The total length is 6,387 kilometers!

The main stream of the Yangtze River runs across central China from west to east, located between 90°33′～122°25′ east longitude and 24°30′～35°45′ north latitude.

The Yangtze River originates from the southwest side of the Geladandong Peak of the Tanggula Mountains on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the "Roof of the World".

The main stream flows through 11 provincial administrative regions (eight provinces, two cities and one district) including Qinghai Province, Tibet Autonomous Region, Sichuan Province, Yunnan Province, Chongqing City, Hubei Province, Hunan Province, Jiangxi Province, Anhui Province, Jiangsu Province and Shanghai City, and flows into the East China Sea east of Chongming Island. The total length is 6,387 kilometers, which is the third longest river in the world, second only to the Nile River in Africa and the Amazon River in South America.

The source of the Yangtze River is composed of the northern source Chumaer River, the southern river Dangqu and the main source Tuotuo River. The Chumaer River originates from the Kekexili Lake deep in the Kekexili Nature Reserve. It means "Red Water River" in Tibetan. It is about 515 kilometers long, with a small flow. It often stops flowing in summer and finally flows into the Tongtian River in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

The main stream of the Yangtze River is above Yichang City, which is 4,504 kilometers long, accounting for 70.4% of the total length of the Yangtze River, and controls a basin area of ​​1 million square kilometers. The Jinsha River above Yibin City is 3,464 kilometers long, with a drop of about 5,100 meters, accounting for about 95% of the drop of the whole river. The riverbed has a large gradient, many beaches and rapid currents. The main tributaries joining it are the Yalong River; Yibin to Yichang is 1,040 kilometers long, and the main tributaries joining it are the Minjiang River and Jialing River on the north bank and the Wujiang River on the south bank.

The middle reaches of the river are from Yichang City to Hukou County, with a length of 955 kilometers and a drainage area of ​​680,000 square kilometers. The main tributaries added to this section are the Qingjiang River and the four rivers of Xiang, Zi, Yuan and Li in the Dongting Lake system and the five rivers of Gan, Fu, Xin, Xiu and Rao in the Poyang Lake system on the south bank.

The Hanjiang River is on the north bank. This section from Zhicheng to Chenglingji is the famous Jingjiang River. On the south bank, there are the four water diversions of Songzi, Taiping, Ouchi and Diaoxian (blocked) and Dongting Lake, and the waterway is the most complex. The downstream from Hukou County to the estuary is the downstream, with a length of 938 kilometers and an area of ​​120,000 square kilometers. The main tributaries added are the Qingyi River, Shuiyang River system, Taihu Lake system on the south bank and Chaohu Lake system on the north bank.

The section below Jiangyin is the estuary of the Yangtze River, with a total length of about 200 kilometers and a trumpet shape. The tides at the Yangtze River Estuary are irregular shallow sea semi-daily cycles, with an average cycle of 12 hours and 25 minutes, and an average tidal range of 4.62 meters. The average total tidal volume is 5.3 billion m3 in the flood season and 1.3 billion m3 in the dry season. The tidal boundary of the Yangtze River reaches Jiangyin during the flood season and Zhenjiang during the dry season; the tidal boundary reaches Datong during the flood season and Anqing during the dry season.

After more than 1,300 years of changes, Chongming Island with an area of ​​1,083 square kilometers has been formed at the mouth. Chongming Island divides the Yangtze River into the North Branch and the South Branch. The North Branch is gradually silting up and shrinking. The South Branch is the main waterway for the Yangtze River runoff to flow down.

The South Branch is divided into South Port and North Port by Changxing Island near Wusongkou, and the South Port is divided into South Channel and North Channel by Jiuduansha. The South Channel was originally the main channel of the Yangtze River, but in recent years, the main channel has gradually turned to the North Channel. The beach top water depth of the Yangtze River estuary channel is generally about 6 meters. The length of the beach with a depth of less than 10m is about 40 kilometers in the north port and about 64 kilometers in the south port.

The population of the Yangtze River Basin is about 400 million, accounting for 1/3 of the country, of which about 320 million are agricultural population. Of the total population in the basin, about 94% are Han; there are more than 50 ethnic minorities, more than 20 million people, of which more than 1 million are Tujia, Miao, Yi, Dong, Tibetan, Hui and other 6 ethnic groups. The ethnic minorities mainly live in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, western Sichuan, western Hunan and western Hubei.