EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Archive - Soda Dry Lake

March 12, 2022

6a0105371bb32c970b0120a86b98ee970b

Every weekend we present a notable item from our archives.

This EPOD was originally published on February 11, 2010.

Photographer: Barbara Traub
Summary Authors: Barbara Traub; Jim Foster

The photo above shows a scenic view of Soda Dry Lake in the
Mojave Desert of California. Soda Dry Lake is a playa, which is a
shallow, more or less rounded lake or wetlands area filled by rainfall.
Playas are formed in areas where there’s no outlet to a river or
larger water body. Thus, the relief where they are encountered is
extremely flat – nearly level terrain. In the United States playas are
found in the Basin and Range province, west of the Rocky Mountains,
and in portions of the Great Plains. During periods when rainfall is
particularly scarce, a crust of evaporite minerals is often
observed on the surface and along the edge of playas. Capillary action
draws the scant water from below the lake bed upward to the surface
where it quickly evaporates. Note: because of the shading on the photo,
the eye is tricked into believing that the surface is wetter than was
the case. Photo taken late in the afternoon of January 10, 2010.
* Mojave Desert Coordinates: 35.163, -116.071

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Geography Links

* Atlapedia Online
* CountryReports
* GPS Visualizer
* Holt Rinehart Winston World Atlas
* Mapping Our World
* Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection
* Types of Land
* World Mapper

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