The Pacific Plate is migrating northwestward at a rate similar to that of your fingernails – several millimeters each year. This continuous plate movement over a local volcanic “hot spot,” or plume, has resulted in an assembly-line-style chain of volcanic islands. They are known (really) as Hawaii. The Hawaiian Islands (also known as the Hawaiian archipelago) are made up … [Read more...] about The Underwater Geology of the Hawaiian Islands is Simply Incredible
Plants
These Two Texas Giant Sinkholes Are Yearning to Combine, Which Would Have Catastrophic Effects
Two breathtaking giant sinkholes in Texas have long been objects of fear and fascination. Wink Sink 1 from above. Image courtesy of The University of Texas at Austin’s Bureau of Economic Geology An extraordinarily unstable local terrain has been created as a result of decades of drilling for oil and gas in Winkler County in the West Texas desert, particularly during the … [Read more...] about These Two Texas Giant Sinkholes Are Yearning to Combine, Which Would Have Catastrophic Effects
Discovered 2,400-year-old giant mushroom is the largest living organism on the planet
The largest living thing on the planet is not a whale or any other animal you might expect. It is a giant fungus that kills anything in its path, currently taking up more than three square miles of Oregon. The Armillaria ostoyae, more popularly known as the honey mushroom, began from a single spore too tiny to be seen by the naked eye. It has been entwining its black … [Read more...] about Discovered 2,400-year-old giant mushroom is the largest living organism on the planet
Village in Japan Hosts “Water Hose Festival” To Test Its Spectacular Fire Extinguishing System
Twice a year, the picturesque and otherwise quiet village of Kayabuki no Sato in Japan puts on a spectacular water display. The event does attract tourists, but its real purpose is to test a forest of 62 fire extinguishers scattered across the historic site. Tucked away in a mountainous region of Japan’s Gifu Prefecture is a small village of Gassho-style houses – uniquely … [Read more...] about Village in Japan Hosts “Water Hose Festival” To Test Its Spectacular Fire Extinguishing System
Nobody Knows Who Left These Mysterious Lines On This Peru Shore – But They May Have Had an Interesting Purpose
Pisco Bay in Peru’s Paracas Peninsula holds a spectacular secret: a prehistoric geoglyph that is estimated to date back to 200 BC, although many believe it is much older. Its purpose and creators remain unknown. Situated on a seaside hill, the Paracas Candelabra, also known as the “Candelabra of the Andes,” is a massive geoglyph that runs almost 600 feet from bottom to top … [Read more...] about Nobody Knows Who Left These Mysterious Lines On This Peru Shore – But They May Have Had an Interesting Purpose