Licancabur Lake

Coordinates: 22°50′2″S 67°53′1″W / 22.83389°S 67.88361°W / -22.83389; -67.88361
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Licancabur Lake
Location of Licancabur Lake in Chile.
Location of Licancabur Lake in Chile.
Licancabur Lake
LocationLicancabur volcano
Coordinates22°50′2″S 67°53′1″W / 22.83389°S 67.88361°W / -22.83389; -67.88361
Lake typeVolcanic crater lake
Primary outflowsSeepage and evaporation
Catchment area22,000 square metres (240,000 sq ft)
Basin countriesChile
Max. width85 metres (280 ft)
Surface area0.007 km2 (0.0027 sq mi)
Average depth5.2 m (17 ft)
Max. depth5–6 m (16–20 ft) approx.
Surface elevation5,900 m (19,400 ft)
Frozenmost of the year

Licancabur Lake is a

Región de Antofagasta, Province of El Loa). It is close to the city San Pedro de Atacama and also very close to the border of Chile with Bolivia
.

The lake is among several high altitude

seepage and evaporation
. Lake levels are variable; in 2002 it covered a surface area of 7,000 square metres (75,000 sq ft).

The lake's waters are clear and slightly saline. Temperature readings recorded at the lake bottom in 2006 suggest it is subject to

ultraviolet radiation. This has caused the lake to be compared to the environment of Mars. Despite these conditions, bacteria, archaea, crustaceans and even a midge
live in the lake.

Context

Volcanic lakes in the

scuba dives in Licancabur Lake during 2006.[7][8] The lake has been used as a testing ground.[9]

Licancabur Lake is located on Licancabur, a

Atacameno people and climbing it is discouraged.[13] Nevertheless, stone buildings were found by climbers on the crater rim in 1953.[14] Contemporary legend has it that a golden guanaco head can be found in the crater.[13]

Physical properties

Licancabur Lake in 2012, viewed from the rim

The lake was first discovered by climbers in 1953.[10] The lake is at the bottom of the crater of Licancabur, at a depth of 46 metres (150 ft) beneath the crater rim.[14] Little dissolved material renders its waters clear.[15] It is one of the highest lakes in the world[6] and one of the highest volcanic lakes; another Andean volcanic lake, Ojos del Salado, is even higher but is poorly known.[16]

The lake has the shape of an

catchment covers a surface area of 22,000 square metres (240,000 sq ft) and was probably larger before the crater began to erode.[19] The shore is formed by sand, scree and talus.[20]

Snowfall provides the water for the lake,

shorelines indicating past depths of 10–12 metres (33–39 ft).[21]

Water temperatures range from 1.4 to 4.3 °C (34.5 to 39.7 °F).[12] Water temperatures are highest at the shore and decrease towards the centre of the lake.[22] The lake is sometimes covered with ice,[23] contrasting with other crater lakes in the region which were usually frozen.[18] Currently, an ice cover exists from April to September;[12] it can reach a thickness of 80 centimetres (31 in).[5] Furthermore, night frosts can generate a thin ice cover that thaws in the morning.[24] The water is clear and the bottom visible.[23]

Overall

aluminum, calcium, iron, magnesium and sodium in the waters of the lake compared to the quantities in springs at the foot of Licancabur may be due to prolonged water-rock interactions.[26] Nitrite, nitrate and phosphate concentrations are small.[15] Chloride and sulfate indicate the input of geothermal liquids into the lake,[27] and degassing was observed in 2006, linked with higher water temperatures in the area of the degassing in the northeastern part of the lake.[15] During 2002-2006, pH values of 8-4-6.9 were measured.[12]

Environmental conditions

Licancabur Lake is exposed to extreme climatic conditions, including low

arid for the entire Holocene[28] and strong evaporation is prevalent.[25] Shorelines around numerous lakes indicate that in the past, water levels were higher.[28]

Air temperatures at Licancabur Lake range from 5 to −25 °C (41 to −13 °F) during the daytime and −25 to −45 °C (−13 to −49 °F) at night. The air pressure is less than half that at sea level. Water temperatures at the lake bottom are almost always below 0 °C (32 °F) although one measurement in 1984 indicated a temperature of 6 °C (43 °F).[2] Such warming may be caused by geothermal heat from the volcano.[27]

Most precipitation falls during the so-called "Altiplanic winter" in summer, but winter storms also bring some water to the Licancabur region.

UV radiation,[8] has been compared to that of ancient lakes on Mars, raising interest in its lifeforms.[2] In 2002, a weather station was placed on the shores of the lake to record weather and ultraviolet radiation data.[12]

Biology

Lake in 2012, viewed from the lake shore

In 1981, archeologists discovered that Licancabur Lake hosts plankton.[2] Despite the high ultraviolet radiation, organisms can be found in the radiation-exposed parts of the water column, including at the lake surface at noon.[15]

Owing to the extreme environmental conditions, the

archea are only present beneath 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in).[32] Microbial mats containing cyanobacteria have been found on the lake bottom.[33]

Typical bacterial taxa are

nitrogen fixing such as Calothrix, Nodularia and Nostoc.[36] Other organisms are involved in sulfur metabolism.[37] There are noticeable differences in the bacterial communities in shallow and deep waters.[32]

Cyanobacterial genomic sequences resemble these of geothermal and cold environments.[36] Most genomic sequences isolated in Licancabur lake have less than 95% similarity to cultured species,[34] with about 37% of all cyanobacteria observed being new species.[38]

Coloured

cladoceran, two ostracod and one testate amoeba species were originally discovered in Licancabur Lake.[6] The zooplankton species identified at Licancabur are widespread in South America, in one case reaching Antarctica.[21]

Animal species that have been identified in Licancabur Lake include the

chironomid, a rotifer, two species of copepods, and three species of cladocerans were reported in 2009.[42][6] The larva of the chironomid midge is also the highest find of a chironomid midge, surpassing Tibetan specimens.[21]

Notes

  1. ^ Escudero et al. 2007, p. 3.
  2. ^
    Bibcode:2003LPI....34.1393C
    .
  3. ^ Cabrol, Grin & Hock 2007, p. 4.
  4. ^ Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 2.
  5. ^ a b c d Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 350.
  6. ^ a b c d e SMET 2009, p. 119.
  7. PMID 31796908
    .
  8. ^ a b Morris, Berthold & Cabrol 2007, p. 155.
  9. doi:10.1109/TITB.2005.854509
    .
  10. ^ a b Rudolph 1955, p. 151.
  11. ^ a b SMET 2009, p. 122.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 3.
  13. ^ a b Rudolph 1955, p. 154.
  14. ^ a b c Rudolph 1955, p. 156.
  15. ^ a b c d Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 357.
  16. ^ Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 349.
  17. ^ a b SMET 2009, p. 120.
  18. ^ a b c d Rudolph 1955, p. 162.
  19. ^ a b Rudolph 1955, p. 164.
  20. ^ Morris, Berthold & Cabrol 2007, p. 157.
  21. ^ a b c d e Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 359.
  22. ^ Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 358.
  23. ^ a b Morris, Berthold & Cabrol 2007, p. 156.
  24. ^ Cabrol & Grin 2010, p. 351.
  25. ^ a b SMET 2009, p. 121.
  26. ^ Escudero et al. 2007, p. 5.
  27. ^
    Bibcode:2003EAEJA....13586H
    .
  28. ^ a b Demergasso et al. 2010, p. 1.
  29. ^ a b Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 7.
  30. ^ Demergasso et al. 2010, p. 2.
  31. ^ Escudero et al. 2007, p. 6.
  32. ^ a b Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 12.
  33. ^ Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 10.
  34. ^ a b c Escudero et al. 2007, p. 7.
  35. ^ Escudero et al. 2007, p. 8.
  36. ^ a b Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 11.
  37. ^ Demergasso et al. 2010, p. 9.
  38. doi:10.1029/2008JG000817
    .
  39. ^ Cabrol et al. 2009, p. 13.
  40. ^
    ISSN 1175-5334
    .
  41. S2CID 40744958
    .
  42. ^ Cabrol, Grin & Hock 2007, p. 6.

Sources

References

External links

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