A person can live without water for only a few days, it is necessary for any living organism. And how good it is to swim in the sea on a hot day, or to give yourself an aesthetic pleasure, admiring the beauty of the lake landscape. There are healing springs on Earth, rich in useful substances, but there are also grave danger to people.
Retba
In Senegal (Africa), there is Lake Retba, the waters of which are colored pink.
Previously, there was a lagoon, then the channel disappeared, and a new salt deep-water lake appeared. During the dry seasons of the 70s of the last century, they became smaller and saltier.
For inexplicable reasons, the water acquired a beautiful pink color, scientists put forward reasons why staining is possible:
⦁ microorganisms living in it;
⦁ from high salt concentration.
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Salt here is 380 g / l, 1.5 times more than in the Dead Sea. Because of this, you cannot drown in it, which guarantees a safe and relaxing stay.
Due to the high salinity in the waters, there is no vegetation except for cyanobacteria, these microorganisms are several billion years old. According to one version, it is they who give such an extraordinary color. It is interesting that the shade of the water surface changes depending on the time of day, wind direction, cloudiness.
Local residents make money by mining salt. It is taken from the bottom with shovels and poured into the boat. The work is difficult and harmful - people stand in water up to their necks, salt corrodes the skin, forming painful non-healing wounds. To protect themselves somewhat, they rub the skin with shea butter. Tough conditions, but people do not refuse work because it pays well.
Lake in Yellowstone
In Yellowstone National Park, there is a body of water called Morning Glory Lake, which is over 2000 meters deep. An amazingly beautiful reservoir, in it constantly, like in a kaleidoscope, the color changes: from purple to green, with a bright reddish border, then turns into turquoise.
It is interesting that in such a phenomenon, not natural factors, but human factors played an important role. At first, the clear water had a turquoise hue with orange edging. People visiting the park traditionally threw coins, stones, and other items into the reservoir. Because of this, the vent was clogged, and the water changed its temperature. Microorganisms living in water are also forced to change their properties and began to exist under new conditions. The color of the water surface of fantastic beauty appeared.
Devil's eye
People living near the city of Sidi Bel Abbes (Algeria) do not need to buy ink - just draw water from a nearby lake. Not only in color, but also in chemical composition, it resembles ink with which you can write. The depth of the reservoir is no more than 50 m, and the area is 160 mx 460 m. It is called differently: Devil's Eye, Inkwell, Black Lake.
For a long time they did not come to a common opinion - what caused the phenomenon, only recently they found out the reason. Water comes to the lake from two rivers. Iron is dissolved in one, organic compounds in the other. When they merge, they enter into a chemical reaction and ink is formed.
Residents have a dual attitude towards the source. There is a myth - in ancient times, Satan, who lived in these places, incited people to commit sinful acts. Then he ransomed their souls, concluding a contract, written in special ink. When they ended, Satan inked the purest water of the nearby lake. According to the myth, if you get close to water, you can lose strength and beauty. In fact, the vapors released from the water contain toxic substances. They have an unpleasant odor and negatively affect human health, therefore, people have never settled on the banks of the reservoir. But some are not afraid of the curse and earn money by selling pens filled with water from a reservoir to tourists.
Baskunchak
Lake Baskunchak is located in the Astrakhan region of Russia, its water has useful properties, heals or alleviates diseases of the kidneys, stomach, nasopharynx. Clay extracted from the bottom is used for problems with skin and joints.
The reservoir is located in the Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky reserve. Here you can not only improve your health, but also relax and admire the local flora and fauna.
Tanzanian mummifier
In Lake Natron, the water is painted in different colors - from red to orange, the color is given by the microorganisms living in it. The water temperature in some places reaches 50 ° C. The depth does not exceed three meters, the coastline changes depending on the water level.
People approaching the reservoir see the mummified corpses of animals - bats, birds. They froze in strange, uncharacteristic positions, with their heads raised.
There are no large predators here - they are afraid of the fumes that rise on the surface, which attracts many birds and small animals. There is a large population of small flamingos here.
After dying, animals do not decompose, but turn into mummies. This is due to the high salt and alkali content.
Can water kill?
Water is not always useful, sometimes it becomes extremely dangerous to health and life. This does not depend on the human factor, his wrong economic activity - Nature herself ordered it.
1. Lake of Death in Sicily - no living organisms live in it, and everything that gets in dies and disappears almost immediately. An adult's body can completely dissolve in less than half an hour.
The expedition, organized to study the strange properties of the reservoir, found out that organic substances dissolve due to sulfuric acid, which is in high concentration in the water. Where does it come from? Studies have shown that at the bottom of the reservoir there are sources that release acid.
No one can say with certainty how many victims are hidden in the water column. According to local legend, members of the Sicilian mafia, famous for their cruelty, chose these places to hide their crimes, they simply sent the bodies of their victims into the water.
2. There is an eerie place in Cameroon - Lake Nyos. It became famous for the terrible event that happened in August 1985. In a few hours, more than 1700 residents of nearby villages, livestock, even insects were killed.
Subsequently, it turned out that from the depths of the sleeping volcano, in the crater of which there was a reservoir, carbon dioxide entered the water through cracks. This happened gradually and imperceptibly for people until the concentration became extreme. The gas began to rise in large bubbles. The wind carried the deadly cloud of carbon dioxide to the dwellings, and it killed all living things. Unfortunately, this can happen again as the poisonous gas continues to be released.
3. Lake in Dominica.
Boiling Lake is located in Dominica. It is the second largest hot spring in the world. Located in a beautiful area surrounded by mountains. But hardly anyone wants to plunge into its waters - the temperature along the coast rises to almost 90 ° C and quickly cooks all living things. Due to the temperature, it is impossible to study the central parts of the reservoir - the color of the water is sulfur, shrouded in steam. During rain, the temperature can drop to 10 ° C, but swimming there is still prohibited, because under the upper layers there can be boiling water and harm a person.
Unusual in their beauty reservoirs, killer lakes or healing lakes - nature surprises people with its diversity and uniqueness.
