Lake Taupo

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Lake Taupo

Location	North Island, New Zealand
Coordinates	38°49′S 175°55′ECoordinates: 38°49′S 175°55′E
Lake type	crater lake, oligotrophic
Primary sources	Waitahanui River, Tongariro River, Taupo-Tauranga River
Primary outflows	Waikato River
Catchment area	3487 km²
Basin countries	New Zealand
Max length	46 km
Max width	33 km
Surface area	616 km²
Average depth	110 m
Max depth	?
Water volume	59 km³
Residence time (of lake water)	10.5 years
Shore length¹	193 km
Surface elevation	~356 m
¹ Shore length is an imprecise measure which may not be standardized for this article.

Lake Taupo is a lake situated in the North Island of New Zealand. It has a perimeter of approximately 193 kilometres, a deepest point of 186 metres and a surface area of 616 square kilometres. The largest lake by surface area in the country, it is drained by the Waikato River, while its main tributaries are the Waitahanui River, the Tongariro River, and the Taupo-Tauranga River. It is noted for stocks of short-finned eel and trout, the former a traditional delicacy and the latter a tourist attraction.

1 Lake formation
2 Tourism
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Lake formation

Location

Attributes
Lake Taupo
Country:	New Zealand
Island:	North Island
Administration
Territorial Authority:	Taupo District Council
Mayor:	Clayton Stent
Regional Council:	Environment Waikato
Parliamentary electorate:	Taupo

The lake lies in a caldera created following a huge volcanic eruption (see supervolcanos) approximately 26,500 years ago. According to geological records, the volcano has erupted 28 times in the last 27,000 years. The largest eruption, known as the Oruanui eruption, ejected an estimated 1170 cubic kilometres of material and caused several hundred square kilometres of surrounding land to collapse and form the caldera.

NASA satellite photo of Lake Taupo

The most recent major eruption, which occurred in 181 CE, is believed to have ejected 100 cubic kilometres of material, of which 30 cubic kilometres was ejected in the space of a few minutes. It is believed that the eruption column was 50 kilometres high, twice as high as the eruption column from Mount St. Helens in 1980. This makes it one of the most violent eruptions in the last 5000 years (alongside the Tianchi eruption of Baekdu at around 1000 and the 1815 eruption of Tambora), with a Volcanic Explosivity Index rating of 7. It was sufficiently large, due to the ash expulsion, to turn the sky red over Rome and China (as documented in Hou Han Shu). Since New Zealand was not settled by the Māori until several centuries later at the earliest, the area was uninhabited by humans at the time of the eruption. This eruption further expanded the lake. The volcano is considered to be dormant rather than extinct. It lies in the Taupo Volcanic Zone. Taupo's last known eruption occurred around 210 CE, with lava dome extrusion, but that eruption was much smaller than the 181 CE eruption.

Rock carvings created in Mine Bay in 1979 by Matahi Whakataka-Brightwell and John Randall. Named Ngatoroirangi after the high priest who brought volcanism to New Zealand according to Maori legend, the impressive 10 metre high carving is intended to protect Lake Taupo from volcanic activities underneath.

[edit] Tourism

Tourism is now a major business for the area, attracting over 1.2 million tourists per year. The fact that the lake is the largest fresh water lake in Australasia, and approximately the same size as Singapore, ensures it is a huge 'must do' component to many tourists. Christmas and New Year Holidays are an exceptionally busy time of the year for Lake Taupo, with holiday makers booking up to 12 months in advance to avoid missing out.

The town of Taupo is hugely popular with events, one in particular that is held each year is the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge where cycling enthusiasts cycle around the lake, this usually take about 4–10 hours depending on the cyclist. Hundreds of volunteers from the Taupo township help out to ensure the famous event is a success.

Taupo is host to the Oxfam Trailwalker, a charity ultra-challenge held annually on 100km course in April.

Another activity the region is famous for is skydiving, a sport also heavily advertised.