Lakes: characteristics and types. Characteristics of the lake: origin of lake basins and types of lakes Artistic description of the lake

Music for happiness - gentle guitar

The first chord is light, a breath of wind, your fingers barely touch the strings. A vanishingly quiet sound, E minor, simpler and there is nothing...
The first snowflake is light, translucent, carried by an almost imperceptible wind. She is the harbinger of snowfall, a scout who was the first to descend to the ground...

The second chord – the fingers of the left hand are deftly rearranged, the right one confidently and softly leads along the strings. Down, down, up - simple and gives the simplest sound. It's not a blizzard or a storm - just snowfall. There can be nothing complicated about it. Snowflakes begin to fly more often - the vanguard of the main forces, sparkling ice stars.

Then the chords replace each other more viscously and tenderly, so that the ear almost does not notice the transition from one sound to another. A transition that always sounds harsh. Instead of a fight, it’s too much. Eight. The intro is played and even if it’s not an instrumental that sounds triumphant and joyful during a summer downpour or viscous and bewitching in a snowstorm, even if it’s just chords put together, the music surprisingly suits the snow outside the window, the white butterflies of winter, the icy tiny stars that are all dancing, dancing their dance in the night sky...

Singing is woven into the music - quiet, the words are indistinguishable, elude perception, mixed with the snowfall and the measured, natural beating of the heart. A clear rhythm and calm strength resound in them. The song has no end, it just softly intertwines with the dance of snowflakes and goes away imperceptibly, leaving the sky and snow alone...
Cold and darkness conceal sounds and movements, reconciling the city with winter...

And the Lord of Snowfall, having played his part on one of the roofs, gently puts his guitar, which has power over the elements, into its case. There is snow on his shoulders and hair, red cheerful sparks flash and go out - snowflakes reflect the light of distant lights. There is light in the windows of the house opposite. There are people there who don’t know how to weave the lace of the elements...

The staircase is an ordinary staircase of a nine-story building. Doors, an elevator always occupied by someone, the dim light of a light bulb on the landing... The Lord of Snowfall walks, holding his guitar, quietly and slowly walking up the steps. From the ninth floor to the first, carefully so as not to disturb the warm feeling of relaxed, trusting happiness that comes every time after completing the game...
And the usual angry question from the mother who opened the door:
– When will you stop playing your games and finally start thinking?
It hits the open soul like a knife. The soft snowy wings given by the fulfillment of the present break and only misunderstanding and resentment remain.
Why does she hit where it hurts the most? For what?..

At night, a wild wind mixed with snow blew through the city. Broke tree branches, tore wires, swept roads...
It was the Lord of Snowfall's guitar singing again.

Lake Superior is the name given by the pioneers to the largest lake on the North American continent.

This body of water is the northernmost of the Great Lakes, ranks second in the world ranking in terms of area and third in terms of fresh water reserves.

Lake Superior is one of the most beautiful natural attractions in the United States and Canada.

Great Lakes

A description of Lake Superior must begin with a description of the Great Lakes system. This is the name given to an extended and powerful chain of reservoirs located in the northern part of North America.

The huge chain consists of lakes such as Huron, Michigan, Ontario, Erie, Superior and smaller water bodies. Michigan belongs exclusively to the United States of America. The shorelines of the other four largest of the Great Lakes cross the US-Canadian border in one way or another. Lake Superior on the North American mainland is also no exception; it is also located on the border of two states.

The Great Lakes are an important part of the transport network of the two countries, as well as a place of pilgrimage for a huge number of tourists, primarily, of course, American and Canadian, because famous natural parks. In addition to its critical importance in the modern economy, the Great Lakes played a large role in the history of the United States, in particular, it was here that the famous naval battles between the Americans and the British took place.

The original name of this gigantic body of water has survived to this day. Indians from the Ojibwe tribe, who inhabited the shores of the lake before the arrival of Europeans, gave it the name “Geechi Gami”, which can be translated as “ big water" This historical name suits this impressively sized body of water perfectly.

Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes system. In its longest part it reaches 616 meters, and in its widest part - 257 meters. The area of Lake Superior is huge, it is approximately 82.4 thousand square kilometers of water surface. This fact makes it the second largest area on the entire planet after the Caspian Sea, which is now considered a lake.

Lake Superior has a total volume of more than 11.5 thousand cubic kilometers (the maximum volume is more than 12 thousand cubic kilometers). This allows hydrologists to say that the reservoir contains a tenth of the world's fresh water reserves (the third largest in the world after our Baikal and Tanganyika in Africa). To imagine how huge this figure is, we can cite the following fact: if you distribute all the water in Verkhniy, spilling it over a huge plane, the area of which is equal to North and South America, you will get a layer of water of 0.3 meters. The volume of water in this reservoir exceeds the total volume of all other Great Lakes combined.

Upper Lake, despite its name, does not belong to the alpine category. It is located at an altitude of only 183.5 meters above sea level.

Lake Superior is also outside the deepest category. In terms of its depth, the reservoir claims only 36th place in the world ranking. Its average depth is 147 km, and its maximum depth is 406 meters. For comparison, the depth of Baikal is 1642 meters.

On the shores of the lake there is the Canadian province of Ontario on one side, and the American states of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin on the other. The coastline of Lake Superior stretches for more than 4,000 kilometers.

Hydrological regime

More than two hundred rivers and streams carry their waters into the lake. Among the largest are the Pigeon River, Nipigon, Peak, St. Louis, White and many others.

Flows from Verkhniy large river St. Marys, which feeds Huron, the second of the Great Lakes chain.

Although average annual temperature The water level in Upper is 4 degrees above zero; thanks to the great depth and strong and frequent waves (strong storms often occur here in autumn and winter), the water surface almost never freezes completely. The last case of complete freezing was noted in the 70s of the twentieth century. The rest of the time, only the coastal strip of water is covered with an ice crust. Period coastal ice lasts from December to April.

Geographical position Lake Superior contributes to moderate fluctuations in water levels. The maximum level occurs in the summer months during periods of heavy rainfall, and the minimum level occurs in the winter months.

Geological history

Verkhneye is a relatively young American lake by geological standards. It was formed approximately 4-10 thousand years ago during the Ice Age. A powerful glacier, which at that time covered quite large areas of the North American continent, managed to push through rocks stable Canadian Shield, thus forming a powerful and extensive recess in the earth's surface. According to geologists, the glacier subsequently melted, giving rise to a gigantic reservoir with its melt waters, which spread over the entire area where all the Great American Lakes now lie. The impressively sized reservoir gradually shrank, and the contours of the modern lake chain began to appear, including the shoreline of Lake Superior.

Islands

The largest of the upper lake islands is Isle Royale. It lives up to its “royal” name and reaches a length of 72 and a width of 14 kilometers. An interesting fact is that this island is often called “matryoshka”.

Why, you ask? It's simple: there are quite a lot of large lake, which also has an island. On this relatively small island there is a small pond on which smaller islands are scattered. Such a bizarre natural “architecture”.

Attractions

Important attractions of the Lake Superior region include specially protected natural areas. They include the famous American national park Isle Royale, located on island of the same name, and the no less famous Canadian Pukaskwa National Park. Tourists and travel enthusiasts come here, because the lake, despite the fact that it has long been discovered by man, has retained its pristine beauty and comparative purity of water. Since in Lake Superior There are valuable species of fish, this indicates the good ecological condition of the area.

Shipping

The largest and most important ports on the lake are the American ports of Ashland and Duluth, as well as the Canadian port of Thunder Bay.

The Verkhny region is the most important shipping area for the two states.

Since the lake is characterized by a violent and restless temperament, severe storms and storms, it was wrecked great amount ships.

Cape White Fish, which is sometimes called the “tomb,” became especially notorious in this regard. It was here that many ships sank for certain reasons.

Locals they claim that the lake is very reluctant to give up its drowned people, who almost never float to the surface. Apparently, this is due to the extremely low temperature of the water and the low content of microorganisms in it.
Verkhny is home to several dozen valuable species of ichthyofauna, many of which are caught industrially (including sturgeon, smelt, salmon, trout, carp, whitefish, freshwater herring, pike perch and others). At the beginning of the 17th century, Europeans who visited here reported almost three-meter sturgeon and two-meter pike.
About sixty species of orchids grow in the lake area.

In this article we will talk about what types of lakes there are, as well as how they originated, i.e. consider the general characteristics of the lake. A lake is an inland body of land with low-flow or standing water. It forms near the surface of the earth in a natural depression. Since lakes are not connected to the ocean, they are bodies of slow water exchange. They occupy only about 2% of the planet's land mass. The largest is the Caspian Sea, and the deepest is Baikal. There are various types of lakes, which have heterogeneous origins. Each body of water is distinguished by several interconnected components: basin, water mass, vegetation, fauna.

Characteristics of the lake: origin of lake basins and types of lakes

Endogenous - most large lakes, which are the result of the manifestation of the internal forces of the Earth. Endogenous basins include tectonic and volcanic basins.

Tectonic depressions are subsided zones of the earth's crust. The subsidence occurs due to the deflection of layers (Aral) or faults along cracks (Upper, Baikal, Huron, Michigan). Volcanic depressions are the craters of volcanoes. There are such basins in Kamchatka.

Exogenous – small types of lakes, which were formed by the activities of external forces. Often river valleys have oxbow lakes that have an oblong shape. They appear on the site of former river beds.

Many water basins were formed during the Ice Age. As they moved, the glaciers “plowed out” huge depressions that filled with water.

Similar glacial lake characteristics can be found in northwestern Russia, as well as Canada and Finland. Almost all of them are elongated in the direction of movement of glaciers.

The result of strong earthquakes in the mountains is dams. So, for example, the Sarez reservoir was formed in the Pamirs (1911). During the earthquake, part of the mountain range, a dam more than 600 meters deep was formed.

A significant number of recesses are of mixed origin. For example, Onega and Ladoga are tectonic, but the action of glaciers has modified their basins. The Caspian Sea is the remnant of a giant basin that was previously connected to the Black Sea. Depressions created by man are artificial reservoirs.

Mountain lake Ritsa (Abkhazia) is of glacial-tectonic origin

Typeslakes by water regime

Sewage - rivers not only flow into them, but also flow out (they may have an underground flow). The data is most often located in the area of excess moisture. A different number of rivers flow into such lakes, but only one flows out (Baikal, Teletskoye).

Endorheic - rivers flow in, none of them flow out (i.e. such lakes have no flow). They are located in areas of insufficient moisture (most often deserts, semi-deserts). The Caspian Sea, the Aral Sea, and some tundra water basins belong to the same type.

Flowing - many rivers flow in and out (Onega and Ladoga).

Majestic Lake Baikal

The basin is fed by inflowing rivers, precipitation, and groundwater resources. Some of them evaporate from the surface of reservoirs, flow out, and go into underground drainage. And depending on the balance of incoming and outgoing parts, characteristics of lakes And The water level can fluctuate and the area of these water basins changes. For example, Lake Chad during drought covers an area of about 12 thousand square meters. km, during the rainy season - 26 thousand square meters. km.

Salt content

According to the amount of elements dissolved in water, three types of lakes are distinguished: fresh, brackish, salt. So, fresh - salt solution less than 1% o, brackish - more than 1% o, and salty - more than 24.7% o.

They are classified according to the method of their formation, the presence of life and the salt content. Life is absent only in incredibly salty bodies of water.

Lake Salar-Uyuni (Bolivia)

Sewage and flow-through pools are classified as fresh resources, since the influx of water significantly exceeds the flow. Drainless water resources most often brackish or salty. Such reservoirs have an inflow less than the flow. This increases the salinity. Salty - occupy zones of deserts and steppes. (Bolshoye Solenoye, Dead, Elton).

This article discussed the main types of lakes, which are important natural resources. Some of them are rich in raw materials, such as salt, iron ore, sapropel. Lakes are used for water supply, navigation, irrigation, fishing, and the production of a number of chemical elements and mineral salts. The lakes also serve as an excellent place for recreation; holiday homes, sanatoriums and recreation centers have been built next to them.

And more details from characteristics of lakes This video will introduce you.

Municipal educational institution Gilbirinskaya secondary school

COMPOSITION

Completed by: Afanasyeva Dari, 8th grade student

Kokorino village, 2012

Motherland, fontanelle, Russia, dewdrop, blue... Words associated with pure light, hope, faith and love, with the place where I was born and live.

There are many places in the world where I have visited - this is Lake Baikal, Tunka with its forests and ridges, the cities of Novosibirsk and Krasnoyarsk, where the Yenisei River flows. Beautiful forests high mountains, as well as endless fields and magnificent cities you can find all this on our land.

And I live in Buryatia! Exactly this deep lake world Baikal, the high Sayan Mountains, a wealth of forests, fur-bearing animals and plain meadows with magnificent flowers. But still the most the best place, which is located near the village of Kokorino in the Ivolginsky district - this Forest Lake Karasinoye. This is where you can relax, sunbathe, and swim. From the beach, there is a path around the lake that will take you to the health camps “Cheryomushki” and “Tuyaa”. And fishing here is a pleasure. This is what the boys vacationing here do. On sandy shore you can enjoy the picturesqueness of the lake. I sit on the shore of the lake, admiring the landscape, nature is always beautiful, it makes me happy in life, I am always ready to love it and enjoy it every day. I was even attracted to this lake, drawn by the silence of nature, only the sounds of birds chirping or leaves rustling.

The lake, like a magic mirror, hides a lot of mysteries. Old-timers tell legends about our lake and its surroundings. In summer you can paint excellent landscapes near the lake. You look at the lake, the world around you, feel the light breeze of the wind, the pleasant rays of the sun.

It is especially beautiful on the lake on a summer evening when the sun sets. The sun slowly sets and bright colors spread across the sky. And the stars slowly begin to light up. A fog appears near the lake, it slowly covers everything around. It becomes cooler, the birds fall silent, the soft smell of wormwood and steppe herbs begins to taste bitter in the throat. It immediately becomes quiet, peace and tranquility reigns around. I like the evening on the lake when I relax here with my parents. We light a fire, talk, sing songs and just remain silent.

Have you ever watched the sunrise on Lake Karasin? Fog appears over the lake and rises into the sky in ragged clouds. The surface of the lake becomes transparent and silvery. The first rays of the sun appear in the sky. Reeds, flowers, reaching for the warm rays of the sun, trying to survive, grow, strengthen themselves. And as a celebration of all living things, the birds begin to sing. Simply beautiful! I want to sing and enjoy life! This is what it is, our Lake Karasinoye!

Geographical objects are everything that surrounds us, that is, they are stable or relatively stable objects with a certain location on Earth that can be described. Our article will tell you how to describe a lake.

Standard plan for describing geographical objects

Before making a plan for describing the lake, you should briefly make a plan for the story about any geographical object. So, we can describe it:

population in a certain territory;
journey;
natural resources of the country;
geographical location of the continent;
relief of the territory;
climate;
natural area/areas;
country;
Agriculture;
description of the political map.

As can be seen from the list above, anything can be described and each object has its own plan. But if you don’t know it, then you can describe the object according to a standard plan, which is the following:

Define a map, which can be political, physical, textual, or complex.

Determine the scale.

Get acquainted with the legend, i.e. determine what objects, conventional images, units of measurement are to express quantitative indicators.

Find a given territory or object and describe it using a legend.

It happens that one map is not enough to describe it, so it’s worth using several to get the full picture.

Lake description plan: where to start

As mentioned above, there are standard types of description, and each object has its own plan, including a water body such as a lake. To begin with, you need to create short plan, and then describe it in more detail.

Lake description plan:

Name.

Location of the reservoir.

Basin type.

Greatest depth.

Salinity.

Definition of drainage or drainage lake.

Description of the shores.

In this plan for describing the lake, you can also add a division of salt lakes according to their chemical composition, which are divided into carbonate, sulfate and chloride. Lakes can also be divided according to nutrients:

oligotrophic, i.e. low amount of nutrients;
eutrophic, i.e. where there is a large amount of nutrients;
dystrophic, i.e. poor in nutrients, mainly refers to swampy lakes.

Plan for describing basic information

The description of lakes can be done following the plan described above. It is universal and suitable for characterizing any body of water. But first, it’s worth giving a definition.

A lake is a naturally occurring body of water that is filled with water within the lake bowl and has no connection with the sea or ocean.

On planet Earth today there are more than 40 largest lakes, which have an area of more than 4 thousand km2. The largest are the Caspian Sea, Huron, Victoria, Superior and Michigan.

The description of the lake should begin with its name. For example, this is where the story of Lake Huron can begin. It is located in North America on the territory of two countries: Canada and the USA. It occupies an area of 59 thousand 600 kilometers and has a depth of up to 229 meters.

Next, it is necessary to determine the type of basin, which are divided by origin into tectonic (i.e., formed in places of a fault or shift in the earth's crust); glacial (when the basin was formed by plowing a glacier); river; seaside; failures (formed where frozen soils began to thaw); underground; volcanic; artificial.

It should be clarified that Lake Huron is freshwater and was formed due to tectonic processes.

Other lakes should be described according to the same plan, for example, the largest in Russia and one of the largest among freshwater lakes - Lake Baikal. Let's look at a few examples.

Lake Baikal

It is worth starting the description of Lake Baikal according to the plan with its location. It is located in Central Asia, in Irkutsk region Russia. This is one of the largest lakes in the world, which ranks seventh in area and is the deepest among freshwater lakes. Its depth is 1637 meters.

Lake of tectonic origin. Scientists are still arguing about its origin, since they cannot fully establish the exact date. It stretches for 600 kilometers, and in some places its width can reach 80 kilometers. The area of the reservoir is 31 thousand km2, the same as, for example, the area of Belgium or Denmark. The coastline stretches for 2,100 kilometers, in the west the coast is rocky and steep, and in the east it is flatter.

Lake Baikal is a drainage lake, more than 300 rivers and streams flow into it, the largest are Snezhnaya, Barguzin, Sarma, and only the Angara River flows out.

The description of Lake Baikal according to the plan can be completed by clarifying the volume of water. They are huge, and account for 19% of all fresh water reserves, second only to the Caspian Sea. The lake is home to more than 2 thousand species of plants and animals, 2/3 of which are endemic, that is, living organisms that are found only in this reservoir. This abundance is explained by the high oxygen content throughout the water column.

Lake Victoria

The plan for describing Lake Victoria should begin with the fact that it is located in East Africa on the territory of three states, such as Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. In terms of area, it ranks first on the mainland and third in the whole world and is 68 thousand km2, the maximum depth is 80 meters, and the length coastline stretches for 7 thousand kilometers.

The lake is a drainage lake, the Kagera River flows into it, and the Victoria and Nile flow out, but the main source of nutrition is precipitation, and not its tributaries.

The shores of the lake are mostly flat and low, heavily indented and swampy.

Lake Victoria is one of the largest freshwater lakes, which ranks third in area. It is home to more than 200 species of fish, on which many animals feed.

Lake Chad

The plan for describing Lake Chad needs to start with the fact that it is located in Central Africa on the territory of several states, more precisely the Republic of Chad, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon.

The lake is in twelfth position among the largest lakes in the whole world and covers an area of 26 thousand km2. It is impossible to clearly indicate the area, because during rains it floods and the area increases to 50 thousand km2, and during drought the area decreases to 11 thousand km2. The maximum depth reaches 12 meters.

In the south, the Shari River, which is one of the food sources, flows into the lake, in the west the Komadugu-Vaube River, in the east Bar el-Ghazali.

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