Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in the entire North America. Now, the lake is visibly the clearest it has been in more than 40 years. According to a new report, the credit for making the lake’s water the clearest in decades goes to microscopic animals native to the lake.
The Lake
Sitting on the border of Nevada and California, Lake Tahoe attracts over 15 million visitors a year, according to the record of the Lake Tahoe Tourism Board. Though known for its relatively clearer waters, the lake has been witnessing a decline in water clarity for over 50 years. Recently, it’s been experiencing dramatic improvement with the clearest waters recorded since 1980. According to environmental experts, hopefully, the clarity of Lake Tahoe will improve further in the future, bringing back the desired clarity level of 97.4 feet.
The Research
The recent findings are a part of the Lake Tahoe Clarity Report 2022, jointly conducted by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) and the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center. As per the report, the average annual clarity of Lake Tahoe saw a massive upgrade to 71.7 feet in 2022 from 61 feet in 2021. The report also predicts that in 2023, the waters would get even clearer throughout the year, if one factor remains unchanged.
The Reason
And that factor is the population surge of a particular type of microscopic animals. According to the research team, the ultra-clear waters of Lake Tahoe can be credited to zooplankton inhabiting the lake. This microscopic animal eats tiny particles that make the water cloudy and helps to keep the lake clear. Recently, the zooplanktons experienced a massive population surge in this alpine lake, making them responsible for the dramatic change in water clarity as they provided a natural cleanup crew for Lake Tahoe.
3 Exciting Places to Explore When Visit Podgorica, Montenegro
Podgorica is Montenegro’s capital city. This city is given a lot of importance because it is the educational, cultural, political, and economic center of the country. It is also known to have a lot of architectural and historical value. But it is the confluence of the rivers Ribnica and Morača that makes the city so attractive. Here is a list of places you might want to explore during your trip there.
Montenegro’s Niagara Falls
The name may make you smile but the idea behind using this name was probably to get the attention of the tourists. It also has a restaurant by the falls named Niagara. The falls themselves are about 4.3 miles from the center of the city. By that logic, the restaurant is perfectly placed. Thankfully, the prices at this restaurant are not as steep. The best time to visit this spot is during the winter.
Watching a Local Football or Basketball Match
If you wish to be part of something adventurous then go watch the KK Buducnost basketball game. You can watch the match at Moraca Sports Center. They have won a whopping 11 consecutive basketball league games at a domestic level, which is pretty impressive. Watching a match here will give you an insight into how they organize sports events here. If you enjoy watching football, then the FK Mladost and FK Buducnost are the leading clubs to watch in action. You will find them playing at either the Mladost Stadium or the Pod Goricom Stadium, respectively.
Petrovic Palace
This is the Centre of Modern Arts and is the very pink building you will encounter. It is placed in the middle of the park. There is no entry charge, meaning free. You can peruse through both the temporary and the permanent exhibitions. With very little information on display, it would be wise to hire a guide to explain more about the art.