Salt water lake's in the pink ... and green
Aerial view of colorful Salt Lake of Yuncheng, world-famous inland salt lake known as "Dead Sea of China", in Yuncheng city, north China's Shanxi province, 11 September 2017.
The strange appearance of a salt lake known as “China’s Dead Sea” has attracted many visitors curious to catch a glimpse of the two-color attraction.
Yuncheng Salt Lake in north China’s Shanxi Province covers an area of 132 square meters in the city of Yuncheng. It appears green on one side and pink on the other.
According to the local publicity department, the pink side contains a chemical called Dunaliella salina, which changes it from the original green color.
The dual colors have lasted for many years, and only disappear in winter when the lake dries up.
The lake is one of the three inland salt lakes in the world to contain sodium sulfate. The amount of salt it has is similar to that of the Dead Sea and allows people to float on it. According to geologists, the lake was formed about 50 million years ago.
Chinese people began making use of the lake at least 4,000 years ago.
According to historical records, revenue from the salt produced by the lake accounted for about a quarter of the country’s total salt revenue during the reign of Emperor Li Yu (766-779) in the Tang Dynasty (618-907).
Today, the lake is still the source of salt destined for industrial use.
