Rhine

The Rhine is a 1,232.7 km long river in Western and Central Europe and one of the busiest waterways in the world.

The source region of the Rhine is predominantly in the Swiss canton of Graubünden, and its tributaries reach the North Sea in the Netherlands, where it is the largest source of freshwater. From the confluence of its two main source branches, the Vorderrhein and the Hinterrhein, the river is usually divided into the following main sections: Alpenrhein (up to Lake Constance), Hochrhein (including the Seerhein that connects the upper and lower Lake Constance), Oberrhein, Mittelrhein, and Niederrhein, including the three tributaries of the Delta Rhine: Waal, Lek, and IJssel.

The largest tributaries of the Rhine, measured by length, catchment area, and average discharge (MQ), are, ordered from the source to the mouth: Aare, Neckar, Main, Moselle, and Meuse. With these, its catchment area spans nine countries. The largest part of this area lies in Germany, followed by France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The Rhine is the tenth-longest river in Europe and the seventh-longest river that flows directly into the sea. Among the rivers of the German-speaking world, it is the second-longest after the Danube and ahead of the Elbe.