Lake Managua

Lake Managua Lago de Managua Lago Xolotlán
from space, January 1986. North is to the left
Location	12°20′N 86°25′WCoordinates: 12°20′N 86°25′W
Basin countries	Nicaragua
Max length	65 km
Max width	25 km

Lake Managua (also known as Lake Xolotlán) (located at 12°20′N, 86°25′W) is a lake in Nicaragua. The (Spanish) name is Lago de Managua or Lago Xolotlán. It is approximately 65 kilometres (40 miles) long and 25 kilometres (15 miles) wide. Similarly to the name of Lake Nicaragua, its name was coined by the Spanish conquerors from "Mangue" (their name for the Mánkeme tribes) and agua ("water"). The city of Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, lies on its southwestern shore.

The lake has been severely polluted, in part by Kodak dumping mercury into the lake in the 1950s, but mostly by decades of waste sewer being dumped on the lake. Despite the pollution, some of the people of Managua still live along the lake's banks and eat the fish.

It rose 3 metres (10 feet) in five days during Hurricane Mitch in 1998, destroying the homes of many who lived on its edge.

It is also joined by the Tipitapa River to another lake, Lake Nicaragua; however, due to the extreme pollution, the bull sharks of Lake Nicaragua can't join Lake Managua.

Gallery

from Tipitapa, circa 2003

from Tipitapa, circa 2003. Volcanos Momotombo and Momotombito are visible in the background

External links

• JPL NASA: PIA03365: Perspective View with Landsat Overlay, Lakes Managua (foreground) and Nicaragua (background)
• View of Lake of Managua on Google Maps (green arrow indicates city of Managua)

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