Lake Baikal
Lake Baikal (/baɪˈkɑːl, -ˈkæl/ by-KAHL, -KAL; Russian: Oзеро Байкал, romanized: Ozero Baykal [ˈozʲɪrə bɐjˈkaɫ]; Buryat: Байгал далай, romanized: Baigal dalai) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Republic of Buryatia to the southeast. At 31,722 km2 (12,248 sq mi)—slightly larger than Belgium—Lake Baikal is the world's seventh-largest lake by surface area. However, because it is also the deepest lake, with a maximum depth of 1,642 metres (5,387 feet; 898 fathoms), Lake Baikal is the world's largest freshwater lake by volume, containing 23,615.39 km3 (5,670 cu mi) of water or 22–23% of the world's fresh surface water, more than all of the North American Great Lakes combined. It is also the world's oldest lake at 25–30 million years, and among the clearest.
| Lake Baikal | |
|---|---|
Satellite photo of Baikal, 2001 | |
Lake Baikal Lake Baikal Lake Baikal | |
| Location | Siberia, Russia |
| Coordinates | 53°30′N 108°0′E |
| Lake type | Ancient lake, Continental rift lake |
| Primary inflows | Selenga, Barguzin, Upper Angara |
| Primary outflows | Angara |
| Catchment area | 560,000 km2 (216,000 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Mongolia and Russia |
| Max. length | 636 km (395 mi) |
| Max. width | 79 km (49 mi) |
| Surface area | 31,722 km2 (12,248 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 744.4 m (2,442 ft; 407.0 fathoms) |
| Max. depth | 1,642 m (5,387 ft; 898 fathoms) |
| Water volume | 23,610 km3 (5,660 cu mi) |
| Residence time | 330 years |
| Shore length1 | 2,100 km (1,300 mi) |
| Surface elevation | 455.5 m (1,494 ft) |
| Frozen | January–May |
| Islands | 27 (Olkhon Island) |
| Settlements | Severobaykalsk, Slyudyanka, Baykalsk, Ust-Barguzin |
| Criteria | Natural: vii, viii, ix, x |
| Reference | 754 |
| Inscription | 1996 (20th Session) |
| Area | 8,800,000 ha |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Lake Baikal is home to thousands of species of plants and animals, many of them endemic to the region. It is also home to Buryat tribes, who raise goats, camels, cattle, sheep, and horses on the eastern side of the lake, where the mean temperature varies from a winter minimum of −19 °C (−2 °F) to a summer maximum of 14 °C (57 °F). The region to the east of Lake Baikal is referred to as Transbaikalia or as the Transbaikal, and the loosely defined region around the lake itself is sometimes known as Baikalia. UNESCO declared Baikal a World Heritage Site in 1996.