Tag: Nature

Covão Dos Conchos – A sinkhole in a lagoon that looks like a portal to the underworld

by eMORFES, posted in bizarre, places

Covão dos Conchos is an artificial lake in the Serra da Estrela mountains in Portugal that is famous for its Bell-mouth spillway. The spillway was built in 1955 with the aim of diverting water from Ribeira das Naves to Lagoa Comprida. This sci-fi-looking spillway was little-known until photos of the hole went viral in 2016. Over the last 60 years moss and foliage has grown onto the mouth of the funnel, adding to its ethereal allure. The tunnel that collects the water is 1519 meters long. The sinkhole creates the illusion that the dam is broken.

info: wikipedia

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Ice Volcano in Kazakhstan

by eMORFES, posted in bizarre, places, science

“Iceberg” is located in the Kegen district of the Almaty region between the villages of Kegen and Shyrganak. Thanks to the fine particles of water that are sprayed high into the sky, the “iceberg” looks like a smoking ice volcano. The “volcano” appears every winter with the arrival of cold weather as a result of an underground spring.  When temperatures drop below zero, the water freezes  in the form of a volcano cone.

Wheeler Geologic Area known as “The City of Gnomes”

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The Wheeler Geologic Area is a highly eroded outcropping of layers of volcanic ash, in the La Garita Mountains of Mineral County, in southern Colorado. The formations are named after Captain George M. Wheeler, who explored and surveyed this area in 1874 for the U.S. Army.

John Fowler from Placitas, NM, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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Hall of Mosses

by eMORFES, posted in photography, places

The Hall of Mosses is a loop trail through a portion of the Hoh National Rainforest, Washington. A lush, atmospheric forest of moss-covered trees and ferns.

2 Brandon Kuschel, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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Siberia’s enormous hole in the ground is getting bigger

by eMORFES, posted in places

The Batagaika crater in eastern Siberia is the biggest permafrost crater in the world. According to research published in 2016, the crater wall has been growing by a yearly average of 20-30 meters per year over a ten-year observational period. The local Yukatian people report hearing ominous noises, leading some to call it a portal to the underworld. The depression is in the form of a one-kilometre-long and growing. The land began to sink due to the thawing permafrost in the 1960s after the surrounding forest was cleared. Flooding also contributed to the enlargement of the crater.
info source: wikipedia

NASA Earth Observatory images by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Neversink Pit

by eMORFES, posted in places

Somewhere between a sinkhole and a cave, Neversink Pit in northern Alabama is a wet, limestone sinkhole formed when acidic water eroded the rock beneath the ground. The 162ft pit is 40 feet wide at the top. Ferns spill off the eerie ledges, and bats roost in the niches. This geological wonder attracts a stream of hikers, cave divers and photographers.

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The Salt Rocks of Iran

by eMORFES, posted in places, science

Salt domes are located in the Zagros Mountains, in southwestern Iran. Thick layers of minerals such as halite (common table salt) typically accumulate in closed basins during alternating wet and dry climatic conditions. Over geologic time, these layers of salt are buried under younger layers of rock. The pressure from overlying rock layers causes the lower-density salt to flow upwards. Salt rocks with orange, yellow, red and gray lines, which indicates the existence of metal elements,  are also called Rainbow Salt.

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Stuðlagil Canyon: A basalt column canyon towering over a turquoise glacial river

by eMORFES, posted in places

Stuðlagil  is a ravine in the Eastern Region of Iceland. It is known for its columnar basalt rock formations and the blue-green water that runs through it. It became an unexpected tourist sensation after being shown in a WOW air airline brochure in 2017. The rock formation is 30 meters tall.
The river Jökla runs through the ravine. The water level decreased by 7 to 8 meters due to the Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Plant, which opened in 2009.

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Sail Rock – A monolith on the shore of the Black Sea

by eMORFES, posted in bizarre, places

Sail Rock is a natural sandstone monolith located on the shore of the Black Sea in Russia. It resembles the outline of a ship’s sail, hence its name. The monolith has a sheer vertical slope confronting the shore of the sea, isolated from the mass of basic rock by geological forces. It is more than three-fourths revealed by the tide and lies perpendicular to the coast. What is most remarkable about this landmark is its proportions. While the cliff is only a little more than one meter thick, its height is about 25 m and its length about 20.
An opening of unclear origin is located in the sail, approximately 2.5 meters above the ground. Many guides state that the formation was a defense against mountain artillery during the Caucasian War. However, this version of the origin of the opening is under some doubt. In 1903, S. Vasyukov, who was investigating the Black Sea coast, wrote after the inspection of the cliff that it was “[..] shot from a battleship by seamen, they released 4 projectiles, but the wall remained firm, although the traces are noticeable, but they nowhere opened the rock […]”.
info:  wikipedia

Sergey S. Dukachev, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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Fairy Pools on Isle of Skye

by eMORFES, posted in photography, places

Located at the foot of the Cuillin Mountains, the Fairy Pools are a natural waterfall phenomenon in Glen Brittle on the Isle of Skye. The pools are a vivid aqua blue and are a popular place for wild swimmers who brave the frigid waters.
The habitat of the Fairy Pools hosts a variety of animals and a large number of birds. The physical landscape is predominately rocky, with some boggy areas here and there. The water in the area is typically cold, as the pools are fed by mountain streams. The pools look as though they were pulled from the imagination of J.R.R. Tolkien.

Wojtek Szkutnik, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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