Lake Baikal

Lake Baikal is located in the
south of eastern Siberia. It has
a tectonic origin, that is, it is
located on a fault in the
earth's crust. In the area of
Lake Baikal, earthquakes
constantly occur. They are
small in 1-2 points. But
occasionally there are quite
strong ones up to 6-9 points.

The length of the lake is 636
km. the width in different
places varies from 24 to 79
km. this is the largest
freshwater body by area. The
lake is the deepest in the
world. Its maximum depth is
1642 m. the average depth is
744.4 m.

This lake contains 19% of all
fresh water contained in the
world's lakes. 336 rivers flow into
Lake Baikal, and only one flows
out - the Angara.

The water in the
lake is very clean, thanks to the
endemic (an organism that lives
only in this lake) crustacean
epishura. It purifies water by
passing it through your body. the
water contains very little
suspended organic matter and
mineral particles. The
transparency of the water is great, stones and objects are visible at a depth of up to 40 m.

The water is cold. in summer, its
temperature is +8-9*. The
highest temperature is +23
degrees from the beginning of
January and until the beginning
of May, the lake is covered with
ice. A small area at the source of
the Angara river does not freeze.