Lake Mead

Lake Mead is a large reservoir on the Colorado River, formed by Hoover Dam on the Arizona–Nevada border. It is the largest reservoir in the United States by capacity.

Hoover Dam: A concrete arch-gravity dam on the Colorado River that creates Lake Mead and generates hydroelectric power. Its construction impounded the Colorado River to form the reservoir.
Colorado River Compact: A 1922 agreement dividing the Colorado River’s water among the upper and lower basin states. Its allocations shape demands on Lake Mead and the river system supplying it.
Boulder Canyon Project: The federal project that built Hoover Dam and developed water and power infrastructure on the lower Colorado River. The project created Lake Mead as a storage reservoir behind Hoover Dam.
Lake Powell: A large Colorado River reservoir in Arizona and Utah, formed by Glen Canyon Dam. It lies upstream of Lake Mead and stores water released down the Colorado River.
Colorado River: A major river flowing from the Rocky Mountains through the southwestern United States into Mexico. Its flows replenish Lake Mead and supply water to the reservoir’s users.
Colorado River basin: The watershed whose rivers and precipitation drain toward the Colorado River and its tributaries. Lake Mead stores water used across this large, divided watershed.
Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge: A concrete arch bridge crossing the Colorado River near Hoover Dam between Nevada and Arizona. Its overlook offers views of Hoover Dam and the upper end of Lake Mead.
Lake Mohave: A reservoir on the Colorado River formed by Davis Dam, downstream of Lake Mead. It is the next major reservoir below Lake Mead on the river.
Glen Canyon Dam: A dam on the Colorado River in Arizona that forms Lake Powell upstream of Lake Mead. Its releases from Lake Powell strongly affect the river water reaching Lake Mead.
Water scarcity: A condition in which available water supplies cannot meet human or ecological needs. Prolonged drought and heavy withdrawals have reduced Lake Mead’s stored water.

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Acre-footBroader topic: Its storage capacity and changing water levels are measured in acre-feet.