The Pool Malebo, formerly Stanley Pool, also known as Mpumbu, Lake Nkunda or Lake Nkuna by local indigenous people in pre-colonial times, is a lake-like widening in the lower reaches of the Congo River. The river serves as the border between the Republic of the Congo to the north and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south.
Satellite image of the Pool Malebo; the capital cities of Brazzaville, ROC and Kinshasa, DRC are indicated.
Aerial view of Pool Malebo from above Kinshasa
View of Stanley Pool from Leopoldville, 1889 (now Kinshasa)
The Congo River, formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second-longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the third-largest river in the world by discharge volume, following the Amazon and Ganges rivers. It is the world's deepest recorded river, with measured depths of around 220 m (720 ft). The Congo–Lualaba–Luvua–Luapula–Chambeshi River system has an overall length of 4,700 km (2,900 mi), which makes it the world's ninth-longest river. The Chambeshi is a tributary of the Lualaba River, and Lualaba is the name of the Congo River upstream of Boyoma Falls, extending for 1,800 km (1,100 mi).
The Congo River near Kisangani, Congo
Aerial view from the west of the Congo River with upstream half of Pool Malebo and Mbamu
The town of Mbandaka is a busy port on the banks of the Congo River.
The Congo River at Maluku.
