Aral Sea
E53408
The Aral Sea is a largely dried-up endorheic lake in Central Asia, once one of the world’s largest inland bodies of water and now a symbol of severe environmental degradation caused by river diversion.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Aral Sea basin | 1 |
Statements (72)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
endorheic lake
ⓘ
former large inland sea ⓘ salt lake ⓘ |
| basinCountry |
Kazakhstan
ⓘ
Uzbekistan ⓘ |
| borderedBy |
Karakalpakstan
ⓘ
Kyzylorda Region ⓘ |
| causeOfDesiccation |
Soviet cotton monoculture policies
ⓘ
diversion of Amu Darya ⓘ diversion of Syr Darya ⓘ irrigation projects ⓘ |
| climateEffect | more extreme continental climate locally after shrinkage ⓘ |
| continent | Asia ⓘ |
| currentStatus | largely dried up ⓘ |
| environmentalImpact |
health problems in local population
ⓘ
local climate change ⓘ loss of biodiversity ⓘ soil salinization in surrounding areas ⓘ |
| governedBy |
Kazakhstan
ⓘ
Uzbekistan ⓘ |
| hasEconomicImpact |
collapse of fisheries
ⓘ
loss of agricultural productivity in some areas ⓘ outmigration of local population ⓘ |
| hasPart |
Aralkum Desert
ⓘ
Eastern Basin of the Aral Sea ⓘ North Aral Sea ⓘ South Aral Sea ⓘ Vozrozhdeniya Island ⓘ Western Basin of the Aral Sea ⓘ |
| hasPhotographicEvidence | satellite imagery showing shrinkage ⓘ |
| hasRestorationProject | Kok-Aral Dam ⓘ |
| healthIssuesAssociated |
anemia
ⓘ
birth defects ⓘ cancers ⓘ kidney diseases ⓘ respiratory diseases ⓘ |
| historicalAreaRank | one of the four largest lakes in the world by area (mid-20th century) ⓘ |
| historicalMaxDepth | about 69 metres ⓘ |
| historicalSurfaceArea | approximately 68,000 square kilometres in 1960 ⓘ |
| historicalVolume | over 1,000 cubic kilometres in 1960 ⓘ |
| inflow |
Amu Darya
ⓘ
Syr Darya ⓘ |
| knownFor |
being a major environmental disaster
ⓘ
collapse of local fishing industry ⓘ creation of the Aralkum Desert ⓘ desiccation due to river diversion ⓘ dramatic shrinkage in the 20th century ⓘ dust storms carrying toxic sediments ⓘ severe environmental degradation ⓘ |
| locatedIn |
Central Asia
ⓘ
Kazakhstan ⓘ Uzbekistan ⓘ |
| locatedInDesert |
Karakum Desert
ⓘ
Kyzylkum Desert ⓘ |
| locatedInDrainageBasin | Aral Sea Basin ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Aral (island in Turkic languages) ⓘ |
| nameMeaning | Sea of Islands ⓘ |
| nearbyCity |
Aralsk
ⓘ
Moynaq ⓘ |
| nearbyPort |
former port of Aralsk
ⓘ
former port of Moynaq ⓘ |
| partOf |
Soviet Union
ⓘ
surface form:
Soviet Union (as basin region before 1991)
|
| restorationFocus | North Aral Sea ⓘ |
| restorationOutcome |
partial recovery of water level in North Aral Sea
ⓘ
partial return of fish stocks in North Aral Sea ⓘ |
| salinityTrend | increasing salinity during desiccation ⓘ |
| symbolOf |
environmental mismanagement in the Soviet era
ⓘ
unsustainable water management ⓘ |
| timePeriodOfMajorShrinkage | 1960s–2000s ⓘ |
| UNEPStatus | one of the planet’s worst environmental disasters ⓘ |
| waterType |
endorheic (no outflow)
ⓘ
saline ⓘ |
Referenced by (6)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Aral Sea basin