211k views
1 vote
Can lakes form from rivers? If so, explain. If no, explain..

User La
by
5.6k points

1 Answer

6 votes

Answer:

Yes

Step-by-step explanation:

Not all lakes are created by basins filling with water. Some lakes are formed by rivers. Mature rivers often wind back and forth across a plain in wide loops called meanders. During periods of flooding, a swollen, rushing river may create a shortcut and bypass a meander, leaving a body of standing water. All lakes fill bowl-shaped depressions in the Earth’s surface, called basins. Lake basins are formed in several ways. Many lakes, especially those in the Northern Hemisphere, were formed by glaciers that covered large areas of land during the most recent ice age, about 18,000 years ago. Some lake basins form where plate tectonics changed the Earth’s crust, making it buckle and fold or break apart. When the crust breaks, deep cracks, called faults, may form. These faults make natural basins that may fill with water from rainfall or from streams flowing in the basin.

Many lakes form as a result of volcanoes. After a volcano becomes inactive, its crater may fill with rain or melted snow. Sometimes the top of a volcano is blown off or collapses during an eruption, leaving a depression called a caldera. It, too, may fill with rainwater and become a lake. Lakes may also be created by landslides or mudslides that send soil, rock, or mud sliding down hills and mountains. The debris piles up in natural dams that can block the flow of a stream, forming a lake. People make lakes by digging basins or by damming rivers or springs. These artificial lakes can become reservoirs, storing water for irrigation, hygiene, and industrial use. Artificial lakes also provide recreational use for boating, swimming, or fishing.

I hoped this helped :)

User Johnsam
by
5.7k points