Signs of the Times: ‘China’s Dead Sea’ turns blood red (PHOTOS,VIDEO)
The red-hued Yuncheng Salt Lake, also known as “China’s Dead
Sea”, has recently become a popular destination for thousands of
fascinated tourists.
The ancient salt lake,
which is 500 million years old and covers 120 square kilometers, isn’t,
in fact, a crime scene, but rather the natural result of algae in the
water.A rise in temperature and light intensity caused organisms called dunaliella salinas to recently turn red. While it certainly looks unusual, the phenomenon has been seen in France, the US, Turkey and more recently, Iran .
“In the marine environment, Dunaliella salina appears green,” said Mohammad Tourian, a scientist at the University of Stuttgart, of Iran’s Lake Urmia that suddenly turned deep red in July.
“However, in conditions of high salinity and light intensity, the micro-algae turns red due to the production of protective carotenoids in the cells.”
Aside from it’s blood-like colour, the salty water means people can easily float on its surface, earning the lake the name: “China’s Dead Sea”.
The river’s striking colour is even more pronounced when compared to its other unaffected half on the opposite side of a road, located in the north China city of Yuncheng, Shanxi Province.
Locals have been taking salt crystals from the lake from more than 4,000 years, reported China Daily.
DEVELOPING: Solar Storm leaving parts of world glowing from auroras
The British Geological Survey, Aurorawatch UK and US body Space Weather Prediction Centre have all reported heightened opportunities of spotting the aurora, because a hole in the sun’s outer layer is facing Earth. ‘A G2 (Moderate) Geomagnetic Storm Alert was issued at 2048 UTC (4:48 pm ET) on 28 September as effects from a large coronal hole high speed stream continue,’ the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’ Space Weather Prediction Centre said. READ MORE
Earth Changes
- Record rise in the numer of deaths due to lightning in 2016 for Bangladesh
- Woman, daughter killed by lightning bolt in Rangpur, Bangladesh
- Hurricane Matthew batters southern Caribbean in rare shift
- Flooding leads to state of emergency in Windsor, Ontario, Canada
- Incredible video shows 'rare' EF1 tornado ripping through a Utah town
- Northern Lights glow brightly as strong solar winds hit Earth
- Shallow 5.4 earthquake jolts Nicaragua, one woman dead
- Dead fin whale washes up on beach in Devon, UK
- Waterspout filmed over Lake Michigan
- 1 dead, 26 missing after landslide in East China
Fire in the Sky
- Meteor over Srinagar mistaken for missile attack
- Photographer captures image of slow-moving meteor fireball near Post Falls, Idaho
- Spectacular meteor fireball lights up the skies over southern Spain
- Meteor fireball filmed over central Europe - 27.09.16
- Meteor fireball streaks across Scotland skies
- Mysterious 'fire in the sky' captured on video over Louisiana: Plasma phenomenon?
- 'Huge meteor' explodes off coast of Queensland, Australia - Shockwave comes onshore, rattling residents and homes
- Huge meteor fireball filmed over Kent, UK
- Slow-moving fireball photographed over London?
- Meteor fireball shoots across Eastern Canada and US night sky
