Intuitive fred888: This is China's Dead Sea: With organisms that somehow can survive in heavy duty salt water

Tuesday, October 6, 2020

This is China's Dead Sea: With organisms that somehow can survive in heavy duty salt water

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October 6, 2020
Water colors
Xiechi Lake in Yuncheng, China, has such a high level of salinity, it's sometimes called China's Dead Sea. But unlike the Dead Sea in the Middle East, Xiechi Lake supports abundant microscopic life: algae and other microorganisms that have a high tolerance for the salt. In summer and autumn, the lake temperature is high enough to spark algae blooms, bringing a variety of intense colors to the lake water.

During the cold, dry winter, the temperature drops low enough to cause some of the sodium content in the water to form mirabilite rime—spiky, ice crystal-like mineral formations that make the lake shore and shallow surfaces look like an ice-covered landscape from science fiction.
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Xiechi Lake - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiechi_Lake
Overview
Historical significance
Xiechi Lake (Chinese: 解池), also called Yuncheng yanchi (Yuncheng Salt Lake) is the largest natural lake in Shanxi in Northern China. It is a saline lake used for production of salt.
In the summertime intense light and heat cause the bacterium Dunaliella salina to produce carotenoids as a protection against free radicals, due in turn to high metabolism. This turns the salt pans brilliant shades of violet, scarlet, magenta, and emerald (see photo in reference).

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