Why Is the Salton Sea Called a "Sea"?

Technically, it’s not a sea—it’s an endorheic lake (no outlet) in California’s Colorado Desert.

The name stuck because early 1900s promoters and settlers, impressed by its vast size (~350 sq mi) and high salinity (saltier than the Pacific), marketed it as an inland "sea" to attract tourists and developers. The 1905–07 Colorado River flood that created the modern lake reinforced the perception.

Today, it’s a shrinking, hypersaline environmental challenge—fed only by agricultural runoff, with no natural outflow. "Salton Lake" would be more accurate, but "Salton Sea" remains the official geographic name.