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Salar de Uyuni: World's Largest Natural Mirror

  • Writer: Fiona Hamilton
    Fiona Hamilton
  • 1 day ago
  • 3 min read

Years ago, Salar de Uyuni was once part of the paleolake Tauca; now it is an example of a spectacular phenomenon. Any pictures you see of Salar de Uyuni look unreal, like another world. For most of the year, Salar de Uyuni exists as a large salt flat, the result of the evaporation of the Tauca paleolake. Most salt flats are formed this way. As climates change, large, salty lakes become subject to arid conditions and subsequently evaporate, leaving large fields of salt. This layer of salt is often thin, and a thicker layer of mud lies below, meaning you have to be careful when traveling on a salt flat. Lake Tauca formed over 10,000 years ago from the melting of a glacier. As the climate continued to change, the newly formed lake eventually evaporated, becoming the Bolivian flats we see today, with salt going ten meters deep at the center of the former lake.


All salt flats have a distinctive hexagonal pattern throughout them. The reason has to do with convection. As a salty lake evaporates, denser, saltier portions of water sink as the less salty water rises. This results in columns of water going up and down, relating to the locations of the polygons. A fascinating and stunning result for what’s simply a matter of density.



However, not all salt flats turn into giant mirrors, making Salar de Uyuni even more unusual. As previously mentioned, Salar de Uyuni is like any other salt flat for most of the year. But in the spring, once rain starts falling, the Bolivian flat collects a thin layer of water. Normally, you would imagine wind to cause the reflective surface to ripple and disrupt the magic, but this isn’t the case. Because the layer of water is so thin, it remains unaffected by the wind, creating a truly surreal experience.



Salar de Uyuni is incredibly large, reaching 10,500 kilometers in length. It is estimated to hold more than ten billion tonnes of salt in its entirety, which is incredible for even a salt flat. However, if we are estimating Salar de Uyuni’s material worth, the salt isn’t what’s going to be important. This Bolivian salt flat is possibly the largest lithium reserve in the world. It’s estimated that Bolivia holds 15% of the world’s lithium. If you were unaware, lithium is a vital part of powering all of our technology, from our phones to electric cars. Despite this huge lithium reserve, Bolivia isn’t the biggest supplier of lithium to the world, but they are working to make use of this incredible resource. However, it is important to consider the possible negative impacts of mining lithium in Salar de Uyuni. Mining would understandably affect nearby ecosystems and likely the quality of the salt flat itself. As large as the flat is, extensive mining would eventually start to affect it. I think it is important to find as environmentally friendly a method for mining this important element as possible.


You don’t need to see Salar de Uyuni in person to know it’s a truly magical place. Even outside of the rainy season, this giant salt flat is a stunning sight to see. Salar de Uyuni is one of the largest lithium reserves in the world, the largest salt flat in the world, and at over 3,000 meters above sea level, near the crest of the Andes, it is also the highest salt flat in the world. Truly unique, Salar de Uyuni is one of many natural wonders that this world can offer.


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