New Delhi:

A nameless island within Victoria Island in Canada’s Nunavut Territory holds the rare distinction of being the world’s largest island-in-a-lake-on-an-island-in-a-lake-on-an-island.

Satellite images by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 confirmed the presence of this unique landform. Here’s how it goes: at the centre lies a seahorse-shaped island, approximately 1,000 feet wide, situated within a small, unnamed lake. This lake itself is part of a larger island, which sits inside a long, finger-shaped lake about 90 kilometres inland from Victoria Island’s southern coast.

Guinness World Records has officially recognised this location as the largest of its kind. Given that Victoria Island – also known as “Kitlineq” by the Inuit – is the eighth-largest island in the world and part of the vast Canadian Arctic Archipelago, there is potential for undiscovered landforms of a similar nature. The region, dotted with thousands of islands and millions of post-Ice Age lakes, remains largely unexplored.

Many recursive islands and lakes, meaning landforms that follow a pattern of islands within islands or lakes within lakes, have been identified using satellite imagery. However, due to the extreme remoteness of this Arctic landscape, it is highly likely that no human has ever set foot on this particular island. As mapping technologies and satellite images continue to improve, the discovery of more unusual landforms may still be ahead.

Earlier, NASA satellites observed a temporary island emerging off the coast of Azerbaijan in the Caspian Sea, only for it to disappear within two years. The landmass, created by an eruption from the Kumani Bank mud volcano, was first spotted in early 2023 and had eroded completely by the end of 2024. The eruption, which lasted just a few days in February 2023, was one of many recorded in the area, with similar events dating back to 1861.

A video has captured the moment when a police helicopter crashed into Lake Balaton in Hungary. The incident happened on Thursday afternoon during a planned exercise of the Air Policing Service in Balatonszeplak, Hungary, as per a Sky News report. 

The video shared on Reddit and several other social media platforms showed how the helicopter spun uncontrollably, crashed into the lake, and slowly sank into the water.  The helicopter crashed into the water about 300 meters from the shore.

”Hungarian MD-500E police helicopter falls into Lake Balaton. Two policemen suffered minor injuries (Hungary, 2023-09-07),” the video caption reads. 

Watch the video here:

Hungarian MD-500E police helicopter falls into lake Balaton. Two policeman suffered minor injuries (Hungary, 2023-09-07)
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Thankfully, no one was seriously injured in the accident and the two-man crew was later rescued by a boat. The two policemen were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

According to Hungary Today, divers arrived at the scene around 5 p.m. on Thursday afternoon and started to assess the technical rescue options. 

In a statement, The National Police Headquarters said, ”During a planned exercise of the Air Police of the Rapid Response and Special Police Service, on 7 September 2023 at 14.44 near Balatonszéplak, about 300 meters from the shore, a helicopter of type MD-500E crashed into the water of the lake for reasons that are currently unclear. The two-man crew of the plane were rescued by a nearby boat and brought to shore without serious injury. The circumstances of the incident are under investigation.”

As per Britannica, Lake Balaton, the largest lake in central Europe, is located in central Hungary about 50 miles (80 km) southwest of Budapest. The lake and its environment accommodate a rich and diverse flora and fauna. The lake, surrounded by vineyards, volcanic mountains, and thermal spa resorts, attracts a lot of tourists.