Filaments of green scum swirl across the surface of Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán in this photo-like image taken by NASA’s EO-1 satellite on November 27, 2009.
Published Dec 3, 2009
A large bloom of cyanobacteria, more commonly known as blue-green algae, spread across Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán in green filaments and strands that are clearly visible in this simulated-natural-color image from November 22, 2009.
Published Nov 28, 2009
Sitting near Australia’s rugged southern coast, the South Australian town of Mount Gambier is built on the side of an extinct volcano. The caldera of the volcano has filled with rainwater, forming a very deep lake that provides the town with water. The large caldera lake is called Blue Lake due to a rather peculiar characteristic: the water turns a brilliant cobalt blue during the summer and early fall.
Published Aug 30, 2008
Sitting atop the Andes plateau on the border between Peru and Bolivia, the lake is the highest major body of navigable water in the world and the largest lake in South America.
Published Nov 23, 2015
A massive algal bloom and storm-churned sediment color the Great Lakes in this image from October 9, 2011.
Published Oct 13, 2011
An early summer algae bloom in Florida’s Lake Okeechobee has been blamed for affecting water quality downstream all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.
Published Jul 6, 2016
Straddling Austria and Hungary, the lake is also known as the “Sea of the Viennese.”
Published Apr 10, 2017
Lago de Valencia (Lake Valencia) is located in north-central Venezuela and is the largest freshwater lake in the country. The lake was formed approximately 2-3 million years ago due to faulting and subsequent damming of the Valencia River. The lake has been completely dry during several discrete periods of its geologic history. Since 1976 Lake Valencia water levels have risen due to diversion of water from neighboring watersheds—it currently acts as a reservoir for the surrounding urban centers (such as Maracay).
Published Nov 22, 2004
Meltwater from glaciers to the east and west drains into Lake Morari, a large lake that lies at an altitude of 4,521 meters (14,830 feet) on the Tibetan Plateau. A stream on the west side provides the lake’s main inflow. Mud from this river gives the light blue hues to the lake water. The well-formed alluvial fan (image center), built by sediment from the main inflow river, is the reason the lake has formed at this point in the valley.
Published Dec 18, 2006
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