Salt lake

Geographically, the salt lake of Khoor is located in 30.33 to 30.34 degrees north latitude and 15.55 to 15.56 degrees east latitude and it is the world`s largest seasonal salt lake (Playa). This salt lake lies in the central part of the Iran desert and it is extended to the southern parts. On average, the height of the salt lake is about 707 meters above the sea level which is from lowest parts of Persian plateau. Unlike other similar salt lakes of Persian plateau, the depth of salt in this salt lake is very thin and it varies from 5 to 10 centimeters.

The cause of such deference is the constant movements of the subterranean salt-water resources and black slits in the lower layers that hinders the constitution and establishment of salt platforms. Lands near the salt lake in western, eastern and northern areas are highly marshy and sticky but the southern area includes puffy lands. The climate of the region is hot and torrid and the average annual rain fall in the salt lake is 20mm. In the time of rain falls and by the arrival of floods from nearby lands[4] a layer of water covers the lake. This water is saturated with salt because of the saltiness of nearby lands.

The hot weather causes the water to evaporate quickly leaving a layer of salt on the lake. The temperature in the hottest time reaches 55 degrees C and in the coldest time (night) reaches 25 degrees C. the high variation of temperature from day to night causes the superficial layers to crack. These cracks in turn cause lower layers to loose their humidity and this way, salt-platforms appear.

This desert consists of two pits, the northern one and the southern one. The area of the southern pit is three times as much as the northern one but the height of the northern pit is 15 meters more than the southern one. 20% of the surface of the northern pit is black salt but this percentage for the south pit only reaches 5. Here the black salt assumes sharp and volcanic shapes and there is a reason for that: the white salt transmits the infra red rays of the sun (or the heat) through it self but these rays are absorbed on the surface of the black slit layers below causing them to warm up and expand. Thus, these layers execute pressure to the upper layers, crack them and finally push them though to the surface of the earth creating sharp forms that hinder the movement of vehicles or beasts of burden. During the rainfall season the lake becomes a mixture of mud and salt but in the rest of the year it forms a sea of white salt. High density of salt in the lower layers makes driving easy and risk free.

Recently researches have been made to mine potash from the lake and if executed the place would make the greatest potash resource in the world. Moreover with the recent flourishing of the ecotourism industry in Iran , the southern parts of the lake are haunted more frequently by the visitors.




[4] The height of which are more than the lake itself