What is the science behind waterfalls?

Often, waterfalls form as streams flow from soft rock to hard rock. This happens both laterally (as a stream flows across the earth) and vertically (as the stream drops in a waterfall). In both cases, the soft rock erodes, leaving a hard ledge over which the stream falls.



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Waterfalls are often judged by which are the tallest or have the largest volume of water, but there's so much more about them to know. They can make cliffs, produce a dozen different kinds of ice, and have tiny fish crawling up them using suction cups.

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A plunge pool (or plunge basin or waterfall lake) is a deep depression in a stream bed at the base of a waterfall or shut-in. It is created by the erosional forces of cascading water on the rocks at formation's base where the water impacts.

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Angel Falls, Venezuela Beginning with the one that is the tallest uninterrupted waterfall, at the height of 3,200 feet, Angel Falls is the largest waterfall in the world.

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Unlike a lake or pond, a waterfall and its source -- rivers and streams -- are constantly moving and mixing the water. But if the temperature stays below freezing for an extended period of time, the water will supercool. That means it's below 32 degrees but still liquid. During that process, frazil ice forms.

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Out of the over 7,800 documented waterfalls in the world, there are only 31 known perennial and seasonal waterfalls that empty directly into an open ocean or sea (as opposed flowing into a river, stream, inlet, or fjord).

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Waterfalls are said to symbolise the process of letting go, cleansing and the continuous flow of energy and life.

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