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Rivers and Rain A Phnom Penh, Cambodia story

Water
  1. Phnom Penh, Cambodia
  2. Rivers and Rain
Description

Phnom Penh lies just west of the four-river intersection called the Chattomukh ("Four Faces"). From the northwest and northeast, respectively, flow the Tonle Sap and Mekong Rivers. These waters merge and split into the Basak River and the Mekong, which flow southeast to the South China Sea.

The Mekong River is the 12th longest in the world, flowing 4,200 km from western China to the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam. Every autumn, monsoon rains are too great for the Mekong to carry, and it floods a large area of Cambodia. This flood even reverses the flow of the Tonle Sab River, northward to the Tonle Sap ("Great Lake"), which can expand to ten times its normal size.

This area receives 152 to 203 cm of rain annually, most of which falls during the southeast monsoons from mid-May to early October. Landsat images are effective for quantifying changes in surface water. The pair of images from 1995 shows the dramatic effect the annual flooding can have.

View Related Imagery & Stories

Location

Feb. 25, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Feb. 25, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Oct. 23, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Oct. 23, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Feb. 25, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Oct. 23, 1995, Landsat 5 (path/row 126/52) — Mekong River seasonal flooding demonstrated, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Phnom Penh, Cambodia Additional Imagery & Stories

Further Problems
Further Problems

Many projects were headed by loyal party leaders with no technical skills, which is another reason the canals were not more effective. Teachers, techn...

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Population Change
Population Change

Phnom Penh is the largest city along the Mekong River. Its population fluctuated wildly during the 1970s and 1980s; the population of 1.2 million in 1...

Read More
The Initial Irrigation Idea
The Initial Irrigation Idea

From 1975 to 1978, Cambodia was governed by Pol Pot. His regime was known as the Khmer Rouge ("Red Khmer"). In their desire to radically transform Cam...

Read More
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