Join us in Wonderopolis today for a tour of one of the largest lakes in the world!
Source: Where Is Lake Baikal?
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At Asia’s heart, Lake Baikal stirs Russians to protect nature; Fred Weir; CSM
Environmental protections are often reactive, coming only after pristine areas have succumbed to pollution and degradation. But on Siberia’s Lake Baikal, care for nature has always been a way of life. Fifth in a five-part series.
Source: At Asia’s heart, Lake Baikal stirs Russians to protect nature
10 Most Amazing Lakes in the World; Jennifer Gonzales; Wander Wisdom
Lakes are not as frequently visited as beaches and falls. Although they are not as popular, they can certainly be just as beautiful and spectacular. Sometimes, they are even more so.
Baikal Ice. Timelapse; Air Pano
Five years ago me and Stas had an opportunity to shoot Baikal from the air. Here we are again. The main goal was to make 360 videos, but of course we could not have ignored the making of a new virtual tour. As a teaser to the 360° video about Baikal we are publishing this 360° timelapse with sunrises and sunsets, filmed from ice caves.
We were lucky: the weather was changing everyday. We walked on clear ice under blue skies in absolute silence and watched the milky way above Olkhon Island. We tried to stay warm in -35 degrees cold and managed to get to the camp through the most harsh snowstorm…
We thank nature for such unforgettable impressions during this short trip.
And here are some facts about Baikal.
Lake Baikal is the deepest lake on the planet, and is one of the most famous landmarks of Russia and the world. In 1996 Lake Baikal was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The surface area of the lake is 31,722 sq. kilometers (12,248 sq. mi), which is comparable to the size of Belgium and Denmark.
Read more from source: Baikal Ice. Timelapse
See what the world’s deepest and oldest lake in Siberia looks like when frozen solid; Maeve Heslin; Lonely Planet
In the far reaches of Eastern Siberia lies magical Lake Baikal, believed to be the world’s oldest and deepest lake. Formed as an ancient rift valley (where the Earth’s crust is slowly pulling apart) somewhere between 25 and 30 million years ago, the crescent-shaped Baikal is fed by 300 different rivers, and boasts an incredible 2000 km of shoreline.
A region of otherworldly beauty, from the lake’s shore, visitors are afforded fantastic views of its surrounding sweeping mountain ranges. At 1637 metres-deep, Baikal contains nearly one-fifth of the Earth’s unfrozen fresh water, and in most places that water is pure enough to drink. A true jewel in the Siberian crown, Lake Baikal was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1996.
Moscow photographer Kristina Makeeva is a huge fan of this tranquil region, and in a beautiful body of photography called ‘Simple Magic Things’, she’s aimed to capture the magic of the ancient lake. Specifically, she photographs when the lake is frozen solid. In these pictures you can see bubbles, created when oxygen from the plants at the bottom of the lake freeze on the way up to the surface.
Putin’s pal, the British Lords – and the ‘clean up’ of a Russian energy giant; James Cusick; Open Democracy
With relations between Britain and Russia in severe crisis, the timing of a Russian company’s efforts to raise billions on the London Stock Exchange couldn’t be worse.
The network of embedded Russian business interests with direct connections to the City of London’s markets will make it difficult for the UK government to deliver effective financial sanctions against the Kremlin or associates of President Vladimir Putin.
With Theresa May replaying the role of ‘iron lady’ and lining up the United Nations, Nato, the European Union and the Trump White House to back the UK’s anticipated punitive response for the nerve agent attack in Salisbury, firms officially listed in London run by oligarchs with close links to Putin are expecting a rough ride.
The decision of the UK government, so far, to expel 23 Russian diplomats, along with some flight checks and the suspension of high-level bilateral contacts, is being seen as an opening move rather than the final package of sanctions.
Source: Putin’s pal, the British Lords – and the ‘clean up’ of a Russian energy giant
How untouched nature on Lake Baikal’s secluded northern coast lures VIP tourists; Tass
The remote northern coast of Baikal, the world’s largest freshwater lake and a UNESCO World Heritage site, is now available to a few VIP tourists.
ULAN-UDE, November 24. /TASS/. The remote northern coast of Baikal, the world’s largest freshwater lake and a UNESCO World Heritage site, is now available to a few VIP tourists.
The authorities of east Siberia’s Buryatia are seeking ways to improve the availability of these pristine places. A number of tourism specialists told TASS how to reach this remote coast and what should be done to attract more visitors.
According to Olga Sherkhoyeva, marketing director for the Visit Buryatia tourism center, more than half of the region’s residents have never visited the northern coast of Lake Bailkal.
“Some 50% of the visitors come there from Europe. Northern Baikal is definitely one of the lake’s best locations,” she explained.
130 dead seals have washed up on the shores of Russia’s Lake Baikal; CECILE BORKHATARIA; Daily Mail
- Baikal Seals are a freshwater species occurring in the landlocked Lake Baikal
- Researchers have taken lake water samples and biopsies of the dead animals
- Lake Baikal has been suffering from detrimental phenomena over recent years
- These include fish stock depletion, death of endemic sponges and explosion of growth of Spirogyra algae unnatural to the lake potentially caused by pollution
Around 130 dead seals have washed up on the shores of Russia’s Lake Baikal, authorities said Tuesday, as they launched a probe into the latest problem to hit the world’s deepest lake.
The Baikal seal is the smallest in the world, and exactly how and when the species colonised the ancient Siberian lake is still a mystery.
‘There were about 130 animals found dead’ over the past few days, said environmental ministry spokesman Nikolai Gudkov.
World’s deepest lake in danger!; Sangeeta Krishnan; Jagran Josh
Lake Baikal, the world’s deepest lake is undergoing its gravest crisis in recent history, according to experts.
Holding one-fifth of the world’s unfrozen fresh water, the lake situated in Russia’s Siberia region is a natural wonder of exceptional value to evolutionary science. It is even listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The lake’s rich biodiversity includes over 3,600 plant and animal species, most of which are endemic to the lake. Since the past few years, the lake, which is a major international tourist attraction, has been crippled by a series of damaging phenomena such as disappearance of the omul fish, rapid growth of putrid algae and the death of endemic species of sponges across its vast 3.2 million-hectare area.
Disappearance of Omul fish
• Omul is a species of fish that belongs to the salmon family, which is only found in Baikal.
Lake Baikal, deepest in the world, in peril, scientists warn; AFP
Holding one-fifth of the world’s unfrozen fresh water, Baikal in Russia’s Siberia is a natural wonder.
MOSCOW: Lake Baikal is undergoing its gravest crisis in recent history, experts say, as the government bans the catching of a signature fish that has lived in the world’s deepest lake for centuries but is now under threat.
Holding one-fifth of the world’s unfrozen fresh water, Baikal in Russia’s Siberia is a natural wonder of “exceptional value to evolutionary science” meriting its listing as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Baikal’s high biodiversity includes over 3,600 plant and animal species, most of which are endemic to the lake.
Over the past several years, however, the lake, a major international tourist attraction, has been crippled by a series of detrimental phenomena, some of which remain a mystery to scientists.
