The Crystal Eye of Nunavik
In the tundra of northern Quebec lies a perfectly round crater lake, so clear it is called the Crystal Eye.
What was reported
In the Arctic tundra of Nunavik, in northern Quebec, is a round lake 3.4 km across, sunk deep in a crater with high rims. Its water is among the clearest and purest in the world. Inuit knew it as Pingualuit, and used its raised rim as a landmark.
In 1950, a prospector named Fred Chubb, hoping it might be an extinct volcano with diamonds, brought it to scientists' attention.
Explanations offered
It was made by a meteorite impact about 1.4 million years ago. The lake is fed only by rain and snow, with no streams running in or out, which explains its clarity. Sediments at its bottom hold a record of climate going back hundreds of thousands of years.
- When
- Formed about 1.4 million years ago
- Where
- Pingualuit, Nunavik, Quebec, Canada
- Witnesses
- Inuit hunters, a prospector and scientists
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.