Posted 2017/6/28
Huguangyan National Scenic Spot is located 18 km in the south part of Zhanjiang. The scenic spot mainly consists of the volcanic lake and the basalt rock-groups around the lake. The total area of the spot covers 13.6 square kilometers with a protection area of 38 square kilometers. The water area of the lake amounts to 2.3 square kilometers. In 1997, The UN Earth Research Center and Earth Research Institute of China Scientific Institute assessed that Huguangyan was formed about 140,000 to 160,000 years ago after the volcanic eruption. Lots of samples indicate that the lake is a rare maar (A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater that is caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption, an explosion caused by groundwater coming into contact with hot lava or magma. A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow crater lake. The word maar derived from Latin mare (sea) )Lake in the world after the volcanic eruption in the plain area.
The maar Lake of Huguangyan has the following features, different from other volcanic lake:
(1) The volcanic eruption was caused by high temperature and high pressure between mineral water and volcanic slop.
(2) Great strength of steam and volcanic slop erupted from the Earth and formed a great force for eruption. It is estimated that the force of the volcanic eruption was 100 times larger than the atomic bomb in Nagasaki in Japan.
(3) Water in the lake is mainly from mineral water and rainfall. It is more interesting that water in the lake neither dry in the drought nor flooded in the rain. At present, there are only two such lakes on Earth, one is in Zhanjiang and another is in Eifel Region in German.
With moderate climate and beautiful scenery, Huguangyan Lake is an ideal place for sightseeing, scientific research as well as healthy work. Water in the lake is as clear as a mirror. All year round, lots of leaves fall into the lake with water, but disappeared and vanished very quickly. It is more interesting that in the lake, there is no frog, no snake in it while lots of shrimp and fish are living. Still, there are many natural wonders for discovering.
