Mekong

The Mekong, also known as the Mekong River, is a trans-boundary river in East and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth-longest river and Asia's third-longest. It has an estimated length of 4,909 km (3,050 mi) and drains an area of 795,000 km2 (307,000 sq mi), discharging 475 km3 (114 cu mi) of water per year. The river flows from the Tibetan Plateau through China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The Mekong's extreme seasonal variations in flow, as well as the presence of rapids and waterfalls, make navigation difficult. Nonetheless, the river serves as a vital trade route between western China and Southeast Asia.

The Mekong Basin is divided into two sections: the "upper Mekong basin" in Tibet and the "lower Mekong basin" from Yunnan to the South China Sea. The most precipitous drop in the Mekong occurs in the upper Mekong basin, a stretch of approximately 2,200 kilometers from where it rises to its mouth (1,400 mi). It drops 4,500 meters (14,800 feet) here before entering the lower basin, where the borders of Thailand, Laos, China, and Myanmar form the Golden Triangle. The river flows for another 2,600 km (1,600 mi) downstream from the Golden Triangle, through Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia, before entering the South China Sea via a complex delta system in Vietnam.

Length: 4,350 km (2,700 mi)