Waterfall Record

Angel Falls

Angel Falls is a very tall waterfall dropping from a tepui tableland in the Guiana Highlands, where water descends from a sandstone cliff into the Orinoco drainage.

Why This Record Matters

A waterfall defined by vertical relief

Angel Falls adds a tepui-edge record to the atlas, emphasizing cliff height, free-fall dispersal, sandstone tablelands, and upland basin setting.

TypeTepui-edge waterfall

A high vertical drop from a tableland cliff.

SettingGuiana Highlands

Sandstone uplands provide the cliffed source terrain.

ProcessFree-fall spray dispersal

Water separates into mist and plunge-zone flow.

Linked BasinOrinoco drainage

The waterfall sits within northern South American drainage.

Overview

What Angel Falls is

Angel Falls drops from a tepui, a steep-sided tableland with resistant sandstone cliffs. The waterfall's identity comes from extreme vertical relief and upland isolation.

Unlike broad cataracts, Angel Falls is a tall, cliff-edge waterfall whose spray and plunge-zone form depend on height and exposure.

Tepui Edge

Sandstone cliffs and high tablelands

The cliffed tepui margin creates the abrupt vertical drop. Water from the upland surface reaches the edge and falls into lower forested terrain.

Source

Tableland runoff

Rain-fed uplands supply the fall.

Drop

Long free fall

Height allows water to disperse into spray.

Basin

Orinoco link

Downstream flow belongs to the Orinoco system.

Setting

Highland isolation and vertical relief

Angel Falls is inseparable from tepui geomorphology. The waterfall records how old tableland surfaces, steep cliffs, and tropical rainfall combine in the Guiana Highlands.