Is the Dead Sea a lifeless sea?

The Dead Sea is located between Palestine, Jordan, and Israel in western Asia, in the middle of the north-south Great Rift Valley.

Although the famous Dead Sea is called a sea, it is actually just an inland saltwater lake. It is 75 kilometers long from north to south and 5 to 16 kilometers wide from east to west. The lake area is 1045 square kilometers. The lake height is 392 meters lower than the Mediterranean Sea. The average depth is 146 meters and the deepest depth is 395 meters. It is the lowest land in the world. .

The west bank of the Dead Sea is the Judean Mountains, the east bank is the Transjordan Plateau, and the Jordan River flows into the Dead Sea from north to south. On the east coast of the Dead Sea, the El Litsa Peninsula (meaning tongue) protrudes into the lake, dividing the lake into two parts. The northern one is large and deep, with a surface area of ??780 square kilometers and an average depth of 375 meters; the southern one is small and shallow. The lake area is 260 square kilometers and the average depth is 6 meters.

The climate in the Dead Sea area is extremely hot (the average annual temperature is 25 degrees Celsius), and the amount of water evaporates is extremely large (an average of 1 inch of water evaporates per hour in summer), resulting in a layer of water that is always diffused and scattered on the surface of the Dead Sea. Soft mist; while the Dead Sea is turquoise, the water is as calm as a mirror, silent, without a trace of ripples, and the rocks on both sides are clearly reflected in the water, giving the sea a touch of tender red.

The salt content of the water in the Dead Sea is as high as 25% to 30%. Except for a few microorganisms, no animals or plants can survive. When the rolling floods come, fish and shrimps in the Jordan River and other streams are washed into the Dead Sea. Due to the high salt content and severe lack of oxygen in the water, these fish and shrimps will undoubtedly die. However, people who fall into the Dead Sea will not drown.

According to legend, in 70 AD, Dido, the commander-in-chief of the Roman Army’s Eastern Expedition, executed several captured slaves and ordered them to be thrown into the Dead Sea to drown. However, these people who were thrown into the lake did not sink, and so on. Several times, Didu pardoned them, thinking they were protected by gods.

The mineral content of the Dead Sea accounts for as much as 33%, especially the extremely high contents of bromine, magnesium, potassium, iodine, etc. It has had medical and health benefits since ancient times. It is said that from 51 BC to 30 BC, Queen Cleopatra of Egypt used the Dead Sea to heal her wounds. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle also mentioned the functions of the Dead Sea in his works.

The air on the surface of the Dead Sea is the driest and purest on earth, with an oxygen content that is 10% higher than that on the general sea surface. The addition of bromine and ultraviolet rays form a unique natural landscape and medical effect, so Attracting countless tourists from all over the world.

On a sunny day, the blue waves are rippling; on a cloudy and rainy day, it is foggy and hazy, with distant mountains blurred, water and sky the same color, the Dead Sea always makes people feel confused and magical.