Rhone
General data
- Water type: River
- Progression: Mediterranean Sea -> Atlantic Ocean -> Planet Earth
- Climates: Continental, Mountain
- Continents: Europe
- Countries: France, Switzerland
Description
The Rhône is a major river in France and Switzerland, arising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Arles, near its mouth, the river divides into the Great Rhone (French: le Grand Rhone) and the Little Rhone (le Petit Rhone). The resulting delta forms the Camargue region. The rivers source is the Rhone Glacier, at the east edge of the Swiss canton of Valais. The glacier is part of the Saint-Gotthard Massif, which gives rise to three other major rivers: the Reuss, Rhine, and Ticino. The Rhone has twice the average discharge of the longest French river, the Loire.