underground lake
An underground lake or subterranean lake is a lake underneath the surface of the Earth. Most naturally occurring underground lakes are found in areas of Karst topography, where limestone or other soluble rock has been weathered away, leaving a cav ...
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, Moqua Well was the primary source of drinking water for inhabitants of Nauru."Moqua Caves and Moqua Well" Gatis Pāvils, 30 October 2011. It is for this reason that the body of water is referred to as a
well
A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...
instead of a lake."Nauru – Attractions" iExplore.
In 2001, Nauruan authorities decided to put up a fence to prevent accidents, after an alcohol-related drowning in the same year.
Location
The well is located below the
Yaren district
Yaren (in earlier times Makwa/Moqua) is a district of the Pacific nation of Nauru. It is the ''de facto'' capital of Nauru and is coextensive with Yaren Constituency.attractions in Nauru.
Linguistic disambiguation
The name of the well 'Moqua' (sometimes referred to as 'Makwa') is derived from the former name by which Yaren was known.
Other feature
Nearby are the Moqua Caves, a series of
cave
A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
Hydrography
Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primar ...