Image of the Day : Niagara Falls

“The earth has music for those who listen.”

? George Santayana

Beauty of nature could not have been put in more apt words than this Spanish philosopher and writer. But some natural sights are too overtly beautiful to even require such aesthetic natural perception.

Niagara Falls on the border of Canada and the USA is one such place. Niagara falls is actually a collective name of three different water falls: American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and the Horseshoe Falls. The Horseshoe Falls lie on the Canadian side and the American Falls on the American side, separated by Goat Island. The smaller Bridal Veil Falls are also located on the American side, separated from the other waterfalls by Luna Island.

Horseshoe Falls with city of Buffalo, US in background. Source: Wikimedia Commons

About 500 other waterfalls in the world are “taller” than Niagara. The Angel Falls in Venezuela is tallest at 979 metres (3,212 ft.). However, some of the tallest falls in the world have very little water flowing over them.It’s the combination of height and volume that makes Niagara Falls so beautiful. The startling green colour of the Niagara River is a visible tribute to the erosive power of water. An estimated 60 tons of dissolved minerals are swept over Niagara Falls every minute. The colour comes from the dissolved salts and “rock flour,” very finely ground rock, picked up primarily from the limestone bed but probably also from the shales and sandstones under the limestone cap at the falls.

Facts apart these falls have been celebrated by artists and poets for centuries. It still stands as an irresistible attraction for romance – they are a tremendously popular destination for marriage proposals and wedding ceremonies.

We leave you with a fantastic satellite image captured by GeoEye-1 satellite flying hundreds of miles above the earth. This stunning image shows the falls and surrounding areas in all its glory.

This image of Niagara Falls was captured by GeoEye-1 satellite while flying at an altitude of 681 kilometers. Courtesy: GeoEye Inc.

To know more about Niagara Falls  visit the rich Wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_Falls