Salt­-loving bacteria turned Lonar lake pink

Salt­-loving bacteria turned Lonar lake pink

Part of: GS Prelims – Geography; Science 

In news: 

• Recent study revealed that the colour of water in Lonar lake in Maharashtra is due to a large presence of the salt-loving Haloarchaea microbes. 
• Haloarchaea or halophilic archaea is a bacteria culture, which produces pink pigment, and found in water saturated with salt. 
• Absence of rain, less human interference and high temperature could have resulted in the evaporation of water, increasing salinity and pH levels in the lake. 

Pic: Lonar Lake

About Lonar Lake 

• The 56,000-year-old Lonar crater sanctuary lake in Buldhana district, Maharashtra has turned red/pink, most probably due to salinity and presence of halophilic archaea bacteria in the water body.   
• Lonar Lake was created by a meteor impact during the Pleistocene Epoch.  
• It is the only known hyper velocity meteorite crater in basaltic rock anywhere on Earth. 
• It was notified as a National Geo-heritage Monument in 1979 by Geological Survey of India (GSI).