Prut

The Prut is a river in Eastern Europe that runs for 953 kilometers (592 miles). It is a Danube tributary to the left. It forms part of Romania's border with Moldova and Ukraine.

The Prut grows on the eastern slope of Mount Hoverla in Ukraine's Carpathian Mountains (Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast). Initially, the river flows north. It turns northeast near Yaremche and south-east near Kolomyia. When it reaches the Moldova-Romania border, it turns to the south-east, and then to the south. It eventually merges with the Danube near Giurgiulești, east of Galați, and west of Reni.

Between 1918 and 1939, the river flowed through Poland and Greater Romania (Romanian: România Mare). It served as a border between Romania and the Russian Empire prior to World War I. The river once again dominated a border after WWII, this time between Romania and the Soviet Union. It now forms the border between Romania and Ukraine for 31 km (19 mi) and the border between Romania and Moldova for 711 km (442 mi). It has a hydrographic basin of 27,540 km2, of which 10,990 km2 (4,240 sq mi) is in Romania and 7,790 km2 (3,010 sq mi) is in Moldova. Chernivtsi, Ukraine, is the largest city along its banks.

Prut is home to the Stânca-Costești Dam, which is operated jointly by Moldova and Romania. Sniatyn also has a hydroelectric station (Ukraine). Ships travel from the mouth of the river to the port city of Leova (southern Moldova).

The basin's lower reaches are heavily marshy. At its mouth, the average discharge is 110 m3/s (3,900 cu ft/s). In the city of Leova, the average discharge is 69.2 m3/s (2,440 cu ft/s). The river's slope varies from 100 m/km (near the source) to 0.05 m/km (near the mouth). It has a mountainous character in the upper reaches (to Delyatyn), with a steep right bank, and the cross-sectional profile of the channel sometimes takes the form of a ridge. The Probiy waterfall is located near the city of Yaremche.

Length: 953 km (592 mi- shared with Moldova and Romania)