Editing Nile Delta (section)

==Geography==
[[File:Niledelta 33.svg|The Nile Delta, Northern Egypt]]

From north to south, the delta is approximately {{cvt|160|km|mi|sigfig=1}} in length. From west to east, it covers some {{cvt|240|km|mi}} of coastline. The delta is sometimes divided into sections, with the Nile dividing into two main [[distributary|distributaries]], the [[Damietta]] and the [[Rosetta]],<ref name="Cooper2014">{{cite book|author=John Cooper|title=The Medieval Nile: Route, Navigation, and Landscape in Islamic Egypt|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hYWlBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA34|date=30 September 2014|publisher=The American University in Cairo Press|isbn=978-977-416-614-3|page=76}}</ref> flowing into the Mediterranean at port cities with the same names. In the past, the delta had several distributaries, but these have been lost due to [[flood management|flood control]], silting and changing relief. One such defunct distributary is [[Wadi Tumilat]].{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}

[[File:Nile River and delta from orbit.jpg|thumb|Nile River and Delta]]

The [[Suez Canal]] is east of the delta and enters the coastal [[Lake Manzala]] in the north-east of the delta. To the north-west are three other coastal lakes or lagoons: [[Lake Burullus]], [[Lake Idku]] and [[Lake Mariout]].

The Nile is considered to be an "arcuate" delta (arc-shaped), as it resembles a triangle or flower when seen from above. [[Aristotle]] speculated that the delta was constructed for agricultural purposes due to the drying of the region of Egypt.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Holz |first1=Robert K |title=Man-made landforms in the Nile delta |date=1969 |publisher=American Geographical Society |oclc=38826202 |language=en}}</ref>

In modern day, the outer edges of the delta are eroding, and some coastal [[lagoon]]s have seen increasing salinity levels as their connection to the Mediterranean Sea increases. Since the delta no longer receives an annual supply of nutrients and sediments from upstream due to the construction of the [[Aswan Dam]], the soils of the floodplains have become poorer, and large amounts of fertilizers are now used. [[Topsoil]] in the delta can be as much as {{cvt|70|ft|m|order=flip}} in depth.{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}