Friday, March 07, 2008

The Natural Mirror (Salt Flats in Bolivia)

Salar de Uyuni is the world's largest salt flat at 10,582 km² (4,085 square miles). It is located in the Potosí and Oruro departments in southwest Bolivia, near the crest of the Andes, 3,650 meters high. When it is covered with water, the Salar de Uyuni reflects the sky.



The salt is over 10 meters thick in the center. In the dry season, the salt planes are a completely flat expanse of dry salt, but in the wet season, it is covered with a thin sheet of water which makes the most beautiful reflections.



Salar de Uyuni is estimated to contain 10 billion tons of salt, of which less than 25,000 tons is extracted annually.











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