Torneträsk
Sweden · Europe
About
Torneträsk or Torne träsk (Swedish: [toːɳɛˈtrɛsːk]; Saami: Duortnosjávri; Finnish and Meänkieli: Tornio or Torniojärvi) is a lake in Kiruna Municipality, Lapland, Norrbotten County in Sweden, in the Scandinavian Mountains. Träsk is the local word for lake (in Standard Swedish it means "swamp"). It is the sixth-largest lake in Sweden, with a total area of 330 square kilometres (130 square miles) and a length of 70 kilometres (43 miles). The lake drains to the south-east through Torne river. South-west of the lake lies the Abisko National Park and the UNESCO World Heritage Site Laponian area.
Torneträsk originated from the remnant of a glacier, which has given the lake its depth of 168 metres (551 feet), making it the second-deepest lake in Sweden. It is usually ice-covered from December through June, with variations dependent on temperature variations.
Permafrost is common in the land around the lake. This low elevation permafrost is disappearing because of global warming and increased snowfall.
During the 1944 Operation Obviate of WWII, British bombers seeking to destroy the German battleship Tirpitz had their rendezvous over Torneträsk, in violation of Swedish neutrality.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.