SPACEPHOTOS

Lake Van, anti-Taurus Mountains, Turkey June, 1998 The rugged anti-Taurus Mountains (upper portion of the image) and Lake Van, the largest lake in Turkey, can be seen in this south-looking view. The anti-Taurus Mountains are composed of a series of folded sediments of irregular trends, with deep valleys between the ridges. Forests cover the remote inner valleys and lower slopes of the mountains, which range in excess of 9000 feet (2740 meters). Mineral deposits have been found throughout the mountain range. The ruggedness of the anti-Taurus hampers human movement through the range. Lake Van is a saline lake with no outlet. The lake receives water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. Lake Van is 75 miles (120 km) long, 50 miles (80 km) wide, and covers an area of 1,450 square miles (3,755 square km). The waters of Lake Van are rich in sodium carbonate and other salts which are extracted by evaporation and used as detergents. Near the left center of the image Ercek Lake is discernible. A section of the Murat River is visible in the lower right portion of the image. Just to the north of Lake Van (toward the bottom center of the image) the snow-covered 13314 foot (4061 meters) Suphan Volcano is visible.