A 56,000-year-old lake in Maharashtra’s Buldhana district over the past few days. The Lonar Crater Sanctuary Lake has turned pinkish-reddish and has become a topic of discussion among the scientists, forest department, and nature lovers.
The Lonar Crater Sanctuary Lake spread over an area of 77.69 hectares is situated inside the Deccan Plateau. Apart from being a popular tourist hub that is situated 500 kilometers outside Mumbai, it also attracts scientists from around the world. The lake was formed when a meteor hit Earth over 56,000 years ago and is the world’s largest basaltic impact crater. There are two other crater lakes in India located at Dhala of Madhya Pradesh and Ramgarh of Rajasthan. The deputy conservator of forests, MK Kharinar said,
“We are observing the phenomenon to such an extent for the first time. We will collect samples of the lake water for testing to find the reason behind the occurrence. These samples will be sent to Neeri, Nagpur, and Agarkar Research Institute, Pune.”
Might Be Human Interference
The Lake has a high concentration of carbonate salts that makes it highly alkaline. Some experts have also observed that there is a growth of the family of bacteria known as Halobacteriaceae which thrive in high saline conditions and produce reg pigments to absorb sunlight and thereby converting it into energy. When this happens in large amounts, the water body might take on a reddish hue. As per the Additional principal chief conservator of forests & Melghat Tiger Reserve field director MS Reddy, a similar phenomenon takes place at the Umria lake in Iran which is documented scientifically. He said,
“These algae, under such circumstance, turn red in color. The halobacteria also use a red pigment to absorb sunlight and convert it to energy, This also turns the water red. With monsoon, the water level will increase and water temperatures will go down turning the lake water back to its normal coloration.”
The Lonar lake is recognized as one of the national geo-heritage monument by the government of India. Clarifying whether this is harmful, Harish Malpani, the head of the department of microbiology in RLT College of Science said,
“Halobacteria is not harmful to humans but its presence needs to be established. Sudden change in the color of the water is strange. It might be because of microbial activities or could even be human interference. Research should be conducted before making any comments.”
Source: The Times of India
