magnificent series of snow-fed waterfalls in Yosemite National Park, east-central California, U.S., near Yosemite Village. They were formed by creeks tumbling into the Yosemite Valley over the edges of hanging tributary valleys (which eroded more slowly than the glacial- and river-carved Yosemite Valley and were left “hanging” above it) into the Merced River below. Yosemite Falls consists of three drops, this configuration caused by the interruption of the vertical joints (cracks in the underlying rock) by two horizontal joints. The Upper Yosemite Fall drops 1,430 feet (436 metres) and the Lower 320 feet (98 metres), with a series of cascades between; the total drop is 2,425 feet (740 metres), creating one of the world's highest cataracts, the highest in North America. The flow of the falls is variable, with maximum flow reached in May and June; it diminishes greatly in years of little precipitation. The falls are one of the park's most scenic and popular attractions.