Kawa Ijen Crater Lake
ESA
According to ESA images released in East Java, Indonesia. Kawa Ijen Crater Lake – The largest acidic lake in the world. The image here was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel 2 mission, which provides optical images of Earth’s surface. This true color image shows Kawa Ijen with its striking turquoise waters.
Although it looks attractive at first glance, the lake is filled with high concentrations of sulfuric and hydrochloric acids and dissolved minerals. For this reason, the lake is thought to be unswimmable, but it is surprisingly easy to spot from space. The water in Kawa Ijen Crater Lake has a pH value as low as 0.5, which is as strong as the acid in a car battery.
The lake’s unnaturally high acidity isn’t its only frightening feature. They also emit hot, flammable sulfur gases that can ignite if they enter Earth’s oxygen-rich atmosphere. These blaze with an eerie blue flame, creating a mesmerizing nighttime sight.
can also be seen in large image Laung or Gunung Laung volcano is one of the most active volcanoes on the island of Java. At an impressive height of 3,332 meters, this mountain looms just to the southwest.
Credit: Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2023) processed by ESA. CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO Enlarged image
Here is a processed version of the same image Enlarged image
Editor’s Note: Despite the seemingly hostile conditions, there is life here.
according to Microbial community of Kawa Ijen, the world’s largest acidic volcanic lake in Indonesia, and the Banyu Pahit River that originates thereMicrobial Ecology (2006):
“Lake Kawa Ijen, a crater lake in Indonesia (pH < 0.3）とそこを源流とするバニュパヒット・バニュプティ川（pH 0.4～3.5）の微生物群集組成に関する最初の研究が行われました。 文化に依存しない、rRNA 遺伝子ベースの変性勾配ゲル電気泳動を使用して、この自然で古代の極度に酸性の環境における微生物群集のプロファイリングが行われました。 異なるサンプリング場所の群集プロファイルの類似性は低く、群集構成の不均一性を示しています。 古細菌はすべてのサンプリング場所に存在しました。 古細菌の多様性は、最も酸性の高い場所では低く、pH > Increased in 2.6. No bacteria were detected in the water column of the crater lake, but bacteria were detected at all locations along the acidic river. Bacterial diversity increased with increasing pH. Eukaryotes were present only at pH > 2.6. The bacterial and archaeal rRNA gene sequences retrieved were not closely related to known acidophilic species. It is concluded that tolerance to extreme acidity in this system is most widely developed among archaea. The acidity gradient in the Banyupahit and Banyupti rivers has a clear impact on the microbial community composition and biodiversity. ”
Map (Wikipedia)
astrobiology
