Lake Minchin

About

Lake Tauca is a former lake in the Altiplano of Bolivia. It is also known as Lake Pocoyu for its constituent lakes: Lake Poopó, Salar de Coipasa and Salar de Uyuni. At high water levels, the lake spread across the southern Altiplano between the Eastern and Western Cordilleras, flooding the basins that now hold Lake Poopó and the Uyuni and Coipasa salars. Published area estimates range from about 48,000 to 80,000 square kilometres (19, 000 to 31, 000 sq mi). Water levels varied, possibly reaching about 3,800 metres (12, 500 ft) above sea level. It was a saline lake. The lake received water from Lake Titicaca, although estimates of Titicaca's contribution vary widely. In any case, Tauca was large enough to influence local climate and to depress the underlying terrain under its own weight. Diatoms, plants and animals lived in the lake, sometimes forming reef-like carbonate knolls. The duration of Lake Tauca's existence is uncertain. Research published in 2011 suggested that lake levels began rising around 18,500 BP and reached their main highstand around 16,000–14,500 years ago. Around 14,200 years ago, lake levels fell, then rose again and persisted until about 11,500 years ago. Some researchers suggest that the final phase may have continued until about 8,500 BP. When the lake dried—possibly during the Bølling–Allerød oscillation—it left the salt deposits of Salar de Uyuni. Lake Ta

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.