Kelimutu Lake Flores Island

Kelimutu is a volcano on the island of Flores. At 1,640 meters above sea level, the mountain forms the highest point on the island; Its main attractions are the three colored crater lakes: Tiwu Ata Mbupu (Lake of Old People) is usually blue and is the westernmost of the three lakes. Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai (Lake of Young Men and Maidens) is usually green, while Tiwu Ata Polo (Bewitched or Enchanted Lake) is reddish in color. The color of the lakes changes as a result of chemical reactions resulting from the minerals contained in the lake, possibly triggered by volcano gas activity.
The name Kelimutu can be roughly translated as the “Getting together mountains;” Keli means mountain, Mutu means get together. The locals believe that Kelimutu is under the reign of Konde Ratu, a supernatural king, who rules over the  spirits of the dead. Young spirits reside happily in Tiwu Koo Fai Nuwa Muri (Lake of the Young Men and Maidens); the old live in Tiwu Ata Bupu (Lake of Old People), while evil spirits dwell in Tiwu Ata Polo (Bewitched Lake).

Kelimutu, The Lakes of the Young and Old side by side, By: Neil Liddle.
The lakes of the young and old lay side by side; a thin crater wall affected by wind, erosion and landslides separates the two. At the water surface fifty meters below, the wind has free reign, often causing small typhoons.
The color of the lakes has changed often in the last three decades. Strangely, this always happens in the middle of the night, nobody has ever seen it happen. In December 2008, the color of two of the three lakes changed. The water in Lake Tiwu Ata Polo turned from black to dark green, while Lake Tiwu Nua Muri Koo Fai turned greenish blue. In 2009 the color changed after only eight months. Last January, the colors changed again.
Speaking to the press last January, the head of Kelimutu National Park Center, Sri Mulyani said that Tiwu Ata Polo, which used to be green, changed to brown; Tiwu Ata Bupu, which was dark had turned green and mossy, while the Tiwu Nuamuri Kofai remained green.

After intensive studies since 2007, the Indonesian Institute of Sciences’ (LIPI) Geo-technology Research Center concluded that the changes could mean an eruption was imminent. But local people have their own interpretation. According to them the color changes signify political and cultural changes in the region. The last January 2013 color change took place just three months before the East Nusa Tenggara governor election this coming March.

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