Lake Geneva
| Lake Geneva | |
|---|---|
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| Satellite image | |
| Location | Switzerland, France |
| Primary inflows | Rhone, La Venoge, Dranse, Aubonne |
| Primary outflows | Rhone |
| Catchment area | 7,975 km² (3,079 mi²) |
| Basin countries | Switzerland, France |
| Max. length | 73 km (45 mi) |
| Max. width | 14 km (8.7 mi) |
| Surface area | 580.03 km² (223.95 mi²) |
| Average depth | 154.4 m |
| Max. depth | 310 m |
| Water volume | 89 km³ |
| Residence time | 11.4 years |
| Surface elevation | 372 m |
| Islands | Ile de la Harpe, Ile de Peilz (islets) |
| Settlements | Geneva (CH), Lausanne (CH), Evian (F), Montreux (CH), Thonon (F), Vevey (CH) (see list) |
Lake Geneva or Lake Léman (French: Lac Léman, Léman) is a lake in Switzerland and France. It is one of the largest lakes in Western Europe. 59.53 % (345.31 km²) of it comes under the jurisdiction of Switzerland (cantons of Vaud, Geneva, and Valais), and 40.47 % (234.71 km²) under France (Haute-Savoie). The average level of water of 372 m is controlled by the Seujet Dam near Geneva.[1]
Lake Geneva, formed by a withdrawing glacier, has a crescent shape that narrows around Yvoire on the southern shore. It can thus be divided figuratively into the "Grand Lac" (Large Lake) to the east and the "Petit Lac" (Small Lake) to the west. The Chablais Alps border its southern shore, the western Bernese Alps lie over its eastern side. The high summits of Grand Combin and Mont Blanc are visible from some places. Compagnie Générale de Navigation sur le lac Léman (CGN) operates boats on the lake.
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Name
The first recorded name of the lake is Lacus Lemanus from Roman times; it became Lacus Lausonius, although this name was also used for a town or district on the lake, Lacus Losanetes and then the Lac de Lausanne in the Middle Ages.[2] Following the rise of Geneva it became Lac de Genève (translated into English as Lake Geneva). In the 18th century, Lac Léman was revived in French. It is often called Lac de Genève in Geneva [1] [2] and Lac Léman elsewhere but the customary name in French is now Lac Léman or even le Léman. Certain maps name the lake the Lac d'Ouchy (after the port located on the Lausanne lake shore). In contemporary English, the name Lake Geneva is predominant.
A note on pronunciation:
- English: Lake Geneva /ˌleɪk dʒɨˈniːvə/
- French: Lac Léman [lak leˈmɑ̃] or Lac de Genève [lak də ʒøˈnɛv]
- German: Genfersee or Genfer See [ˈɡɛnfər ˈzeː]
- Italian: Lago Lemano, Lago di Ginevra [ˈlaːɡo di dʒiˈnɛvra].
Geography
The lake lies on the course of the Rhone. The river has its source at the Rhone Glacier near the Grimsel Pass to the east of the lake and flows down through the Canton of Valais, entering the lake between Villeneuve and Le Bouveret, before flowing slowly towards its egress at Geneva. Other tributaries are La Dranse, L'Aubonne, La Morges, La Venoge, and La Veveyse.
Lake Geneva is the largest body of water in Switzerland, and greatly exceeds in size all others that are connected with the main valleys of the Alps. It is in the shape of a crescent, with the horns pointing south, the northern shore being 95 km., the southern shore 72 km. in length. The crescent form was more regular in a recent geological period, when the lake extended to Bex, about 18 km. south of Villeneuve. The detritus of the Rhone has filled up this portion of the bed of the lake, and it appears that within the historical period the waters extended about 2 km. beyond the present eastern margin of the lake. The greatest depth of the lake, in the broad portion between Evian and Lausanne, where it is just 13 km. in width, has been measured as 310 metres, making the bottom of the lake 62 metres higher than the level of the sea. The lake's surface is the lowest point of the cantons of Valais and Vaud.[3]
The beauty of the shores of the lake and of the sites of many of the places near its banks has long been celebrated. However it is only from the eastern end of the lake, between Vevey and Villeneuve, that the scenery assumes an Alpine character. On the south side the mountains of Savoy and Valais are for the most part rugged and sombre, while those of the northern shore fall in gentle vine-covered slopes, thickly set with villages and castles.[3]
The snowy peaks of the Mont Blanc are shut out from the western end of the lake by the ridge of the Voirons, and from its eastern end by the bolder summits of the Grammont, Cornettes de Bise and Dent d'Oche, but are seen from Geneva, and between Nyon and Morges. From Vevey to Bex, where the lake originally extended, the shores are enclosed by comparatively high and bold mountains, and the vista terminates in the grand portal of the defile of St. Maurice, cleft to a depth of nearly 9,000 ft. between the opposite peaks of the Dents du Midi and the Dent de Morcles.[3]
The shore between Nyon and Lausanne is called La Côte because it is "flatter". Between Lausanne and Vevey it is called Lavaux and is famous for its hilly vineyards.[4][5]
Environment
By the 1960s, the lake had ceased being a transport artery for commercial and construction materials. In the late 1960s pollution made it dangerous to swim at some beaches of the lake; indeed, tourists taking a ride in the local submarine had near zero visibility (it was eventually solid).[6][7] By the 1980s, intense environmental pollution (eutrophication) had almost wiped out all the fish. Today, pollution levels have been dramatically cut back, and it is again considered safe to swim in the lake.[8][9] Major leisure activities practiced include sailing, wind surfing, boating (including water skiing and wakeboarding), rowing, scuba diving and bathing.
On a scientific footnote, in 1827, Lake Geneva was the site for the first measurement of the speed of sound in (fresh) water.[10] French mathematician Jacques Charles François Sturm and Swiss Physicist Daniel Collodon used two moored boats, separated by a measured distance, as the transmit and receive platforms for the sounds of exploding gunpowder. The loud airborne sound coupled into the lake, establishing a loud underwater sound that could be measured at a distance. The flash of the exploding gunpowder provided the visual starting cue for the timepiece, and the underwater explosion sound striking a bell provided the finish cue.
Yacht racing
Yacht racing is a popular sport and high-performance catamarans have been developed specifically for the lake.[11] The design of Alinghi 5, the defender of the 2010 America's Cup, was influenced by those racing catamarans.[11] The best-known event, the "Bol d'Or" (not to be confused with other events having the same name) runs from Geneva to the end of the lake and back.[12]
Cities and places
| Southern shore | Northern shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Lac |
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| Petit Lac |
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Miscellaneous
- Mary and Percy Shelley and Lord Byron holidayed by the lake and wrote ghost stories, one of which became the basis for the novel Frankenstein.[13]
- Vladimir Lenin rented a little "chalet" at the French bank, near Geneva.
- Pop singer Phil Collins lives in a home overlooking the lake.[14]
- Current Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher lives with his family in a home overlooking the lake.[15]
- A statue of Freddie Mercury (the lead singer of the rock band Queen) can be found in Montreux on these shores.
References
- ↑ Seujet / Lac Léman rhone-geneve.ch. Retrived on 2009-07-20
- ↑ "Lake Geneva". Town of Evian. http://www.ville-evian.fr/anglais/DT1209539703/page/Lake-Geneva.html. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 John Ball, A Guide to the Western Alps, p. 254
- ↑ Cuckoo, Paul (26 October 2007). "Switzerland mastering the art of wine making". India Times. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Corporate_Dossier/Switzerland_mastering_the_art_of_wine_making/articleshow/2491742.cms. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ↑ Mourby, Adrian (19 August 2007). "European Breaks: Three suns, one grape, a lot of flavour". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/short-breaks/european-breaks-three-suns-one-grape-a-lot-of-flavour-462211.html. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ↑ "Convention concerning protection of the waters of Lake Geneva against pollution.". United Nations Treaty Collection. 16 November 1962. http://untreaty.un.org/unts/60001_120000/7/25/00013243.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ↑ Bergier, Jean-François; (Collective) (2008) (in French). Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse. 7. Editions Gilles Attinger, Hauterive. ISBN 2-88256-197-0. http://www.hls-dhs-dss.ch/textes/f/F8657-1-1.php.
- ↑ "Baisse du Phosphore dans le Léman" (in French). Commission Internationale pour la Protection du Léman (CIPEL). 9 May 2007. http://www.cipel.org/sp/IMG/pdf/Phosphore-2007.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
- ↑ Monna, F.; Domnik J. ; Loiseau J.-L. ; Pardos M. ; Arpagaus P. (1999). "Origin and evolution of Pb in sediments of Lake Geneva (Switzerland-France). Establishing a stable Pb record". Environmental science & technology (Washington, DC: American Chemical Society) 33 (17): 2850–2857. doi:10.1021/es9902468. ISSN 0013-936X. http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=1943833.
- ↑ Guichonnet, Paul (2002) (in French). Nature et histoire du Léman: le guide du Léman. Divonne-Les-Bains: Editions Cabedita. pp. 235. ISBN 2882951205, 9782882951205. http://books.google.com/?id=C2cyTH8ydD4C&dq=histoire+du+lac+léman.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 http://www.alinghi.com/en/news/news/index.php?idIndex=200&idContent=21208
- ↑ http://www.boldor.ch/boldor/ch/FR-CH/index.cfm
- ↑ Sunstein, Emily W. (1989). Mary Shelley: Romance and Reality (1991 ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 478. ISBN 0801842182.
- ↑ Michner, Joerg (25 February 2007). "Fed-up Swiss taxpayers call time on concessions for wealthy foreigners". Telegraph.co.uk. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1543808/Fed-up-Swiss-taxpayers-call-time-on-concessions-for-wealthy-foreigners.html. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ↑ "Schuey vrooms into £30m home". The Sun. 2007-11-30. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article526160.ece. Retrieved 2008-11-03.
External links
- International Commission for the Protection of Lake Geneva (CIPEL)
- Lake Geneva in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- Les ports du lac Léman (French) guide to the lake's harbours
- www.plongee-passion.ch (French) A site with stacks of information for scuba diving
- The official site of the Geneva police of the lake with lots of information
- Waterlevels Lake Geneva at Chillon
- Waterlevels Lake Geneva at Saint-Prex
- Waterlevels Lake Geneva at Geneva
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