Where is the "Mirror of the Night Sky"?

After Chaka Salt Lake was published on the cover of "China National Geographic" as China's most beautiful "mirror of the night sky", photography enthusiasts and stargazing enthusiasts from all over the country continued to flock to Chaka Salt Lake. You don’t need to look up at the starry sky at Chaka Salt Lake. The stars are right next to you, or you can look down.

Chaka Salt Lake is located in Chaka Town, Wulan County, Haiyang Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province. It is 298 kilometers away from Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province. It is the east gate of the Qaidam Basin and is adjacent to the majestic Wanyan Tongbu in the north. Mountains, Wangxiu Mountain to the south, vast grasslands around the Salt Lake, herds of cattle and sheep, the snow-capped mountains, grasslands and Salt Lake outline a magnificent picture.

Chaka Salt Lake, the hometown of Daqing Salt in China, covers an area of ??105 square kilometers. The total proven salt reserves are about 450 million tons. The brine salinity in the salt lake reaches 322 grams/liter, which is relatively With a density of over 1.2, it ranks among the saltiest and densest lakes in the world.

During the day, the blue sky and white clouds are reflected on the lake, and people walking between the lakes feel like they are in the middle of a painting. Chaka Salt Lake is known as the "Mirror of the Sky" and has attracted tourists since 2015. attracted more than 5 million tourists from all over the country.

When night falls, the stars above the Chaka Salt Lake at 36 degrees north latitude are bright and brilliant, and the Milky Way seems to fall from the sky into the lake. The salt lake is like a mirror, and the reflections of the Milky Way and stars are clear and stable. Standing in the mirror-like salt lake, stars are shining all around and under your feet. Occasionally, a breeze blows across the water, and the starlight reflections in the water jump and flash like candlelight. Walking in the Chaka Salt Lake, there are stars above your head, and the starry sky below your feet is like a dream, and you seem to be standing in the center of the universe.

The high altitude is another advantageous factor of Chaka Salt Lake - this is not to shorten the distance from the starry sky. A height of several thousand meters is insignificant on an astronomical scale. The higher the altitude, the thinner the air, containing less smoke, dust and water vapor, and the smaller the impact on the starry sky. Although the altitude of Chaka Salt Lake of 3,059 meters is not the highest, it is close to three thirds of the thickness of the stratosphere. One-third is enough to avoid a lot of interference from the lower atmosphere.