The remains of an ancient lake that existed here in the Pleistocene, continued during the Holocene, and only ceased to exist about 400 years before present. It was the ancient predecessor of the Salton Sea, which is an accidental lake formed by a failed dike that partially filled the dry-lake-bed depression. The lake at one time covered 2,200 square miles (5,700 km2). As climate gradually warmed over the past 2 million years, the lake has dried up.
The remains of an ancient lake that existed here in the Pleistocene, continued during the Holocene, and only ceased to exist about 400 years before present. It was the ancient predecessor of the Salton Sea, which is an accidental lake formed by a failed dike that partially filled the dry-lake-bed depression. The lake at one time covered 2,200 square miles (5,700 km2). As climate gradually warmed over the past 2 million years, the lake has dried up.
