Solar evaporation ponds at the edges of the lake produce salts and brine (water with high salt content). The Great Salt Lake contributes an estimated $1.3 billion annually to Utah’s economy, including $1.1 billion from industry (primarily mineral extraction), $136 million from recreation, and $57 million from the harvest of brine shrimp. Its shallow, warm waters cause frequent, sometimes heavy lake-effect snows from late fall through spring.Īlthough it has been called “America’s Dead Sea”, the lake provides habitat for millions of native birds, brine shrimp, shorebirds, and waterfowl. And its mineral content is steadily increasing. As it is endorheic (has no outlet besides evaporation), it has very high salinity, so much higher than that of seawater that swimming in it is similar to floating. The three major tributaries to the lake, the Jordan, Weber and Bear rivers, together deposit around 1.1 million tons of minerals in the lake each year. The lake is the largest remnant of Lake Bonneville, a prehistoric pluvial (fed by rainfall) lake that once covered much of western Utah. In terms of surface area, it is the largest lake in the United States that is not part of the Great Lakes region. In an average year, the lake covers an area of around 1,700 square miles, but this measurement fluctuates substantially due to its shallowness.įor instance, in 1963 it reached its lowest recorded level at 950 square miles, but in 1988 the surface area was at the historic high of 3,300 square miles. Located in the northern part of Utah, the Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. The larger the crystals, the dirtier they are. The gray clay inclusions are clearly seen and a second crystal is growing out of the side. The largest dirty diamond crystal I collected was 16 cm by 12 cm.
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