Badwater Basin

Badwater Basin
Location	Death Valley California
Coordinates	36°14′24″N 116°49′54″W / 36.23998°N 116.83171°W / 36.23998; -116.83171
Type	Endorheic basin
Primary inflows	Amargosa River
Primary outflows	Terminal (evaporation)
Basin countries	United States
Settlements	Badwater, California
References	U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Badwater Basin

Badwater Basin is a basin in Death Valley National Park, Death Valley, California. The water which goes into it does not flow into any ocean.

Badwater Basin is the lowest point in North America, at 282 ft (86 m) below sea level. Mount Whitney, the highest point in the 48 states,^[1] is only 76 miles west of the Basin. It is one of the lowest places in Death Valley.

Badwater Basin has a small natural pool of undrinkable water next to the road. The water comes from a spring. It is called 'Badwater' because people cannot drink the water. This is because so much salt has built up from the basin. The pool does have animals and plants living there, including pickleweed, insects, and the Badwater snail.

The pool is not actually the lowest point of the basin. The lowest point is several miles to the west; the exact point which is lowest changes over time. However, the salt flats are dangerous to travel across (in many cases being only a thin white crust over mud). Therefore, the sign states that the lowest point is at the pool, where people can see it. This is not the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere. Laguna del Carbón in Argentina is lower, at -105 meters (-344 feet).

1. ↑ the 'touching' states, without Alaska and Hawaii.