Steinhude Lake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Steinhuder Meer | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Location | 30 km NW of Hannover, Lower Saxony |
| Coordinates | |
| Primary inflows | groundwater, precipitation |
| Primary outflows | Meerbach (towards Weser River) |
| Basin countries | Germany |
| Max. length | 8 km |
| Max. width | 4.5 km |
| Surface area | 29.12 km² |
| Average depth | 1.35 m |
| Max. depth | 3 m |
| Water volume | 0.088 km³ |
| Islands | 2 (Wilhelmstein and Badeinsel) |
| Settlements | Steinhude |
The Steinhude Lake is a lake in Lower Saxony, Germany located 30 km northwest of Hannover. It is called "Steinhuder Meer" in German, after the adjacent village of Steinhude. The Steinhude Lake is northwest Germany's largest inland lake. It has an extension of c.30 km² and is very shallow, with an average depth of only 1.35m. It is part of the glacial landscape formed after the recession of the glaciers of the latest Ice Age, the Wisconsin glaciation.There are two theories regarding how the lake of Steinhude was formed. One of them says that glaciers pawed out the hole and melt water filled it. The other theory states that an ice storm formed the hole and as the groundwater rose, the lake was created.[1] In its middle there is a small artificial island carrying an 18th-century fortification, the Wilhelmstein. The lake is today the core of a nature reserve, the Naturpark Steinhuder Meer, and is also used as a recreational area.
