Lake Titicaca

We just learned about Lake Onega in Russia.

The next biggest lake is Lake Titicaca in Peru and Bolivia.

It is the largest lake in South America.


(from: wikipedia - lake titicaca)

The name means Rock of the Puma.
There is an island on the lake called Isla del Sol which means island of the sun.
On this island was a special place called Titi Qala a rock sculpture that was very important to the ancient Incan people.


(from: wikipedia - isla del sol)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Michigan

Lake Onega

We just learned about Lake Balkhash in Kazakhstan.

The next biggest lake is Lake Onega in Russia.
The lake is shaped like a giant crayfish.



(from: wikipedia - lake onega)

There are many islands on this lake, and on Kizhi island are many very old churches like the Church of the Transfiguration.


(from: wikipedia - kizhi pogost)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Massachusetts

Lake Balkhash

We just learned about Lake Ladoga.

The next biggest lake is Lake Balkhash in the country of Kazakhstan.

This lake has 43 islands, but the water level keeps getting lower, so there are more islands that are forming, and the other islands are getting bigger.

(from: wikipedia - lake balkhash)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Maine

Lake Ladoga

We just learned about Lake Ontario.

The next biggest lake is Lake Ladoga.

This lake is in Russia, and is just south of Finland.
It is the largest lake in Europe.


(from: wikipedia - lake ladoga)

There is a fortress called Oreshek Castle on the island of Orekhovets.

(from: wikipedia - lake ladoga)

And there is a large cathedral on the island of Valaam.

(from: wikipedia - lake ladoga)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Louisiana

Lake Ontario

We just learned about the lake Lake Winnipeg

The next biggest lake is Lake Ontario.

It is the smallest of the five Great Lakes, and it is bordered by Ontario Canada, and New York.

The word Ontario comes from the Native American Huron language for "Lake of Shining Waters."

It gets water from the Niagara River which comes from Lake Erie, and water goes out from Lake Ontario to the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence River.


(from: wikipedia - lake Ontario)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Kentucky

Lake Winnipeg

We just learned about Lake Erie
.
Another large lake is Lake Winnipeg.

Its name comes from the Native Cree word for muddy waters.

This lake is very popular for fishing.

(from: wikipedia - lake winnipeg)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Kansas

Lake Erie

We just learned about the Great Slave Lake.

Another lake is Lake Erie, which borders Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Ontario.

This is the smallest of the Great Lakes in North America.

The lake got it's name from the Native American Iroquoi tribe, who thought since the lake was so wild and unpredictable they called it a cat.
The Iroquoi word for cat is Erige.

The Detroit river runs into Erie, and the water from Erie flows out to Niagara Falls.


(from: wikipedia - lake erie)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Iowa

Great Slave Lake

We just learned about the lake Lake Malawi.

The next biggest lake is in Canada, called the Great Slave Lake.

It is the deepest lake in North America, and it was named after the First Nation Slavey people.

(from: wikipedia - great slave lake)

When the lake is frozen, people drive on the ice like a normal road, from the city of YellowKnife to the city of Dettah.


(from: wikipedia - great slave lake)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Indiana

Lake Malawi

We just learned about the Great Bear Lake.

The next biggest lake is Lake Malawi, which is part of Mozambique, Malawi and Tanzania.


(from: wikipedia - lake malawi)

It has more types of fish than any other lake, and has about 1,000 types of fish called cichlids.


(from: wikipedia - lake malawi)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Illinois

Great Bear Lake

We just learned about Lake Baikal in Russia.

The next largest lake is Great Bear Lake in Canada.

It is the largest lake inside of Canada, and the top of the lake is frozen over for 8 months out of the year.
People even drive trucks over the lake!
There is a lot of fishing there, and the largest lake trout ever caught by a line was there at 72 pounds.

(from: wikipedia - great bear lake)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Idaho

Lake Baikal

We just learned about the lake Lake Tanganyika.

Another lake is called Lake Baikal. It is a very deep lake, and has more water in it than any other lake in the world.

It is also a very old lake, at 25 million years old!


(from: wikipedia - lake baikal)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Hawaii

Lake Tanganyika

We just learned about Lake Michigan.

The next largest lake is Lake Tanganyika.

The lake is touching the countries of Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, and Zambia.

It is not the biggest lake in the world, but it is the longest lake.


(from: wikipedia - lake tanganyika)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Georgia

Lake Michigan

We just learned about Lake Huron.

The next largest lake is Lake Michigan, which is part of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

Lake Michigan is the largest lake that is only touching one country.

There are many beaches on the east coast of this lake, so many that it has the nickname the Third Coast, after the Pacific and Atlantic ocean coasts.
There are many large sand dunes along the east coast of the lake.


(from: wikipedia - lake michigan)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Florida

Lake Huron

We just learned about Lake Victoria in Africa.

The next largest lake in the world is Lake Huron.

It is connected to the US State of Michigan, and the Canadian province of Ontario.


(from: wikipedia - lake huron)

The largest island in any lake in the world is on Lake Huron, called Manitoulin Island.


(from: wikipedia - manitoulin island)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Delaware

Lake Victoria

We just learned about Lake Superior.

The next largest lake is Lake Victoria in the continent of Africa, bordering the countries of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania

It is the largest tropical lake in the world, which means it is very close to the equator.


(from: wikipedia - lake victoria)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Connecticut

Lake Superior

We just learned about the lake the Caspian Sea

The next largest lake is Lake Superior, which is a fresh water lake.
It is the largest lake that is not connected to the ocean like the Caspian Sea.
Superior is connected to the US states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the Canadian province of Ontario.

Superior was called Gitche Gumee by the Native Americans, which means a great sea.
There was an old ship called the Edmund Fitzgerald that sank in Lake Superior, and it is still there today on the bottom of the lake.


(from: wikipedia - lake superior)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Colorado

Caspian Sea

We just learned about the US Virgin Islands

A while back we talked about all the oceans in the world, let's learn about some lakes!

The largest lake in the world is the Caspian Sea.
It is in Asia, and borders with the countries of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan.

The saltwater Caspian Sea sometimes called a sea instead of a lake, because at the bottom of the lake the water actually connects underground and goes out to the ocean.
Lakes are usually not connected to any other large bodies of water like oceans, except by rivers.
If a large body of water is connected right to an ocean it is usually called a sea.

(from: wikipedia - caspian sea)

Whether the Caspian Sea is a sea or a lake, it is a really huge place!
It has more than 3 times the water than all of the Great Lakes in the US combined.


(from: wikipedia - caspian sea)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: California

US Virgin Islands

We just learned about the US territory of Puerto Rico.

Another US territory is the US Virgin Islands, which is in the Atlantic Ocean to the south east of Florida.

There are three main islands, and about 50 other very small islands.


(from: wikipedia - united states virgin islands)

The flag of the US Virgin Islands is white with an eagle between the letters V and I.
In one talon the eagle holds an olive branch, and in the other it holds three arrows for the three major islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, and Saint Croix.

(from: wikipedia - flag of the united states virgin islands)

There is an old fort on one of the islands named Fort Willoughby that is over 200 years old.

(from: wikipedia - hassel island, u.s. virgin islands)

Trunk Bay on the island of St. John has a white sand beach and snorkeling.

(from: wikipedia - virgin islands national park)

In all of the rest of the US and its territories, people drive cars on the right side of the road. In the US Virgin Islands, they drive on the left side of the road. place

(from: wikipedia - right- and left-hand traffic)

Across the US are 10 very large satellite dishes, over 10 feet tall each.
They make up something called the Very Long Baseline Array, that can be used to look into outer space.
One of them is on the island of St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands.

(from: wikipedia - very long baseline array)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Arkansas

Puerto Rico

We just learned about the US Territory of Northern Mariana Islands.

Another US territory is the island of Puerto Rico, which is just east of Florida in the Atlantic Ocean.


(from: wikipedia - puerto rico)

The flag of Puerto Rico has a blue triangle with a star in it, three red stripes and two white stripes.


(from: wikipedia - flag of puerto rico)

On Flamenco Beach, there are some old rusting tanks that were left there over 30 years ago, and people have painted graffiti on them.

(from: wikipedia - flamenco beach)

There is a fancy old fire station called Parque de Bombas that was designed over 100 years ago to show off at the world's fair.

(from: wikipedia - parque de bombas)

There is a giant telescope called Arecibo Observatory that is over 1000 feet wide.

(from: wikipedia - arecibo observatory)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Arizona

Northern Mariana Islands

We just learned about the US Territory of Guam.

Another US territory is the Northern Mariana Islands, which are north of Australia.


(from: wikipedia - northern mariana islands)

Their flag has a blue background, with a white star, a latte stone and a decorative wreath.

(from: wikipedia - flag of northern mariana islands)

Latte stones are large cut stone pillars that are from very old times.
Many people believe they were used to hold up large houses for the important people on the island.

(from: wikipedia - latte stone)

Pagan island is one of the islands in the territory, and people used to live there until the volcano erupted.
Now it is an empty island with a volcano.

(from: wikipedia - pagan island)

Anatahan is another island in the territory that is empty because of the volcanic eruptions.

(from: wikipedia - anatahan)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Alaska