Did you know that the Dead Sea contains no plant or animal life?

The Dead Sea lies in the border area between Israel and Jordan. The salt content in the Dead Sea is so high that no plants or animals can live in or around the lake. However, there is microscopic life and bacteria in the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea owes its high salt content to its location on a fault line in the Earth’s surface. This caused minerals from the Earth to be brought up to the Dead Sea. Additionally, the Jordan River flows into the Dead Sea. This river contains a small percentage of salt. Since the Dead Sea is not connected to other seas or bodies of water (and is actually a lake), the salt remains in the Dead Sea. As water evaporates and the salt stays behind, the salt content keeps increasing. The Dead Sea contains almost 10 times as much salt as the average sea on Earth.

The Dead Sea lies more than 400 meters below sea level (with the deepest point in the Dead Sea being 700 meters below sea level), making it the lowest lake on Earth. The lake attracts many tourists who come for the numerous spas, where one can experience the healing effects of mud baths and the very salty water.

The photo accompanying this article is from Gary Todd cc via flickr.com