Lake Baikal

Lake Baikal is the largest lake on Earth by volume—5,500 cubic miles (22,550 cubic kilometers). It contains 20 percent of the world's fresh water and 80 percent of the fresh water in Russia and Siberia. It is also the world's deepest lake, reaching 5,315 feet (1,620 meters), with a layer of accumulated sediment on its floor adding another 4 miles (6.5 kilometers) of depth. Although Baikal has the largest surface area of any lake in Europe or Asia, it is small in comparison to the area covered by the Great Lakes in North America. A total of 336 rivers and streams flow into Lake Baikal.

Lake Baikal formed during a shifting of the Earth's crust 20 to 30,000,000 years ago, making it the world's oldest freshwater lake. Earthquake activity continues in the region, and some scientists think that the Asian continent is splitting apart at this point. If...