The purest blue, the stunning beauty of Hokkaido: Blue Pond

The dry Japanese larch forest stands on the bright blue water, as if blending into the blue watercolor. The Shirogane Blue Pond in Biei, Hokkaido, became world-famous in 2012 after being selected by Apple as the background for Mac OS X. It is a popular tourist spot. Why is the "Platinum Blue Pond" blue? The Shirogane Blue Pond is an artificial lake formed by the river water intercepted by the concrete dam built on the Biei River. The concrete dam was built to prevent volcanic mudflows when Tokachi-dake erupted in 1988, and was an accidental creation of the pond. The fascinating blue color is not the original color of the pond. It is a mixture of aluminum hydroxide-rich spring water from the upstream Shirogane Onsen area and river water from the Biei River. It is in a colloidal state (particles dispersed in liquid). These particles reflect sunlight, and the shorter wavelength, easily scattered blue light is received by the pupil, which is seen as blue. #Sapporo Attractions #Check-in #Hokkaido #100 Ways to Travel #August2024