Inn (river)

Inn

Map highlighting the Inn
Other name(s) Romansh: En
Country Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Germany
Basin
Main source Swiss Alps (Lägh dal Lunghin)
2,484 m (8,150 ft)
46°25′00″N 9°40′35″E / 46.41673°N 9.67645°E / 46.41673; 9.67645 (Primary source of Inn)
River mouth Danube (Passau)
291 m (955 ft)
48°34′25″N 13°28′38″E / 48.57353°N 13.47713°E / 48.57353; 13.47713 (Mouth of Inn)Coordinates: 48°34′25″N 13°28′38″E / 48.57353°N 13.47713°E / 48.57353; 13.47713 (Mouth of Inn)
Basin size 26,130 km2 (10,090 sq mi)
Physical characteristics
Length 517 km (321 mi)
Discharge
  • Average rate:
    740 m3/s (26,000 cu ft/s)

The Inn (Latin: Aenus;[1] Romansh: En) is a river in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. It is a right tributary of the Danube and is 517 kilometres (321 mi) long. The highest point of its drainage basin is the summit of Piz Bernina, at 4,049 metres (13,284 ft). The Engadine, the valley of the En, is the only Swiss valley from which its waters ends in the Black Sea (via the Danube).

Geography

The source is located in the Swiss Alps, west of St. Moritz in the Engadine region, which is named after the river (Romansh Engiadina; Latin vallis Eniatina). Shortly after it leaves its source, the Inn flows through the largest lakes on its course, Lake Sils and Lake Silvaplana. It runs north-eastwards, entering Austria, and from Landeck eastwards through the Austrian state of Tyrol and its capital, Innsbruck (bridge over the Inn), and crosses the border into Bavaria near Kufstein.

On Bavarian territory the river runs northwards and passes Rosenheim, Wasserburg am Inn, and Waldkraiburg; then it turns east, runs through Mühldorf and Neuötting and is enlarged by two major tributaries, the Alz and the Salzach.

From here to the Danube, it forms the border between Germany (Bavaria) and Austria (Upper Austria). Towns on this last section of the river are Simbach on Inn, Braunau am Inn and Schärding. There are numerous small towns, including Braunau am Inn in Austria, and Marktl am Inn in Bavaria, Germany.

In Passau the Inn finally enters the Danube (as does the Ilz river there). Although the Inn has a greater average flow than the Danube when they converge in Passau, and its watershed contains the Piz Bernina also the highest point in the Danube watershed, the Inn is considered a tributary of the Danube, which has a greater length, drains a larger surface area, and has a more consistent flow. The Inn is the only river originating in Switzerland that ends in the Black Sea (via the Danube).

Tributaries

View of the Inn valley. In the right half of the picture is the entrance to the Ziller valley.

Flow

Average monthly flow (m³/s) of the Inn in Passau
Years 1921/2006[2]

2013 flood

Main article: 2013 European floods

On June 3, 2013, the discharge of the Inn in Passau reached 6,820 m3/s (241,000 cu ft/s)[2] and the water levels reached 12.85 m (42.2 ft), the highest recorded historic flood level since 1501.[3] The historic centre of Passau, where the Danube, Inn and Ilz converge, was flooded severely.

Hydroelectric power plants

Currently, there are 23 hydroelectric power plants on the Inn. 17 of them are operated by Verbund AG.[4] The power plants are listed beginning at the headwaters:

Dam Nameplate capacity (MW) Annual generation (Mio. kwh)
Islas[5] 4.3 17
Ova Spin[6] 50 100
Pradella[7] 288 1,000
Imst[8] 89 550
Kirchbichl[9] 19.3 131
Langkampfen[10] 31.5 169
Oberaudorf-Ebbs 60 268
Nussdorf 48 245.8
Rosenheim 35 179.5
Feldkirchen 38 204
Wasserburg 29 165.7
Teufelsbruck 25 150.4
Gars 30 169.2
Jettenbach 6 30.2
Töging 85 564.6
Neuötting 26 159.4
Perach 19 128.4
Stammham 23 136.4
Braunau-Simbach 100 550
Ering-Frauenstein 72 434
Egglfing-Obernberg 84 485
Schärding-Neuhaus 96 541.8
Passau-Ingling 86 504.7

References

  1. ↑ Richard J.A. Talbert, ed. (2000). Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World: Map-By-Map Directory. I. Princeton, NJ and Oxford, UK: Princeton University Press. p. 171. ISBN 0691049459.
  2. 1 2 "Statistik Passau Ingling / Inn" (in German). www.hnd.bayern.de. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  3. ↑ "Central Europe Hit by Rains, Floods and Landslides: AIR Analysis". www.insurancejournal.com. 2013-04-06. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  4. ↑ "VERBUND on the Inn". Verbund. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  5. ↑ "Elektrizitäts-Produktion" (in German). www.stmoritz-energie.ch. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  6. ↑ "Zentrale Ova Spin" (in German). Engadiner Kraftwerke. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  7. ↑ "Zentrale Pradella" (in German). Engadiner Kraftwerke. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  8. ↑ "Kraftwerk Imst" (in German). Tiwag. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  9. ↑ "Kraftwerk Kirchbichl" (in German). Tiwag. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  10. ↑ "Kraftwerk Langkampfen" (in German). Tiwag. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
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