The Eye of the Sahara Sometimes you need to step back to see the full picture. Such is the case with
The Eye of the SaharaSometimes you need to step back to see the full picture. Such is the case with the Richat Structure, near Oudane, Mauritania. The “eye” of this unique geologic feature is so big that it can be seen from space; in fact, it has even become a landmark for space shuttle and station crews.The origin of this 40km wide circular structure has been debated for some time. Many suggested that, due to the shape, it was the result of an impact crater, but found no further evidence pointing towards it. Craters, though circular, aren’t as flat, and generally contain a lot more melted rock from the high-energy impact. Another hypothesis is that it was formed by a volcanic eruption, but beyond their shared shapes, the structure lacks the defining characteristics that make up a volcano.According to Professor Michel Jébrak of the University of Quebec in Montreal, the structure is a result of differential erosion of a geologic dome. The dome was likely formed about 100 million years ago as Pangea broke up and the Atlantic Ocean opened. Magma pushed its way up to the Earth’s crust from the mantle resulting in a doming effect, which gave the circular shape to the structure. Over time, weathering peeled away its layers like an onion, revealing a bulls-eye labyrinth in a sea of sand. Jébrak also suggests that rocks and sand from Richat could have been picked up by Saharan winds and transported as far as Israel.Of course, any enigmatic structure in nature brings up a bunch of “different” hypotheses. Many are amazed at how much it resembles Plato’s representation of Atlantis (http://bit.ly/1xSNB1o). That, or we could always blame aliens.While we let geologists (and conspiracy theorists) figure out its origins, we can sit back and marvel at its beauty. Most of us won’t get a chance to soar above our planet on the ISS to capture photos like this one, but I do recommend that you take a trip on Google Maps. Enter the following coordinates, zoom out, and enjoy: 21.124217, -11.395569~ SWMore Info:http://space.io9.com/the-eye-of-the-sahara-is-an-enigmatic-desert-landmark-1607604961http://www.academia.edu/9220436/The_eye_of_Africa_Richat_dome_Mauritania_An_isolated_Cretaceous_alkaline_hydrothermal_complexPhoto Credit: Stuart Rankin / NASAhttp://bit.ly/1Atkw00 -- source link
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