Science Stats Earth

Earth’s rivers cover 44 percent more land than we thought

Satellite maps suggest that these waterways traverse about 773,000 square kilometers

map of world’s rivers and streams

ROVING RIVERS  An updated map of the world’s rivers and streams reveals their global fingerprint. Colors denote a river’s width, from deep blue (30 meters) to yellow (thousands of meters).

G. Allen and T. Pavelsky/Science 2018

By Laurel Hamers

- More than 2 years ago

All of the world’s rivers and streams together cover more area than the U.S.