Those
two dots are actually boats on Lake Retba in Senegal. The pink water,
which made it look like the boats are floating on a Pepto-Bismol lake,
got its color from the extremely high levels of salt.
Michael Danson, an expert in extremophile bacteria from Bath University,
said: "The strawberry colour is produced by salt-loving organism
Dunaliella salina.
"They produce a red pigment that absorbs and uses the energy
of sunlight to create more energy, turning the water pink.
"Lakes like Retba and the Dead Sea, which have high salt concentrations,
were once thought to be incompatible with life - hence the names. But
they are very much alive."
Salt collectors can often be seen scouring the expanse to remove
the valuable mineral - but first have to coat their skin with sheer
butter.
Find out why the salt collectors have to coat their skin with butter
over at The Huffington Post.
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