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Name : Lake Salda
localization : Burdur responsibility , southwesterly Turkey
Turkey’s Lake Salda is the only place in the world comparable to an ancient impact structure on Mars.
Coordinates:37.54827653569846 , 29.685860347540892
Why it ’s incredible : The lake is the only place on Earth that ’s exchangeable to Jezero volcanic crater on Mars .
Lake Salda is a physical structure of water in Turkey that bears a hard resemblance toMars ' Jezero volcanic crater . The stunning lake is the only place on Earth with geology and mineralogy comparable to those of the ancient impingement structure on the Red Planet . This striking similarity meant scientists flocked to study its shores before thePerseverance rover landed on Marsin 2021 .
The lake is being studied to help the search for ancient life on the Red Planet.
Lake Salda is one of Turkey ’s deepest lakes , with a maximum depth of 643 foot ( 196 meters ) . Its shores are covered in powdered hydromagnesite , a carbonate mineral that ’s full-bodied in atomic number 12 and is found in caves and on the shores of sure lake . Notably , this mineral holds clew about ancient microbial life .
" Carbonates are significant because they are really near at trapping anything that existed within that environment , such as germ , organic fertiliser , or sure textures that provide grounds of past microbial life,“Brad Garczynski , a investigator in planetal geology at Western Washington University , toldNASA ’s Earth Observatory .
Related : NASA Mars rover finds ' first compelling sleuthing ' of potential ossified life sentence on the Red Planet
The hydromagnesite on Lake Salda ’s shore in all likelihood eroded from microbialites , which are rock and roll - same cumulus that see standardized to coral reefs but are made of microbes . The lake still hosts integral microbialites , but these will eventually be make over and terminate up as sand on the shoreline , consort toNASA ’s Earth Observatory .
Using data point from NASA ’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter , scientist detected interchangeable mineralsalong Jezero ’s western edgein 2019 , suggesting the volcanic crater once held a lake . These observations have since been confirm by the Perseverance rover , which foundmineral grounds of a lakethat live inside Jezero crater billions of years ago .
Lake Salda and Jezero volcanic crater have something else in common : depositional features roll in the hay as deltas . Deltas are bed of deposit that accumulate in space where river flow into lake and other bodies of water system . The feature tender tantalizing clues about how water come to take Jezero , and hit the books them in Lake Salda has helped scientist peg down down their lookup to specific locations in the Martian crater .
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— Last Chance Lake : The unusual ' sodium carbonate lake ' with conditions that may have given rise to aliveness on Earth
" One of the great things about visiting Lake Salda is it really give you a sense of what it would have been similar to stand on the shores of ancient Lake Jezero , " Horgan said .
The area around Lake Salda is home to more than 300 plant mintage and 30 waterbird species , cause it a democratic name and address for nature enthusiasts and hikers , according to CNN . The lake is only a short drive from thePamukkale travertines — sensational limestone formation with thermal pools .
find moreincredible places , where we highlight the wonderful history and science behind some of the most spectacular landscapes on Earth .
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