Aral Sea. The Overview.
The Aral Sea (Uzbek: Orol Dengizi; Russian: Аральскοе Мοре) is a landlocked endorheic basin in Central Asia; it lies between Kazakhstan (Aktobe and Kyzylorda provinces) in the north and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan, in the south. The name roughly translates as “Sea of Islands”, referring to more than 1,500 islands of one hectare or more that once dotted its waters. There are now three lakes in the Aral Basin: the North Aral Sea and the eastern and western basins of the South Aral Sea. The maximum depth of the sea is 102 feet (31 m).
It once covered some 26,300 sq mi (68,000 sq km) and was the fourth largest inland body of water in the world.
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