Cahora Bassa

Cahora Bassa
A partial view of Cahora Bassa from space.
Cahora Bassa Location in Mozambique
Location	Mozambique
Coordinates	15°40′S 31°50′E / 15.667°S 31.833°E / -15.667; 31.833
Lake type	Reservoir
Primary inflows	Zambezi River
Primary outflows	Zambezi River
Catchment area	56,927 km2 (21,980 sq mi)
Basin countries	Mozambique
Max. length	292 km (181 mi)
Max. width	38 km (24 mi)
Surface area	2,739 km2 (1,058 sq mi)
Average depth	20.9 m (69 ft)
Max. depth	157 m (515 ft)
Water volume	55.8 km3 (45,200,000 acre⋅ft)
Surface elevation	314 m (1,030 ft)

The Cahora Bassa lake—in the Portuguese colonial era (until 1974) known as Cabora Bassa, from Nyungwe Kahoura-Bassa, meaning "finish the job"—is Africa's fourth-largest artificial lake, situated in the Tete Province in Mozambique. In Africa, only Lake Volta in Ghana, Lake Kariba, on the Zambezi upstream of Cahora Bassa, and Egypt's Lake Nasser are bigger in terms of surface water.