Record #00500Nature archive
Lake Baikal in southeastern Siberia, Russia, formed in a continental rift system approximately 25 million years ago. UNESCO and the US Geological Survey identify it as the world's oldest existing lake.
Current Record
about25 millionyears
Current record value
Baikal lies within an active continental rift that creates accommodation space for exceptionally thick sedimentary deposits, preserving records of climatic and tectonic changes.
Its long-lived environment allowed many endemic species to evolve. The estimated 25-million-year age describes geological history rather than a precise founding date or proof that all present lake basins formed simultaneously.
Credible sources support core facts; the comparison scope or corroboration remains incomplete.
Basis: corroborating reliable secondary materials
UNESCO explicitly identifies Baikal as the oldest lake at roughly 25 million years, and USGS describes a possibly greater age. This is a geological estimate of the enduring lake system, not the age of present lake water or a precise event date.
Lake-basin formation was gradual, and the approximately 25-million-year age varies with geological definitions and sampling.
Current Entry identifies the current entry in this archive; it does not establish that the record is still held today.
The record value on this page is organized from the public sources above. Measurement methods may differ; JiLuDB follows the unified method described for each entry.
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