1978年1月13日,我国新华通讯社播发消息:“长江的源头不在巴颜喀拉山南麓,而是在唐古拉山脉主峰格拉丹东雪山西南侧的沱沱河,长江的全长不止5800公里,而是6300公里,比美国的密西西比河还要长,仅次于南美的亚马逊河和非洲的尼罗河。”美联社转发这则消息称:“长江已经取代了密西西比河,而成为世界第三长河。” January 13, 1978, China’s Xinhua News Agency broadcast the news: “The source of the Yangtze River is not in the south of Bayan Harlem, but the main peak in the Tanggula Mountains Glacier East Snow Mountain southwest side of the Tuotuo River, Yangtze River’s total length of more than 5800 km But 6,300 kilometers longer than the Mississippi River in the United States, second only to the Amazon in South America and the Nile in Africa. ”The Associated Press relayed the news:“ The Yangtze River has replaced the Mississippi River and has become the third longest river in the world ”