The 10 Largest Lakes In The World (2023)

FAQs

What are the top 15 biggest lakes in the world? ›

The largest lake in the world by a long shot is the Caspian Sea – a name that hints at a past when it was contiguous with the ocean around 11 million years ago. This massive saline lake, which is nearly the same size as Japan, borders five countries: Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Iran.

Situated in south-east Siberia, the 3.15-million-ha Lake Baikal is the oldest (25 million years) and deepest (1,700 m) lake in the world. It contains 20% of the world's total unfrozen freshwater reserve.

Lake Superior covers an area of 31,700 square miles and is therefore the largest lake in the U.S.

Lake Mead, Nevada

Named after Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Elwood Mead, Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States, stretching 112 miles long with a total capacity of 28,255,000 acre-feet, a shoreline of 759 miles, and a maximum depth of 532 feet.

Lake Baikal, the world's oldest and deepest freshwater lake, curves for nearly 400 miles through south-eastern Siberia, north of the Mongolian border. At its deepest point it is over 5,000 feet (1,637 meters) deep.

Lake Superior, bordered by both the United States and Canada, is the largest freshwater lake in the world.

6. Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake that is entirely within U.S. territory. The Great Lakes touch 8 states – but Michigan is the only state that touches four lakes, with borders on Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie.

What is the cleanest lake in us? ›

Crater Lake, Oregon

Because Crater Lake isn't fed by any streams or rivers, scientists consider it to be the cleanest lake in the US and the entire world. It is also the clearest, with visibility up to 100 feet and sunlight pervading down some 400 feet.

At 1,943 feet deep, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in America. Famous for its beautiful blue color, the lake's water comes directly from snow or rain -- there are no inlets from other water sources.

Alaska is the state with the most naturally formed lakes, containing 3,197 lakes and over 3 million unnamed lakes.

2. Lake Tahoe, Nevada/California. With a maximum depth of 1645 ft, Lake Tahoe is the second deepest lake in the United States.

In Lake County, California, just north of Sonoma and Napa counties, is Clear Lake with a ripe, young age of 480,000—yes, nearly half a million years old—the oldest lake on the continent.

Located in Russia in the southern region of Siberia, Lake Baikal is the world's largest freshwater lake by both volume (22995 km3) and depth (1741m). Lake Baikal contains 20% of the world's fresh surface water. Lake Baikal hides its vast waters under a relatively small surface area (31500 km2).

The Great Salt Lake, located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah, is the largest salt water lake in the Western Hemisphere, and the eighth-largest terminal lake in the world.

Lake Superior

To put that in perspective, the number represents about 400,000 gallons of water for every person on the planet, according to Lakelubbers. Not only is Lake Superior the biggest lake in the U.S., but it's also the cleanest, coldest, and deepest of the five Great Lakes.

The deepest part of the ocean is called the Challenger Deep and is located beneath the western Pacific Ocean in the southern end of the Mariana Trench, which runs several hundred kilometers southwest of the U.S. territorial island of Guam. Challenger Deep is approximately 10,935 meters (35,876 feet) deep.

How many lakes are in the US? ›

There are about three million lakes in the United States, although the majority of them are located in Alaska and are the result of seasonal snowmelt. In the lower 48 states, there are estimated to be about 125,000 lakes (defined as a mass of water larger than twenty acres in size).

Formerly the fourth largest lake in the world with an area of 68,000 km² (26,300 sq mi), the Aral Sea began shrinking in the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects.

Canada. While the U.S. boasts many impressive lakes, Canada takes the cake for the country with the most lakes in the world. In fact, Canada contains more lakes than the rest of the world combined.

Lake Michigan is the third largest of the Great Lakes and ranks as the fifth largest lake in the world (by surface area). Source: Lake Michigan Basin statistics map produced by Michigan Sea Grant/Michigan State University Extension (2000).

The United States has about 250 fresh-water lakes that are known to have surface areas of 10 square miles or more. Nearly 100 of these are in Alaska, and 100 in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York,, and Maine.

Three Gorges Dam, China is the world's largest hydroelectric facility. Accroding to Wikimedia, the Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, China.

“Lake Mead has a somewhat larger shortage, about 8 trillion gallons, but it could be filled in about 370 days at 250,000 gallons/sec.”

Blue Lake. Located in the top half of New Zealand's South Island, Blue Lake is said to be the clearest lake in the world. Its waters are fed by another lake that sits above its height of 1,200 meters above sea level.

Gobind Ballabh Pant Sagar located in Sonebhadra district, Uttar Pradesh, is the biggest man-made lake of India. The lake is created by the reservoir of Rihand Dam. Similarly, Dhebar Lake, which is also called as Jaisamand Lake and is located in Udaipur district of Rajasthan, is the second biggest man-made lake.

What is the world smallest lake? ›

Welcome to Liaoning. Benxi Lake in Liaoning Province was lately approved by Guinness World Records as “the world's smallest lake”. The lake was named after Benxi City where it is located. As a natural lake, Benxi Lake is only 15 m² large, yet the water is quite clear.

Lake Okeechobee, lake in southeastern Florida, U.S., and the third largest freshwater lake wholly within the country (after Lake Michigan and Iliamna Lake, Alaska).

Lake Superior is the largest lake in the United States. This lake shares shorelines with Michigan, Minnesota, and parts of Ontario.

2. Lake Superior. Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake and the second largest lake in the world by surface area.

The water in the Great Lakes is owned by the general public according to the Public Trust Doctrine. The Public Trust Doctrine is an international legal theory – it applies in both Canada and the United States, so it applies to the entirety of the Great Lakes.

The Great Lakes are freshwater ecosystems. Traditionally, Lake Michigan, for example, has been a very low-salt lake, with levels around one milligram of chloride per liter of water. Over the years, due to our increased salt use, that level has steadily but gradually climbed up to 15 milligrams per liter.

Yes you can drink lake superior water. However, if drinking straight from the lake it always recommended to boil the water before consuming. Many cities and towns along the lake utilize its water.

The Great Lakes are, from west to east: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. They are a dominant part of the physical and cultural heritage of North America.

What are the top 10 deepest lake in the US? ›

The deepest part of the ocean is called the Challenger Deep and is located beneath the western Pacific Ocean in the southern end of the Mariana Trench, which runs several hundred kilometers southwest of the U.S. territorial island of Guam. Challenger Deep is approximately 10,935 meters (35,876 feet) deep.

Lake Kariba is the world's largest man-made lake by volume, but not by surface area. The reservoir covers 2,150 square miles and is approximately 140 miles long by 20 miles wide. Lake Kariba is located between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Surface area: 82,097 square kms. Watershed's surface: 209,000 square kms. Lake Superior is the largest, cleanest, and wildest of all the Great Lakes.

1. Lake Huron. Lake Huron, the second-largest of the Great Lakes, tops the list for its pristine turquoise waters, unparalleled shoreline sunrises, numerous lakeside parks, gorgeous beaches, and historic lighthouses. French explorers proclaimed it La Mer Douce, “the freshwater sea.”

Lake Superior is the Cleanest and Clearest Great Lake

Because of its somewhat isolated location and long cold winters, not much farming is done along Superior's shores.

Crater Lake, Oregon

Because Crater Lake isn't fed by any streams or rivers, scientists consider it to be the cleanest lake in the US and the entire world. It is also the clearest, with visibility up to 100 feet and sunlight pervading down some 400 feet.