Aswan Dam

The Aswan Dam, or Aswan High Dam, is one of the world's largest <a href="/facts/Embankment_dam/9Mm3P4DM">embankment dams</a>, which was built between 1960 and 1970 across the <a href="/facts/Nile/vGoXVUFH">Nile</a> in <a href="/facts/Aswan/gI6G1Ho5">Aswan</a>, Egypt. The project was developed by the military regime that took power following the <a href="/facts/1952_Egyptian_revolution/fEUwQM9l">1952 Egyptian revolution</a>, to better control flooding, provide increased water storage for irrigation and generate <a href="/facts/Hydroelectricity/zEeJIK2B">hydroelectricity</a>, the dam was seen as pivotal to the contries <a href="/facts/Industrialization/h3QXzS6C">industrialization</a> plans. Like the earlier implementation, the High Dam has had a significant effect on the <a href="/facts/Economy_of_Egypt/q2Blr1hf">economy</a> and <a href="/facts/Culture_of_Egypt/tYUvGCQs">culture of Egypt</a>.
When it was completed, it was the tallest earthen dam in the world, surpassing the <a href="/facts/Chatuge_Dam/eXUYTgQ9">Chatuge Dam</a> in the United States. The dam, which created the <a href="/facts/Lake_Nasser/MypL5eo6">Lake Nasser</a> reservoir, was built 7 km (4.3 mi) upstream of the <a href="/facts/Aswan_Low_Dam/AzA8zENL">Aswan Low Dam</a>, which had been completed in 1902 and was already at its maximum utilization.
With the old dam in place, the annual <a href="/facts/Flooding_of_the_Nile/W1xVIEQS">flooding of the Nile</a> during late summer had continued to pass largely unimpeded down the valley from its <a href="/facts/East_Africa/WtsAyphI">East African</a> <a href="/facts/Nile_Basin/euNuLTwR">drainage basin</a>. These floods brought high water with natural <a href="/facts/Nutrient/34bn4skK">nutrients</a> and <a href="/facts/Mineral/LkUFbNmv">minerals</a> that annually enriched the fertile <a href="/facts/Soil/5Ddpr3QM">soil</a> along its <a href="/facts/Floodplain/EUKqIbj5">floodplain</a> and <a href="/facts/Nile_delta/ItjnDeVk">delta</a>; this predictability had made the Nile valley ideal for farming since <a href="/facts/Ancient_Egypt/BDsEGK4g">ancient times</a>. However, this natural flooding varied, since high-water years could destroy the whole <a href="/facts/Crop/JoQKR5R8">crop</a>, while low-water years could create widespread <a href="/facts/Drought/LVW0rfuV">drought</a> and consequently <a href="/facts/Famine/EUEEuh4h">famine</a>. Both these events had continued to occur periodically.
As <a href="/facts/Demographics_of_Egypt/ADzd8wvJ">Egypt's population</a> grew and technology increased, both a desire and the ability developed to completely control the flooding, and thus both protect and support <a href="/facts/Arable_land/pTSyNmdg">farmland</a> and its economically important <a href="/facts/Cotton/efXRcjbn">cotton</a> crop. With the greatly increased <a href="/facts/Reservoir/2FewszmR">reservoir</a> storage provided by the High Aswan Dam, the floods could be controlled and the water could be stored for later release over multiple years.
The Aswan Dam was designed by Nikolai Aleksandrovich Malyshev of the Moscow-based <a href="/facts/Hydroproject_Institute/oUeyVT1f">Hydroproject Institute</a>. Designed for both irrigation and <a href="/facts/Electricity_generation/Uo6mQQ1T">power generation</a>, the dam incorporates a number of relatively new features, including a very deep <a href="/facts/Grout_curtain/hGmv3wvP">grout curtain</a> below its base. Although the reservoir will eventually silt in, even the most conservative estimates indicate the dam will give at least 200 years of service.

Aswan Dam open-in-new

Aswan Dam