The Aral Sea

Until 1960 the Aral Sea was the fourth-largest lake in the world with an area of some 70,000 square meters. The Syrdarya and Amudarya rivers flow into the Aral Sea. The lake lying between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan was once 430 km long and 234 km wide, Kazinform News Agency reports. 

It was home to 34 fish species, of which 24 were of commercial importance. It has shrunk remarkably since 1960 due to nonrational irrigation project. In 1998 it split into two: the Malyi (Small) Aral in Kazakhstan and the Bolshoi (Big) Aral in the territory of Uzbekistan. In 2002 the Big Aral shrunk and split into eastern and western. The eastern lobe dried up and completely disappeared in 2014.