Large salt lake between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan .
It once covered 25,659 sq mi (66,457 sq km) and was the fourth largest inland body of water in the world, but diversion of the waters of the Syr Darya and Amu Darya rivers for irrigation has led to an overall reduction of its surface area by half since 1960. Its volume has been reduced by three-fourths, which has led to an increase in salinity. Except for the southern shores, it is uninhabited.