The most interesting facts about Lake Baikal

Baikal is not only a lake, but also a unique natural phenomenon. This reservoir is the object of endless interest from researchers, travelers and writers. Hundreds of works have been written about Baikal and dozens of films have been shot. Every person from school knows that this lake is a real treasure not only of Russia, but of the whole world. In the end, Baikal is definitely the place where you should visit at least once in your life. In the meantime, here are 10 of the most interesting facts about this legendary lake.

10 Baikal is the deepest lake on our planet

And for starters, here’s a well-known fact that is familiar to every geography lesson. Indeed, Baikal is not only soda, but also the deepest of the lakes located on our planet. In a kind of table of ranks, Baikal is in the lead, ahead of its predecessor (Lake Tanganyika) by 172 meters. The deepest point of the great Russian reservoir is located at a level of 1642 meters below the horizon. This fact was first established in 1983 during the study of the bottom of the lake, after which in 2002, during the preparation of a bathymetric map of Baikal, the maximum depth was confirmed.

9. The lake is so large that about a hundred Seas of Azov could fit in it

Many people, especially local residents (recall that the object of our current interest is located in the Irkutsk region) tend to call Baikal not a lake at all, but a whole sea. Well, this is quite justified, especially against the background of the fact that Baikal is much larger in volume than some reservoirs that are nominally considered seas. The greatest contrast can be traced when comparing the lake with the Sea of ​​Azov. The volume indicators of these two reservoirs differ almost a hundred times! Not at all surprising, given that the maximum depth of the Sea of ​​Azov is only 13.5 meters. Take a look at the point above – yeah, that’s our sotochka and it was found.

8. The water temperature of the upper layers in the summer is only 8-10 degrees

However, with the seas (warm, of course, as we all love), Baikal can compete only in terms of the volume of water. The lake is very cold. It’s no joke if during the freezing period (and this lasts 4 months, from January to May), Baikal turns into a giant piece of ice with only one non-freezing area. The water does not warm up to a comfortable bathing temperature even in the middle of summer – the temperature of the upper layers of the lake does not rise above 10 degrees. The record maximum happened once, when the water in some parts of Lake Baikal warmed up to 23 degrees, but this was a big exception. Well, what did you want from the Siberian lake?

7. The lake is located in a seismically active zone

The territory on which the lake is located (the Baikal rift zone) is marked by high seismological activity. Earthquakes regularly occur here, although in most cases the magnitude of the shocks does not exceed 2 points. However, cases of real natural disasters are known. The largest is the Tsagan earthquake, which occurred in 1862, when the tremors reached 10 points, and as many as 200 “squares” of land along with the inhabitants were literally washed away under water. Over the past 100 years, 6 earthquakes have been recorded in the Baikal region, the average power of which fluctuated within 9 points.

6. The water is so clear that in some places you can see the bottom at a depth of up to 38 meters.

Everyone is used to the fact that the water in our seas and lakes, frankly, is not the most transparent. But this does not concern Baikal at all. Here you can look through the water surface, as if it does not exist at all. Indeed, in some areas in spring, visibility reaches 40 meters. Imagine, you see the bottom or stones, just like you see the asphalt from the roof of a 12-story building. Real fantasy! However, this happens only in the first few weeks after freezing. In summer and autumn, as many living organisms emerge in the warm (relatively of course) Baikal water, visibility begins to decrease and stops at around 8 meters, which is also very good in general.

5. Age is about 25 million years

In fact, the origin and age of Baikal are the subject of controversy for many scientists. Some tend to believe that the lake is quite young and its deepest part is only 150 years old, others give a number of 000 million years, while others do not rush to loud conclusions and adhere to the traditional version. It says that Baikal appeared about 35 million years ago. For a person whose life expectancy is about a century, it is extremely difficult to estimate time on such a scale. Nevertheless, even if we take a minimum of 25 years, then Baikal is still a unique lake, since reservoirs of glacial origin, as a rule, exist for no more than 150 years.

4. 336 rivers flow into Baikal, and only one river flows out – the Angara

This scientifically proven fact is traditionally taken as the basis of all kinds of legends about Baikal. The most familiar plot of the myth is as follows. Baikal had 336 sons, all of whom nourished and filled their father. But Baikal also had one and only daughter, Angara, who fell in love with the Yenisei and gave him her father’s waters. For this, the father cursed his daughter by throwing a Shaman stone at her (it is this rock that is considered the beginning of the Angara). Judging by the current state of affairs, this did not stop my daughter. One way or another, 336 water arteries fill Baikal from all sides, the largest of which are Selenga, Barguzin, Kichera and Tyya. Only the Angara flows out of the lake.

3. 700-year-old larches and 600-year-old cedars grow on the coast

Baikal is not only a giant lake, but also an equally large-scale source of life for various representatives of flora and fauna. The territory of Baikal is one of the few places on the planet where truly virgin nature is located, untouched by man and not subject to him. The average age of the trees that dot the coast of the lake fluctuates within 6 centuries. Just think about how much has happened during the existence of these larches and cedars! And they continue their quiet and peaceful life on the shores of Father Baikal. By the way, cedars even continue to bear fruit.

2. The water contains almost no minerals

However, it’s enough to stomp on the shore, because the main object of research and conversation is the Baikal water – the lake, after all. Above, we touched on the topic of its unique transparency. There is a completely logical explanation for this phenomenon – the water in Baikal is extremely poor in minerals, and there are practically no organic impurities in it. In addition, the liquid has a rather low salt content – there are no more than 100 milligrams per liter. On the other hand, Baikal water is very rich in oxygen, as a result of which every summer and autumn life really boils here.

1. 10% of all fresh water reserves on Earth are concentrated in Baikal

The volume of water in Baikal is so great that meticulous analysts were not too lazy and made the following calculations. If we conditionally divide all the water from the lake between the inhabitants of Russia, then each will have 150 tons of liquid (this is approximately 000 railway tanks of 2 tons each). To say that this is a lot is to say nothing. The uniqueness of Baikal is that this lake is filled with fresh water. Therefore, each drop represents the world’s supply of this precious liquid. According to official data, Baikal contains a tenth of the entire fresh water resource on our planet.