waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

s, the run (also known as the runout) is the linear distance the stream flows from the brink of the waterfall to its base. Therefore, a steeper waterfall would have a shorter run, and a less inclined waterfall would have a longer run. As an example,

rapid Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade''. ...

s typically have longer runs, as their actual drop is usually much shorter than the distance they flow.

Vertical Vertical is a geometric term of location which may refer to: * Vertical direction, the direction aligned with the direction of the force of gravity, up or down * Vertical (angles), a pair of angles opposite each other, formed by two intersecting s ...

waterfalls, such as

Yosemite Falls Yosemite Falls is the highest waterfall in Yosemite National Park, dropping a total of from the top of the upper fall to the base of the lower fall. Located in the Sierra Nevada of California, it is a major attraction in the park, especially in ...

, have short runs.

References

{{reflist Waterfalls