#10 - Record-breaking lakes 破纪录的湖泊

1.The Caspian Sea in central Asia is actually the world's biggest lake!
It covers 378,000 square kilometers. It isn't connected to true seas and oceans, but because its so big, and is salty like the sea, some experts say it isn't a proper lake, either. The world's biggest freshwater (non-salty) lake is Lake Superior, in the USA and Canada.

V A picture of the Caspian Sea taken from space. Swirling clouds of sediment (sand and mud) and plankton (tiny plants and animals) can be seen. V

2.The Dead Sea in Israel is another lake that is referred to as a sea.
At 400 meters below sea level, it is the lowest lake in the world. The Dead Sea is very salty because no rivers flow out of it. All the salts and minerals that are washed into it remain there as the water evaporates in the Sun's heat. In fact, the Dead Sea is nine times saltier than the real sea. It gets its name because no fish or other animals can live in such salty water.

V The high levels of salt in the Dead Sea mean that people can float easily in the water. V

3.The world's deepest lake is Lake Baikal in Russia.
At its deepest point, it's 1700 meters deep. Because of this, it contains far more water than any other lake in the world. Twenty percent of all the unfrozen freshwater on earth is in Lake Baikal.

4.The largest body of freshwater is found in North America.
On the border between the United States and Canada are the Great Lakes. They contain one-fifth of the world's freshwater - a staggering 22.8 quadrillion liters!

5.Many lakes around the world are believed to be home to mysterious monsters.
According to legend, a monster that looks similar to a plesiosaur lives in Loch Ness in Scotland, UK. Plesiosaurs were prehistoric water reptiles that lived at the same time as the dinosaurs. Scientists think they became extinct (died out) 65 million years ago. However, some people believe they may still live in Loch Ness.

V The five great lakes are situated in USA and Canada. The biggest is Lake Superior, followed by Huron, Michigan, Erie and Ontario. V

中亚的里海其实是世界上最大的湖！
占地面积37.8万平方公里。它不与真正的海洋联系在一起，而是因为它如此大，像海一样咸，有些专家说这不是一个适当的湖泊。世界上最大的淡水（非咸）湖是Lake Superior，在美国和加拿大。

V从空间拍摄的里海的照片。沉积物（砂土和泥土）和浮游生物（微小植物和动物）的漩涡云可以看出。 V

以色列的死海是另一个被称为大海的湖。
在海拔400米处，是世界上最低的湖泊。死海非常咸，因为没有河流流出。随着水在太阳的热量中蒸发，所有被洗涤的盐和矿物质都保留在那里。事实上，死海比真正的海洋高九倍。它的名字是因为没有鱼或其他动物可以生活在这样咸的水中。

V死海高盐度意味着人们可以很容易的在水中漂浮。 V

世界上最深的湖泊是俄罗斯贝加尔湖。
最深处是1700米深。因此，它比世界上任何其他湖泊含有更多的水。地球上所有未冻结的淡水中有百分之二十八在贝加尔湖。

最大的淡水体在北美发现。
在美国和加拿大之间的边界是大湖。它们含有世界淡水的五分之一 - 惊人的22.8万升升！

世界各地的许多湖泊被认为是神秘怪物的家园。
根据传说，看起来类似于一个plesiosaur的怪物住在英国苏格兰的尼斯湖。龙眼是与恐龙同时生活的史前水爬行动物。科学家认为他们在6500万年前就灭绝了（去世）。不过有些人认为他们仍然可以住尼斯湖。

五个五大湖泊位于美国和加拿大。最高的是Lake Superior，其次是Huron，Michigan，Erie和Ontario。 V