February 2, 2012 at 8:25 pm

Picture of the Day: Salar de Uyuni After Some Rain

by twistedsifter

 

SALAR DE UYUNI AFTER SOME RAIN

 

salar de uyuni after some rain bolivia salt flats Picture of the Day: Salar de Uyuni After Some Rain

Photograph via Paean on Reddit

 

Salar de Uyuni (or Salar de Tunupa) is the world’s largest salt flat at 10,582 square kilometers (4,086 sq mi). It is located in the Potosi and Oruro departments in southwest Bolivia, near the crest of the Andes, and is elevated 3,656 meters (11,995 ft) above the mean sea level. The Salar was formed as a result of transformations between several prehistoric lakes. It is covered by a few meters of salt crust, which has an extraordinary flatness with the average altitude variations within one meter over the entire area of the Salar. The crust serves as a source of salt and covers a pool of brine, which is exceptionally rich in lithium. It contains 50 to 70% of the world’s lithium reserves, which is in the process of being extracted.

The large area, clear skies and exceptional surface flatness make the Salar an ideal object for calibrating the altimeters of the Earth observation satellites. The Salar serves as the major transport route across the Bolivian Altiplano and is a major breeding ground for several species of pink flamingos. Salar de Uyuni is also a climatological transitional zone, for towering tropical cumulus congestus and cumulus incus clouds that form in the eastern part of the massive salt flat during summer, cannot permeate beyond the salt flat’s considerably more arid western edges, near the Chilean border and the Atacama Desert. [Source: Wikipedia]

Unfortunately the photographer was not listed in the comments on Reddit. A Tineye search was also not very helpful. Please let us know if you are aware of the original source of this stunning photograph.