Aswan Dam

Aswan High Dam
The Aswan High Dam as seen from space
Location of the Aswan Dam in Egypt
Official name	Aswan High Dam
Location	Aswan, Egypt
Coordinates	23°58′14″N 32°52′40″E / 23.97056°N 32.87778°E / 23.97056; 32.87778
Construction began	1960; 64 years ago (1960)
Opening date	1970; 54 years ago (1970)
Owner(s)	Egypt
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Embankment
Impounds	River Nile
Height	111 m (364 ft)
Length	3,830 m (12,570 ft)
Width (base)	980 m (3,220 ft)
Spillway capacity	11,000 m3/s (390,000 cu ft/s)
Reservoir
Creates	Lake Nasser
Total capacity	132 km3 (107,000,000 acre⋅ft)
Surface area	5,250 km2 (2,030 sq mi)
Maximum length	550 km (340 mi)
Maximum width	35 km (22 mi)
Maximum water depth	130 m (430 ft)
Normal elevation	183 m (600 ft)
Power Station
Commission date	1967–1971
Turbines	12×175 MW (235,000 hp) Francis-type
Installed capacity	2,100 MW (2,800,000 hp)
Annual generation	10,042 GWh (2004)[1]

The Aswan Dam, or more specifically since the 1980s, the Aswan High Dam, is one of the world's largest embankment dams, which was built across the Nile in Aswan, Egypt, between 1960 and 1970. When it was completed, it was the tallest earthen dam in the world, eclipsing the United States' Chatuge Dam.^[2] Its significance largely upstaged the previous Aswan Low Dam initially completed in 1902 downstream. Based on the success of the Low Dam, then at its maximum utilization, construction of the High Dam became a key objective of the new regime the Free Officers movement of 1952; with its ability to better control flooding, provide increased water storage for irrigation and generate hydroelectricity, the dam was seen as pivotal to Egypt's planned industrialization. Like the earlier implementation, the High Dam has had a significant effect on the economy and culture of Egypt.

Before the High Dam was built, even with the old dam in place, the annual flooding of the Nile during late summer had continued to pass largely unimpeded down the valley from its East African drainage basin. These floods brought high water with natural nutrients and minerals that annually enriched the fertile soil along its floodplain and delta; this predictability had made the Nile valley ideal for farming since ancient times. However, this natural flooding varied, since high-water years could destroy the whole crop, while low-water years could create widespread drought and consequently famine. Both these events had continued to occur periodically. As Egypt's population grew and technology increased, both a desire and the ability developed to completely control the flooding, and thus both protect and support farmland and its economically important cotton crop. With the greatly increased reservoir 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 Hydroproject Institute.^[3][4] Designed for both irrigation and power generation, the dam incorporates a number of relatively new features, including a very deep grout curtain 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.^[5]