Lake Natron in Tanzania

Lake Natron is a tectonic salt lake in northern Tanzania. It derives its name from the natron, a mineral dissolved in large quantities in its waters.

It is one of the largest salt lakes in the Grand Rif valley.
Volcanoes, canyons, plains and salt water are the grandiose landscapes of the lake.
Very shallow, its water supply is due only to precipitation falling directly into the lake or feeding a few rivers flowing into it.
Thus, its area, depth and volume vary widely between the rainy season and the dry season, as the lake can cross the border with Kenya to the north when it reaches its maximum area.

Once filled with abundant fresh water, it evaporated over millennia until it was no more than 3 m deep today.

The lake behaves like an immense natural saline. When the rains stop feeding and the temperatures rise to 50 ° C, whitish crusts colored red pink by aquatic microorganisms are formed.

picture for web

@carpinus