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6,300 km Total LengthDrainage Basin: 1,808,500 km²

Yangtze River (Chang Jiang)

Ancient Appellations: Da Jiang (Great River) • Jiang (Ancient Chinese) • Kiang (Historical Western)

The longest river in Asia and the commercial spine of southern China, nourishing wet-rice cultivation and interlinked by the Grand Canal.

5.0
Source: Tanggula Mountains, Qinghai-Tibetan PlateauMouth: East China Sea Wikidata: Q5413 ↗

Hydrological Influence & Ancient Statecraft

Flowing from the glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau through deep gorges into rich alluvial plains, the Yangtze River has long formed the economic heartbeat of China. While northern China centered on the Yellow River for wheat and millet, the Yangtze basin pioneered intensive paddy-rice agriculture. During the Tang and Song dynasties, the economic center of gravity shifted south to the Yangtze, generating over 60% of imperial tax grain.

Agricultural Surplus & Flood Pulse Ecology

Supported the wet-field rice revolution, early-ripening Champa rice cultivars, mulberry silk production, and world-leading tea cultivation.

Hydrological Anatomy

  • ✓Three Gorges (Qutang, Wu, and Xiling) serving as natural bottlenecks and scenic gateways
  • ✓Major freshwater lakes acting as natural flood retention basins (Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake)
  • ✓Direct connection with the northern Yellow River basin via the 1,776-kilometer Grand Canal
  • ✓Vast maritime delta harboring Shanghai and modern global shipping terminals

About the Yangtze

The Yangtze River, Yangzi River or Chang Jiang is the longest river in China and the third-longest river in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows for 6,236 kilometers (3,875 mi), including the Dam Qu River, the longest source of the Yangtze, in a generally easterly direction to the East China Sea. It is the fifth-largest primary river by discharge volume in the world. Its drainage basin comprises one-fifth of the land area of China, and is home to nearly one-third of the country's population.

The Yangtze has played a major role in the history, culture, and economy of China. For thousands of years, the river has been used for water, irrigation, sanitation, transportation, industry, boundary-marking, and war. The Yangtze Delta generates as much as 20% of China's GDP, and the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze is the largest hydro-electric power station in the world. In mid-2014, the Chinese government announced it was building a multi-tier transport network, comprising railways, roads and airports to create a new economic belt alongside the river.

Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Yangtze (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Yangtze in Depth

Geography

The river originates from several tributaries in the eastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, two of which are commonly referred to as the "source." Traditionally, the Chinese government has recognized the source as the Tuotuo tributary at the base of a glacier lying on the west of Geladandong Mountain in the Tanggula Mountains. This source is found at 33°25′44″N 91°10′57″E and while not the furthest source of the Yangtze, it is the highest source at 5,342 meters (17,526 ft) above sea level. The true source of the Yangtze, hydrologically the longest river distance from the sea, is at Jari Hill at the head of the Dam Qu tributary, approximately 365 kilometers (227 mi) southeast of Geladandong.

Hydrology

Tens of millions of people live in the floodplain of the Yangtze valley, an area that naturally floods every summer and is habitable only because it is protected by river dikes. The floods large enough to overflow the dikes have caused great distress to those who live and farm there. Floods of note include those of 1931, 1954, and 1998.

The 1931 Central China floods or the Central China floods of 1931 were a series of floods that are generally considered among the deadliest natural disasters ever recorded, and almost certainly the deadliest of the 20th century (when pandemics and famines are discounted). Estimates of the total death toll range from 145,000 to between 3.7 million and 4 million. The Yangtze flooded again in 1935, causing great loss of life.

History

Although the mouth of the Yellow River has fluctuated widely north and south of the Shandong peninsula within the historical record, the Yangtze has remained largely static. Based on studies of sedimentation rates, however, it is unlikely that the present discharge site predates the late Miocene (c. 11 Ma). Prior to this, its headwaters drained south into the Gulf of Tonkin along or near the course of the present Red River.

The Yangtze River is important to the cultural origins of southern China and Japan. Human activity has been verified in the Three Gorges area as far back as 27,000 years ago, and by the 5th millennium BC, the lower Yangtze was a major population center occupied by the Hemudu and Majiabang cultures, both among the earliest cultivators of rice.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Yangtze (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Yangtze: Key Facts

Key facts about Yangtze
Average discharge31,900 m³/s
Drainage systemYangtze River basin
TributariesHeng River, Yalong River, Min River, Tuo River, Chishui River, Jialing River, Wu River, Yuan River

Facts from Wikidata Q5413 (CC0).

Dams of the Yangtze River

3 dams of the Yangtze River, on the main stream and the tributaries that feed it, ordered by structural height, with their reservoirs and generating capacity.

Dams of the Yangtze River
DamRiverHeightCapacityCompleted
Goupitan DamWu River232.5 m3,000 MW2009
Three Gorges DamYangtze181 m22,500 MW2012
Xiangjiaba DamJinsha162 m6,400 MW2012

Goupitan Dam

Double-curvature Arch dam · Guizhou, China

Goupitan Dam is a double-curvature arch dam on the Wu River, in the Yangtze basin, in Guizhou, China, standing 232.5 m (763 ft) high and completed in 2009. It carries an installed hydroelectric capacity of 3,000 MW. The structure impounds Goupitan Reservoir.

The Goupitan Dam (simplified Chinese: 构皮滩大坝; traditional Chinese: 構皮灘大壩; pinyin: Gòupítān Dàbà) is an arch dam on the Wu River, a tributary of the Yangtze River in Guizhou Province, southwest of China. The dam's hydroelectric facility will operate on five turbines, each with a hydroelectric generating capacity of 600 MW, for a total of 3,000 MW. Constructions began on in 2003 and the first generator was operational in June 2009. All works were completed in 2011.

The dam is supplemented by the Goupitan shiplift, said to be the tallest boat lift in the world. Xinhua reported, on July 3, 2020, it would be complete by March 2021.

Adapted from Wikipedia: Goupitan Dam (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Dam type
Double-curvature Arch
Structural height
232.5 m (763 ft)
Installed capacity
3,000 MW
Impounded river
Wu River (Yangtze)
River basin
Yangtze
Reservoir
Goupitan Reservoir
Location
Guizhou, China
Year completed
2009
Height rank
#12 of 115 indexed
Output rank
#21 of 102 indexed
Coordinates
27.3756°, 107.6339°

Notable: Features the world's tallest ship lift with three vertical lifts carrying ships across 199 vertical meters.

Among the 115 dams indexed in YearMaps, Goupitan Dam ranks #12 by structural height, behind Jinping-I Dam (305 m). By installed generating capacity it ranks #21, behind Three Gorges Dam (22,500 MW).

Nearest cities: Zunyi (79 km), Guiyang (127 km), Tongren (151 km).

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Three Gorges Dam
Image via Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on the file page).

Three Gorges Dam

Concrete Gravity dam · Hubei, China

Three Gorges Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Yangtze in Hubei, China, standing 181 m (594 ft) high and completed in 2012. It carries an installed hydroelectric capacity of 22,500 MW. The structure impounds Three Gorges Reservoir.

The Three Gorges Dam, officially known as Yangtze River Three Gorges Water Conservancy Project is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River near Sandouping in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, central China, downstream of the Three Gorges. It is also the world's largest power station by installed capacity (22,500 MW); it generates 95±20 TWh of electricity per year on average, depending on the amount of precipitation in the river basin. After the monsoons of 2020, the dam produced nearly 112 TWh in a year, breaking the record of 103 TWh set by the Itaipu Dam in 2016.

The dam's body, 185 meters high and 2,309 meters wide, was completed in 2006. The power plant became fully operational in 2012, when the last of the 32 main water turbines in the underground plant began production. The last major component of the project, the ship lift, was completed in 2015.

Each of the 32 turbines, considered state-of-the-art at the time of their installation, can generate 700 MW.

Adapted from Wikipedia: Three Gorges Dam (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Dam type
Concrete Gravity
Structural height
181 m (594 ft)
Installed capacity
22,500 MW
Impounded river
Yangtze
Reservoir
Three Gorges Reservoir
Location
Hubei, China
Year completed
2012
Height rank
#18 of 115 indexed
Output rank
#1 of 102 indexed
Coordinates
30.8267°, 111.0028°

Notable: World's largest power station by installed capacity (22,500 MW); shifted Earth's rotational axis slightly.

Among the 115 dams indexed in YearMaps, Three Gorges Dam ranks #18 by structural height, behind Jinping-I Dam (305 m). By installed generating capacity it ranks #1.

Nearest cities: Yichang (30 km), Zicheng (75 km), Jingmen (107 km).

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More about Three Gorges Dam

History

Sun Yat-sen envisioned a large dam across the Yangtze River in The International Development of China (1919). He wrote that a dam capable of generating 30 million horsepower (22 GW) was possible downstream of the Three Gorges. In 1932, the Nationalist government, led by Chiang Kai-shek, began preliminary work on plans in the Three Gorges. In 1939, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Japanese military forces occupied Yichang and surveyed the area.

In 1944, the United States Bureau of Reclamation's head design engineer, John L. Savage, surveyed the area and drew up a dam proposal for a "Yangtze River Project". Some 54 Chinese engineers went to the US for training.

Power generation and distribution

Power generation is managed by China Yangtze Power, a listed subsidiary of China Three Gorges Corporation (CTGC), a Central Enterprise administered by SASAC. The Three Gorges Dam is the world's largest capacity hydroelectric power station, with 34 generators: 32 main generators, each with a capacity of 700 MW, and two plant power generators, each with capacity of 50 MW, for a total of 22,500 MW. Among the 32 main generators, 14 are installed on the dam's north side, 12 on the south side, and the remaining six in the underground power plant in the mountain south of the dam. Annual electricity generation in 2018 was 101.6 TWh, which is 20 times more than the Hoover Dam.

The main generators each weigh about 6,000 tonnes and are designed to produce more than 700 MW of power each.

Environmental impact

According to the National Development and Reform Commission, 366 grams of coal would produce 1 kWh of electricity during 2006. According to the dam's operator, China Three Gorges Corporation, the project's cumulative power production from 2003 to 2007 was equivalent to saving 84 million tonnes of standard coal.

However, the dam's localized greenhouse gas footprint remains a subject of ongoing scientific study. Independent research indicates that the reservoir itself generates biogenic emissions, outputting an estimated average of 359,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and 3,810 tonnes of methane annually. High levels of methane are notably released during the summer months from vegetation rotting in exposed drawdown zones when the reservoir water levels are lowered.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Three Gorges Dam (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Three Gorges Dam: Key Facts

Key facts about Three Gorges Dam
Crest length2,335 m
Officially opened2003

Facts from Wikidata Q12514 (CC0).

Xiangjiaba Dam
Image via Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on the file page).

Xiangjiaba Dam

Concrete Gravity dam · Sichuan / Yunnan, China

Xiangjiaba Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Jinsha, in the Yangtze basin, in Sichuan / Yunnan, China, standing 162 m (531 ft) high and completed in 2012. It carries an installed hydroelectric capacity of 6,400 MW. The structure impounds Xiangjiaba Reservoir.

The Xiangjiaba Dam (simplified Chinese: 向家坝; traditional Chinese: 向家壩; pinyin: Xiàngjiābà) is a large gravity dam on the Jinsha River, a tributary of the Yangtze River in Yunnan Province and Sichuan Province in southwest China. The facility has eleven Francis turbines, four with a capacity of 812 MW and four rated at 800 MW and three with 450 MW, totalling an installed capacity of 7,798 MW. Xiangjiaba Dam is China's fourth-biggest hydropower station following Three Gorges Dam, Baihetan Dam and Xiluodu Dam.

Construction started on November 26, 2006, and its first generator was commissioned in October 2012. The last generator was commissioned on July 9, 2014.

The output of the generating station is connected to an ±800 kV HVDC link, the Xiangjiaba–Shanghai HVDC system, which transmits the power to Shanghai.

Adapted from Wikipedia: Xiangjiaba Dam (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Dam type
Concrete Gravity
Structural height
162 m (531 ft)
Installed capacity
6,400 MW
Impounded river
Jinsha (Yangtze)
River basin
Yangtze
Reservoir
Xiangjiaba Reservoir
Location
Sichuan / Yunnan, China
Year completed
2012
Height rank
#25 of 115 indexed
Output rank
#11 of 102 indexed
Coordinates
28.6472°, 104.3944°

Notable: Possesses the world's largest vertical ship lift capable of handling 1,000-ton vessels.

Among the 115 dams indexed in YearMaps, Xiangjiaba Dam ranks #25 by structural height, behind Jinping-I Dam (305 m). By installed generating capacity it ranks #11, behind Three Gorges Dam (22,500 MW).

Nearest cities: Yibin (22 km), Zigong (92 km), Luzhou (99 km).

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More about Xiangjiaba Dam

Xiangjiaba Dam: Key Facts

Key facts about Xiangjiaba Dam
Officially openedOctober 2012

Facts from Wikidata Q1155917 (CC0).

Yangtze River: Quick Answers

Which countries does the Yangtze River flow through?
The mapped course of the Yangtze River lies entirely in China.
Where does the Yangtze River begin and end?
Source: Tanggula Mountains, Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Mouth: East China Sea (Shanghai).
How long is the Yangtze River?
About 6,300 km (3,915 miles), draining a basin of about 1,808,500 km².
What is the tallest dam on the Yangtze River?
Goupitan Dam is the tallest dam recorded on the Yangtze River system, at 232.5 m (763 ft), completed in 2009.
Which civilizations grew up along the Yangtze River?
Among them: Chu State, Wu & Yue Kingdoms, Song Dynasty and Ming & Qing Dynasties.

Countries Along the River

The main stream from source to mouth, then any country only a tributary or delta branch reaches.

  1. 1China

Historic Cities on the Banks

ShanghaiNanjingWuhanChongqingYibinSuzhou (via Grand Canal)

Nearest River Dossiers

Yellow River (Huang He)5,464 km

Basin: 0.75M km²

The Mekong River (Lancang)4,909 km

Basin: 0.80M km²

The Ganges & Brahmaputra Delta2,525 km

Basin: 1.70M km²

The Sarasvati Paleoriver (Ghaggar-Hakra)1,500 km

Basin: 0.42M km²