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So why are the volcanic lakes at Kelimutu in Indonesia such different colours?

Kelimutu Lakes

Steve_t
2005-01-28 04:48:09

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Three crater lakes, very close together above one volcano, but three completely different colours, which keep changing. Why? Guide books and most locals, in order to create and maintain an aura of mystery and suspense, will tell you that no one knows the reasons. Or they'll tell you the local legend which describes how each lake is the final resting place of different souls - one for young men and maidens, one for elders, one for wicked people. Hmm. Another local piece of wisdom relates how the lakes don't actually change colour at all - it's an optical illusion. Sometimes you'll get "it's something to do with the minerals ..." Dissatisfied with the explanations, I spent some time online and found numerous technical reports about volcanic lakes in general and Kelimutu in particular, filled with esoteric vocabulary and accounts of detailed research using remote sampling devices and sophisticated chemical analysis.

Very Technical Details ...

The three lakes are actually caps of meteoric water (rain) over three differently active fumaroles (gas vents) of a passively degassing stratovolcano. Studying the surface of the two larger lakes reveals definite convection currents. The mediated subaqueous transport of volcanic gas yields different chemical "expressions" in each lake, and their pH levels range from 0.3 to 3.2. TiN is a "cool acid-brine" (less than 35 degrees C) lake, about pH 0.3, over a very active vent. Research in 1994 estimated that the lake received as much as 85 tonnes of sulphur dioxide daily. TAP is an "acid-saline" (more than 35 degrees C.) lake over a less active vent, and TAM is an "acid-sulfate" lake whose gaseous input is presently very small relative to the other two.

...A Simple Solution

Actually it's more of a suspension. A combination of exotic sulphur compounds from the volcanic gases, plus barium, copper and arsenic precipitates and ...