Gaet'ale

Vorlage:AFC submission Gaet'ale Pond is a small hypersaline lake located near Dallol crater in Danakil Depression (Afar, Ethiopia). It is placed over a hot spring of tectonic origin and has no apparent inlet or outlet streams. The water of Gaet'ale pond has a salinity over 43%, which makes it the saltiest water body on earth.

Location and Origin

Gaet'ale pond is the biggest of a series of small ponds located at about 4 km southeast of Dallol Springs. The GPS coordinates are 14º12'47.1"N; 40º19'17.3"E. It is crescent-shaped with a diameter of about 60 m.

According to people living in the nearby village of Ahmed’ela, the Pond was generated after an earthquake on January 2005. The water of the lake is originated from a thermal spring located beneath it, for this reason, its temperature is hotter that the environment (50-60 ºC).

Composition of the water

The water of Gaet'ale Pond is mainly composed by Calcium Chloride, CaCl₂ 2.72 mol/kg and Magnesium Chloride, MgCl₂ 1.43 mol/kg. It also contain small amounts of Na⁺ K⁺ and NO₂^- ions. The total amount of dissolved solids is 43.3% which is equivalent to 764 g per kg of water. The water also contains traces of Fe³⁺ that form a complex with Cl^- which gives the water a characteristic yellow color.

Bubbles of an odourless gas are emitted from the lake. Most likely is volcanically derived CO₂. Bird and insect corpses have been found around the pond so it has been proposed that this gases may be harmful for small animals or even human beings.