A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water which has a concentration of salts (mostly sodium chloride) and other minerals significantly higher than most lakes (often defined as at least three grams of salt per liter). In some cases, salt lakes have a higher concentration of salt than sea water, but such lakes would also be termed hypersaline lakes.
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Properties
Salt lakes form when the water flowing into the lake, containing salt or minerals, cannot leave because the lake is endorheic (terminal). The water then evaporates, leaving behind any dissolved salts and thus increasing its salinity, making a salt lake an excellent place for salt production. High salinity will also lead to a unique flora and fauna in the lake in question; sometimes, in fact, the result may be an absence or near absence of life near the salt lake.
If the amount of water flowing into a lake is less than the amount evaporated, the lake will eventually disappear and leave a salt flat or playa (sometimes also referred to as salt pan).
Notable examples
In order, the three largest salt lakes in the world are the Caspian Sea,[1] Aral Sea, and Lake Balkhash. The largest salt lake in the Western Hemisphere, the Great Salt Lake, is the fourth largest salt lake in the world.
The salt lake with the highest elevation is Namtso, and the one with the lowest elevation is the Dead Sea, which is also the lowest exposed point on the Earth's surface.
Some salt lakes are strictly seasonal and become arid lakebeds in the dry season. An example of this type of salt lake is the Makgadikgadi Pans of Botswana.[2]
Since the 8th century, the salt of Lake Baskunchak in Russia was mined and distributed via the Silk Road. Nowadays the lake's salt of distinct purity (99.8 % NaCl) covers 80 % of the country's salt production. Depending on need, about 1.5 million to 5 million tons of salt are mined per year.
See also
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References
- ^ "Caspian Sea » General background". CaspianEnvironment.org. http://www.caspianenvironment.org/caspian.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
- ^ Makgadikgadi from The Megalithic Portal, by C. Michael Hogan, ed. A. Burnham (2008)
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