- They say Mother Nature made these things, but how can we be sure?
Quickly, picture a landscape on an alien planet!
What did you think of? Did you picture strangely symmetrical and geometric rocks? Perhaps bizarre colors, or moving things that shouldn’t move?
Well, here’s the thing. Whatever popped into your head, it probably already exists somewhere on Earth.
Our own home planet can get downright otherworldly if you look in the right places. Here are 8 utterly alien locations that you don’t need a spaceship to see.
1. Door to Hell — Turkmenistan
We want to say that we didn’t light the fire and it’s always been burning. But that’s not true — the Door to Hell is burning because of a Soviet mining accident.
It’s not exactly sure when the Door to Hell — also called Darvaza gas crater — caught fire. Some say it was in the 1960s, but other claims the collapsed gas field was only lit on fire in the 1980s.
One thing is certain, though. The crater was supposed to burn for a couple of days, but it’s still on fire to this day.
2. Eye of the Sahara — Mauritania
The Eye of the Sahara (also called the Richat Structure) is a gigantic circular area in the Sahara Desert. This geometric circle, devoid of plant life, measures some 25 miles in diameter.
Despite its manufactured look, the Eye is completely natural. It formed through a complex geological process where wind and water gradually wore down an uplifted piece of the Earth’s crust.
The Eye is so clearly visible from space that astronauts used to use it as a landmark. That’s appropriate — it sure looks like the landing spot of a giant flying saucer.
3. Tessellated Pavement at Eaglehawk Neck — Australia
If you walked on the tessellated pavement at Eaglehawk Neck, you’d probably swear you were walking on cobblestone. But the formation is entirely natural.
Through a bizarre geological quick, the siltstone block that forms the pavement cracked in a way that resembles a tiled street. Over time, seawater has carved the rims dividing the blocks even deeper, further enhancing the look.
4. Cave of Crystals — Mexico
Bizarre crystals are a staple of alien landscapes in fantasy and sci-fi works. But you can find even more stunning crystal formations in the Cave of Crystals in Mexico.
These enormous selenite crystals are among the largest ever found. They measure dozens of feet in length and weigh up to 12 tons.
The Cave of Crystals was discovered only in 2000 during mining activities. As of 2015, it has again flooded with the mineral-rich water that formed the crystals in the first place.
5. Racetrack Playa — California
There’s seemingly nothing unusual about the flat, dry lake called Racetrack Playa in California. But wait — what’s that?
Did that rock just move?
The Racetrack is famous for its sailing stones, which appear to move on their own overnight. The wandering rocks leave trails behind them as evidence of their travels.
No one’s quite sure why the rocks wander around. Scientists think it’s because slippery ice forms around the stones at night, allowing them to slip around.
Or maybe they’re sentient.
6. Giant’s Causeway — Ireland
Eaglehawk Neck’s tiled stone is impressive, there’s no doubt of that. But Giant’s Causeway in Ireland blows it out of the water.
The Causeway is formed of hundreds of nearly perfectly octagonal stone pillars. They rise out of the sea like a bizarre alien staircase.
The tallest of the stone pillars rises as high as 36 feet. According to current research, the Causeway was formed when cooling lava happened to solidify in a honeycomb pattern 60 million years ago.
7. Moeraki Boulders — New Zealand
The Moeraki Boulders littering Koekohe Beach in New Zealand don’t look like rocks. The smooth and spherical stones, with webbed and cracked surfaces, look more like alien eggs.
According to scientists, there’s no need to worry about them hatching. Although they sometimes crack, the boulders are formed of simple mid, silt, and clay.
We wouldn’t be so sure, though. At least one of these things definitely houses some strange creature, waiting for its time to hatch.
8. Son Doong Cave — Vietnam
Son Doong cave, in central Vietnam, is one of, if not the largest cave in the world. Descending into this ginormous cavern is like entering an underground alien world.
The cave is home to enormous stalagmites rising 230 feet into the air, without reaching the ceiling. Perfectly still mirror pools litter the floor, and jungle creeps in partway through cave openings.
It really is a world away from the world. It’s lucky that the local government scrapped its plans to build a cable car through the cave.
We feel like that may have kind of ruined the ambiance.
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