Biggest-ever lake contained 10 times more water than all others on Earth combined

Key Points:

• Megalake Paratethys, the largest lake ever on Earth, existed around 11 million years ago, covering 2.8 million square kilometers from the eastern Alps to Kazakhstan, with over 1.77 million cubic kilometers of water—more than ten times the volume of all current lakes combined.
• The lake was identified and measured by a team at Utrecht University using magnetostratigraphy, leading to its recognition in the Guinness Book of World Records in December 2023.
• Paratethys was formed by the uplift of central European mountain ranges, isolating it from the ocean, but experienced severe crises that drastically reduced its size and volume, causing mass extinctions among its unique fauna.
• Studying Paratethys provides insights into modern environmental challenges, particularly relating to the Black Sea, which shares similar toxic, low-oxygen conditions and contains methane deposits that could worsen climate change if released.
• The lake drained between 6.7 and 6.89 million years ago due to erosion, possibly creating a massive waterfall, and its study offers hope for future carbon storage solutions in the Black Sea region.