Paranoá Lake is the artificial lake east of Brasília, created during construction of the capital.
The lake formed when planners dammed the Paranoá River as Brasília was being built in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It was part of the capital’s original planning concept, helping shape the city’s eastern edge while providing scenery, recreation, and a more balanced urban environment on the Central Plateau.
Lake Paranoá covers about 48 square kilometres and has a shoreline of roughly 80 kilometres. Its shores now include embassies, restaurants, sports clubs, the University of Brasília, and the residential districts known as Lago Sul and Lago Norte. The presidential residence, Palácio da Alvorada, also stands beside it.
The lake is sometimes mistaken for a natural feature because it looks like a broad, established water body. It is a reservoir, however, and its creation was directly connected with Brasília’s construction. The name comes from Tupi and is commonly interpreted as referring to a sea or maritime inlet.