Mirages
Locals have come across more than once in their lives, going out on boats to fish, with realistic pictures depicting something that should not have been here. The most common mirages are castles, ancient ships, and islands. Scientists explain this phenomenon simply: the deep waters of the lake never warm up, remaining cold even in hot summers, and the air above the surface is warm, which creates a resonance. Air layers of different density refract the sun's rays, which is why pictures are formed. Locals call them "holomenitsa". This is a phenomenon on Lake Baikal, in which it is possible to see objects on the horizon that are actually 40 kilometers away.
Ice
Baikal ice presents scientists with many mysteries. For example, in the 1930s, specialists from the Baikal Limnological Station discovered unusual forms of ice cover, characteristic only of Baikal. For example, hills are cone-shaped ice hills up to 6 meters high, hollow inside. Outwardly, they resemble ice tents, "open" to the opposite side from the coast. Hills can be located separately, and sometimes form miniature "mountain ranges".
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Funnel
Near Olkhon Island, not only mirages appear, but also a terrible funnel, which forms spontaneously, regardless of meteorological conditions. To see it, you need to move in a southeast direction from the island, about 30 kilometers from it there is a place called the Devil's Funnel. A couple of times a year, it is here, with complete calm, that the elements begin to rage, forming a rotating column of water.
Scientists offer several versions of the causes of the phenomenon. One of them is based on the assumption of local dips in the bottom of Lake Baikal with the formation of cavities quickly filled with water, which leads to the formation of a whirlpool on the surface.
According to another theory, it is in the place where the funnel is formed that two local counter currents collide. The direction and strength of these currents depends on the time of year and the weather, so that under certain conditions the water flows move strictly towards each other. Such interaction of counter currents can indeed lead to very powerful whirlpools.
Witch circles
On the way to the salt lake Shara-Nur, 3 kilometers from the western coast of the island, you can meet an interesting phenomenon - the mysterious Olkhon circles. They appear by themselves in fields that have never known arable land. There are no signs of trampling, on the contrary: along the border of a perfectly flat circle, a strip of more succulent and taller grass appears - it is especially noticeable on usually dry areas of land. Mysterious crop circles are known to the peoples of different countries - they even came up with the name "witch circles" Since, according to legend, they appear here because of the witch dances. Researchers have so far determined that the intense growth of plants in the rings is not associated with the characteristics of the soil or underground water sources.
Ice rings
On satellite images of Lake Baikal, on the spring ice, you can sometimes see dark rings 5-7 kilometers in diameter. For the first time such a ring was seen in a satellite image taken in April 1999. The ring was located opposite Cape Krestovsky (near the village of Buguldeika). Presumably, the formation of circles is associated with emissions of natural combustible gas (methane) from the many kilometers of sedimentary strata of the bottom of Lake Baikal. In summer, in such places, bubbles rise from the depths to the surface, and in winter, "proparins" with a diameter of half a meter to hundreds of meters are formed, where ice is very thin or even absent.
Dragon fang
According to legend, once a dragon flew over the lake and dropped its fang over Olkhon Island. The fang fell on Cape Khoboy, pierced deep into the ground, leaving a distinct imprint in it. Locals believe that this is their amulet. However, scientists are convinced that the depression was formed due to the fall of a cosmic body.
Glowing water
The glow of Baikal water was discovered by the leading researcher of the Irkutsk Physics and Technology Institute, Viktor Dobrynin, back in 1982. Research shows that almost all water is a source of light. But, for example, distilled light glows weakly. The one from the tap fades out quickly. And the most intense glow is in Baikal. Here it can last for a month. To catch light beams invisible to the eye, highly sensitive devices are used, which have been specially created. Studies have also shown that the glow of the waters is heterogeneous and loses intensity at depth, and its brightness decreases from November to mid-January.