從船邊放下去就行了。」
還有一些事實。在河口處，亞馬遜河寬90英里。即使在河流上游，你也看不到對岸。這條河也很深——從75到250英尺！在雨季，河水會再上漲約53英尺。大型海船可以向上游航行約1,800英里。較小的船可以再航行1,000英里。
世界上最嗜血的魚是什麼？不。不是鯊魚。是亞馬遜河的食人魚。它只有大約四到八英寸長。它有鋒利如剃刀般的牙齒。而且它的下顎巨大。成千上萬的食人魚成群活動。沒有動物能游過這條河。這些魚會攻擊它。一匹1,000磅重的馬在三分鐘內就會只剩下骨頭。
你計劃去亞馬遜河旅行嗎？這裡有一個好建議。把你的泳衣留在家裡。