Salt lake

For other uses, see Salt Lake.

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 3,000 milligrams of salt per liter). In many cases, salt lakes have a higher concentration of salt than sea water.

Notable lakes

The Bonneville Salt Flats.

In order, the three largest salt lakes in the world are the Caspian Sea, 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.

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.

Salt lake

Notable lakes

See also