Baskunchak
Encyclopedia
Lake Baskunchak is a salt lake of 115 km² in Astrakhan Oblast
, Russia
, located at 48°10′N 46°53′E, about 270 km north of the Caspian Sea
, and 53 km east of the Volga. Since 1997 the area is strictly protected as nature reserve
.
The surface elevation of the lake is 21 m below sea level
. It is fed by a river that draws from an area of 11,000 km². The salinity
of the lake is about 300 g/l. Since the 8th century its salt was mined and distributed via the Silk Road
. Nowadays the lake's salt of distinct purity (99.8 % NaCl
) covers 80 % of Russia
's salt production. Depending on need, about 1.5 million to 5 million tons of salt are mined per year.
To the south of the lake Mount Bolshoye Bogdo rises to 150 m above sea level
, forming the highest elevation in the Caspian Depression
. The hill is pushed up about 1 mm per year by a salt dome
. Sinkhole
s, and Karst caves
of up to 1.5 km length lead through the hill. It also is the only area in Europe
where Triassic
lagerstätte
n surface. To the local Kalmyk people
, it is a holy hill.
Astrakhan Oblast
Astrakhan Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Astrakhan.-Demographics:Population: Ethnic groups...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, located at 48°10′N 46°53′E, about 270 km north of the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
, and 53 km east of the Volga. Since 1997 the area is strictly protected as nature reserve
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
.
The surface elevation of the lake is 21 m below sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
. It is fed by a river that draws from an area of 11,000 km². The salinity
Salinity
Salinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. It is a general term used to describe the levels of different salts such as sodium chloride, magnesium and calcium sulfates, and bicarbonates...
of the lake is about 300 g/l. Since the 8th century its salt was mined and distributed via the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
. Nowadays the lake's salt of distinct purity (99.8 % NaCl
Sodium chloride
Sodium chloride, also known as salt, common salt, table salt or halite, is an inorganic compound with the formula NaCl. Sodium chloride is the salt most responsible for the salinity of the ocean and of the extracellular fluid of many multicellular organisms...
) covers 80 % of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
's salt production. Depending on need, about 1.5 million to 5 million tons of salt are mined per year.
To the south of the lake Mount Bolshoye Bogdo rises to 150 m above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
, forming the highest elevation in the Caspian Depression
Caspian Depression
Caspian Depression or Pricaspian/Peri-Caspian Depression/Lowland is a low-lying flatland region encompassing the northern part of the Caspian Sea, the largest enclosed body of water on Earth. It is the larger northern part of the wider Aral-Caspian Depression around the Aral and Caspian seas.The...
. The hill is pushed up about 1 mm per year by a salt dome
Salt dome
A salt dome is a type of structural dome formed when a thick bed of evaporite minerals found at depth intrudes vertically into surrounding rock strata, forming a diapir....
. Sinkhole
Sinkhole
A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or cenote, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth's surface caused by karst processes — the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks or suffosion processes for example in sandstone...
s, and Karst caves
Karst topography
Karst topography is a geologic formation shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite, but has also been documented for weathering resistant rocks like quartzite given the right conditions.Due to subterranean drainage, there...
of up to 1.5 km length lead through the hill. It also is the only area in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
where Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
lagerstätte
Lagerstätte
A Lagerstätte is a sedimentary deposit that exhibits extraordinary fossil richness or completeness.Palaeontologists distinguish two kinds....
n surface. To the local Kalmyk people
Kalmyk people
Kalmyk people is the name given to the Oirats, western Mongols in Russia, whose descendants migrated from Dzhungaria in 1607. Today they form a majority in the autonomous Republic of Kalmykia on the western shore of the Caspian Sea. Kalmykia is Europe's only Buddhist government...
, it is a holy hill.