Colourful lakelets
Encyclopedia
Colourful lakelets is the name of three (sometimes four) artificial pond
s formed in place of former mine
s at the slope of Wielka Kopa mountain (871 m) in Rudawy Janowickie
, range in Sudetes Mountains, Poland
. The biggest one and the eldest (1785) was named Hoffnung and now became the Purple lakelet. Names of the other mines were: Neues Glück (1793, presently Azure Lakelet), and Gustav Grube (1796; the Green Lakelet). These places were mined (from 1785 to 1925) for pyrite
.
The lakelets have various surface elevation. The Purple lakelet (560 m) owes its colour to chemical composition of its banks and bottom which are abundant with iron compounds, mainly pyrite. The pond is filled with water solution of sulphuric acid (pH = 3). It is highly recommended to avoid any contact with the water for it might be dangerous. Below Purple Lakelet there is a smaller hollow which is at times filled with waters falling from the pond above – it is called Yellow Lakelet.
The colour of Azure Lakelet (635 m; also called: Blue or Emerald) water is connected with the presence of copper
ion
s. Its water, besides its colour, is clean, thus during hot summer
days there can be seen people bathing in it; water is usually quite cold here, though.
Green Lakelet (730 m; also called Black Pond), same as Aure Lakelet owes its colour to copper compounds. Depending on rainfall, it temporarily disappears.
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
s formed in place of former mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
s at the slope of Wielka Kopa mountain (871 m) in Rudawy Janowickie
Rudawy Janowickie
The Rudawy Janowickie is a mountain range in Western Sudetes in Poland....
, range in Sudetes Mountains, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. The biggest one and the eldest (1785) was named Hoffnung and now became the Purple lakelet. Names of the other mines were: Neues Glück (1793, presently Azure Lakelet), and Gustav Grube (1796; the Green Lakelet). These places were mined (from 1785 to 1925) for pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
.
The lakelets have various surface elevation. The Purple lakelet (560 m) owes its colour to chemical composition of its banks and bottom which are abundant with iron compounds, mainly pyrite. The pond is filled with water solution of sulphuric acid (pH = 3). It is highly recommended to avoid any contact with the water for it might be dangerous. Below Purple Lakelet there is a smaller hollow which is at times filled with waters falling from the pond above – it is called Yellow Lakelet.
The colour of Azure Lakelet (635 m; also called: Blue or Emerald) water is connected with the presence of copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
ion
Ion
An ion is an atom or molecule in which the total number of electrons is not equal to the total number of protons, giving it a net positive or negative electrical charge. The name was given by physicist Michael Faraday for the substances that allow a current to pass between electrodes in a...
s. Its water, besides its colour, is clean, thus during hot summer
Summer
Summer is the warmest of the four temperate seasons, between spring and autumn. At the summer solstice, the days are longest and the nights are shortest, with day-length decreasing as the season progresses after the solstice...
days there can be seen people bathing in it; water is usually quite cold here, though.
Green Lakelet (730 m; also called Black Pond), same as Aure Lakelet owes its colour to copper compounds. Depending on rainfall, it temporarily disappears.
External links
- Kolorowe Jeziorka. (Polish)
- Kolorowe Jeziorka. (Polish)
- Ciekawe miejsca. (Polish)