Rudolf, Lake

Rudolf, Lake
or Lake Turkana

Lake, mainly in northern Kenya.

The fourth largest of the eastern African lakes, it lies 1,230 ft (375 m) above sea level in the Great Rift Valley and covers an area of 2,473 sq mi (6,405 sq km). The three main islands in the lake are volcanic. The lake is relatively shallow; its greatest recorded depth is 240 ft (73 m). Having no outlet, the lake's waters are brackish. Sudden storms are frequent, rendering navigation treacherous. It is a rich reservoir of fish.

* * *

lake, East Africa
also called  Lake Turkana 

      fourth largest of the eastern African lakes. It lies mainly in northern Kenya, with its northern end stretching into Ethiopia. The lake lies in the eastern arm of eastern Africa's Rift Valley. It covers an area of 2,473 square miles (6,405 square km) and lies at 1,230 feet (375 m) above sea level. Together with Lake Baringo (Baringo, Lake) (south), Lake Rudolf once formed a larger body of water drained by the Sobat River into the Nile River. Earth movements during the Pleistocene Epoch (1,600,000 to 10,000 years ago), however, created a smaller lake of independent inland drainage. Volcanic outcrops give rise to rocky shores in the east and south, while the lake's western and northern shores are lower and consist of sand dunes, sandspits, and mudflats. The three main islands in the lake—North, Central, and South—are volcanic.

      Lake Rudolf is 154 miles (248 km) long, only 10–20 miles (16–32 km) wide, and relatively shallow, its greatest recorded depth being 240 feet (73 m). The lake's level and area tend to fluctuate. Its only perennial tributary is the Omo River, which flows from Ethiopia. Having no outlet, the lake's waters are brackish. Sudden storms are frequent, rendering navigation on the lake treacherous.

      Lake Rudolf is a rich reservoir of fish. Nile perch, tigerfish, bichir, and various species of Tilapia abound. Crocodiles and hippopotamuses are common, and birds include flamingos, cormorants, and kingfishers. The peoples of the neighbouring desert scrub are largely nomadic pastoralists. Count Samuel Teleki and Lieutenant Ludwig von Höhnel visited the lake in 1888 and named it after the crown prince of Austria. In Kenya it is called Lake Turkana.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Rudolf,Lake — Rudolf, Lake See Turkana, Lake. * * * …   Universalium

  • Rudolf, Lake — geographical name see turkana (Lake) …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • RUDOLF LAKE —    in British East Africa, close to the highlands of S. Ethiopia, practically an inland sea, being 160 m. long and 20 broad, and brackish in taste; discovered in 1888 …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Rudolf, Lake — …   Useful english dictionary

  • Lake Turkana — Infobox lake lake name = Lake Turkana Jade Sea image lake = Lake turkana.jpg caption lake = image bathymetry = caption bathymetry = coords = coord|3|3|N|36|1|E|type:waterbody region:KY/ET|display=inline,title type = Saline, monomictic, alkaline,… …   Wikipedia

  • Rudolf — /rooh dolf/, n. 1. Max, born 1902, U.S. orchestra conductor, born in Germany. 2. Lake, former name of Turkana (def. 3). 3. a male given name, form of Rolf. * * * I born Aug. 21, 1858, Schloss Laxenburg, near Vienna, Austria died Jan. 30, 1889,… …   Universalium

  • lake — lake1 /layk/, n. 1. a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size, surrounded by land. 2. any similar body or pool of other liquid, as oil. 3. (go) jump in the lake, (used as an exclamation of dismissal or impatience.) [bef. 1000; ME lak(e) …   Universalium

  • Lake — /layk/, n. Simon, 1866 1945, U.S. engineer and naval architect. * * * I Relatively large body of slow moving or standing water that occupies an inland basin. Lakes are most abundant in high northern latitudes and in mountain regions, particularly …   Universalium

  • Rudolf Caracciola — Caracciola (seated) with his first wife Charlotte at a race in 1931. Nationality …   Wikipedia

  • Lake Chew Bahir — The remnants of Lake Chew Bahir as seen from space. Coordinates …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”