Lake Ontario
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Lake Ontario Lake Ontario, Lake Ontario |
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| Looking east towards Toronto | ||
| Geographical location |
Ontario (Canada), New York (USA) |
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| Tributaries | Niagara River , Oswego River , Trent River , Salmon River (New York) , Black River , Salmon River (Ontario) , Genesee River , Credit River | |
| Drain | Saint Lawrence River | |
| Islands | Wolfe Island , Amherst Island | |
| Places on the shore | Toronto , Mississauga , Rochester , Hamilton , Kingston | |
| Data | ||
| Coordinates | 43 ° 42 ′ N , 77 ° 58 ′ W | |
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| Altitude above sea level | 75 m | |
| surface | 19,011 km² | |
| length | 311 km | |
| width | 85 km | |
| volume | 1639 km³ | |
| scope | 1146 km | |
| Maximum depth | 244 m | |
| Middle deep | 86 m | |
The Ontario ( English Lake Ontario ; French Lac Ontario ) is the smallest in area of the five Great Lakes of North America , which are interconnected by rivers.
In terms of depth and volume, however, it is the second smallest after Lake Erie .
geography
The United States' border with Canada runs through Lake Ontario . It lies at an altitude of 75 m and its area is 19,011 km². The Canadian maritime portion is 9,969 km² and the US maritime portion is 9042 km². For comparison: Its size is roughly the size of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate ; it exceeds the area of the largest lake in Europe, Lake Ladoga , by around 1000 km².
The water depth is up to 244 meters. The main inflow is via the Niagara River from Lake Erie . Other tributaries are the Trent River , the Genesee River , the Oswego River, and the Salmon River . Lake Ontario drains via the Saint Lawrence River . Due to the Arctic influence, the edge of the shore is frozen over an average of three months a year, but in summer it serves as a heat store, so that it can be used in the area around Niagara Falls and the like. a. the wine possible.
The water from the lake is also used for drinking water supply and for cooling office buildings in the city of Toronto (see DLWC ).
As with the other Great Lakes in North America, the tides are also noticeable in Lake Ontario - unlike in many smaller inland lakes . Lake Ontario has around 1500 islands, the largest, Wolfe Island , is located at the eastern outflow of the lake in the Saint Lawrence River.
Surname
The name of the lake is derived from the Wyandot language , where the word ontarío means "great lake". The Canadian province was later named after Lake Ontario. The lake was sometimes called differently in early maps. In the relation des Jésuites he was named "Lac Ontario ou des Iroquois" or "Ondiara". A French map from 1712 named it "Lac Frontenac" after the French branch Fort Frontenac on the northeast bank . In the Iroquois language the lake was called "Skanadario".
Because of the similarities in shape and area, Lake Ontario gave its name to the Ontario Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan .
literature
- Arthur Pound: Lake Ontario. Indianapolis, New York, Bobbs-Merrill 1945.
- Anne Ylvisaker: Lake Ontario. Fact Finders 2005, ISBN 978-0-7368-2211-4 .
