Before considerable scientific research by Western Nevada College Professor of Geosciences Dr. Winnie Kortemeier, it was understood that Lake Tahoe, the largest alpine lake in North America, was created during the Pleistocene era, also known as the Ice Age, roughly 10,000 to 2.6 million years ago.
Through her radiometric dating of rocks and examining the basalt that has interacted with the water of Lake Tahoe, Dr. Kortemeier has determined that the lake is 2.3 million years old.