The Colorado River, which stretches for 1,450 miles and travels through numerous states and the northern parts of Mexico, is an essential water source for 30 million people.

After flowing down from Wyoming, into Colorado then Utah to Arizona's Grand Canyon, followed by Nevada and through Arizona again along its border with California, the mighty river sort of dies upon reaching the Morelos Dam that sits on the international border with Mexico.

Through the dam, the river water is diverted into aqueduct that is used for agriculture and Tijuana households. The river channels continue 75 miles south of the dam as it feeds into a delta at the Gulf of California between Baja California and Sonora.

However, the continued river channel south of the border is typically bone dry unless it has been filled with rainfall.

But on Sunday, the river channel will flow again as part of an experiment by the International Boundary Water Commission, comprising Mexican and U.S. officials, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The Commission released water from Lake Mead, Nev. a few days ago as it is expected to reach the Colorado River delta in the Gulf of California on Sunday. The region has been cut off from most of the river's water because of dams and diversions erected in the 20th century.

According to the Times, this initial stage of the experiment is part of a five-year pilot project with the intention of reinvigorating the delta environment and comes as a coincidence that the Western region of the U.S. and Mexico are facing drought concerns.

The Commission lifted the gates at the Morelos Dam as it released about 700 cubic feet of water per second. The flow is projected to peak by Thursday as about 4,200 cubic feet per second rushes through the dam.

An estimated 105,000 acre-feet will be released during an eight-week period. The amount of water needed to cover an acre a foot deep, which is about 326,000 gallons, is an acre-foot, according to the Times.

Researchers from Mexico and the U.S. will study the effects but it is unlikely the flow will reach the Gulf of California. Furthermore, they are unclear if the water it either soak into the soil or actually fill parts of the channel.

The approval to move ahead with the experiment came two years ago as part of a 1944 treaty that governed water use between the two nations. The amendment set up regulations regarding how the two countries could share the water in times of drought.

The experiment will ideally revitalize the delta, recharge the aquifer, reestablish a home for hundreds of bird species native to the region and help farmers in Mexico grow crops.