There are various places on Earth that are unique and rare. Most of them are still undiscovered. So, in my article, I would be putting in words, an unknown geographical discovery that should be described to each and every one.
Edition 26
(15 August 2021)
The Giant's Causeway
The Giant's Causeway is located in county Antrim on the north coast of Northern Ireland, about three miles northeast of the town of Bushmills. It is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic fissure eruption. It's official names are the Giant's Causeway and Causeway coast. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986 and a national nature reserve in 1987 by the Department of Environment for Northern Ireland. In 2005, poll of Radio Times readers, the Giant's Causeway was named the fourth greatest natural wonder in the United Kingdom. Some of the structures in the area, having been subject to several million years of weathering, resemble objects, such as the Organ and Giant's Boot structures. Other features include many reddish, weathered columns know as the Giant's Eyes, created by the displacement of basalt boulders, the Shepherd's Steps, the Honeycomb; the Giant's Harp, the Chimney Stacks, the Giant's Gate and the Camel's Hump. Basalt columns are a common volcanic feature, and they occur on many scales, because faster cooling produces smaller columns. The area is a heaven for seabirds while the weathered rock formations host numerous plant types. A stromatolite colony was reportedly found at the Giant's Causeway in October 2011. It was an unusual thing as stromatolites are more commonly found in warmer water in higher saline content than that found at the causeway. The tops of the columns from stepping stones that lead from the cliff foot and disappear under the sea. Most of the columns are hexagonal. The tallest are about 12 metres high and the solidified lava in the cliffs is 28 metres thick in places. Most part of the Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast World Heritage Site is owned and managed by the National Trust. It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Northern Ireland, receiving over 998,000 visitors in 2019. Access to the Giant's Causeway is free of charge.
Edition 24
(15 July 2021)
Glass Beach
Glass Beach got its name from a time when it was abundant with sea glass created from years of dumping garbage into an area of coastline near the northern part of the town. This beach is adjacent to MacKerricher State Park near Fort Bragg. It is located at Mendocino County, California. It is governed by the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Several endangered and protected native plants occur at Glass Beach including hybrid Menzies' wallflower. This beach is now visited by tens of thousands of tourists yearly. Similar beaches are found in Benicia, California and Eleele, Hawaii. In 1906, Fort Bragg residents established an official water dump site behind the Union Lumber Company onto what is known as ''Site 1''. Most water fronted communities had water dump sites discarding glass, appliances, and even vehicles. Locals referred to it as ''The Dumps''. When the original dump site filled up in 1943, the site was moved to what is now known as''Site 2'', the active dump site from 1943 until 1949. When this beach became full in 1949, the dump was moved north to what is now known as "Glass Beach", which remained an active dump site until 1967. The governing bodies and the city leaders closed this area in 1967. Various clean-up programs were undertaken through the years to correct the damage. After several decades, all that was biodegradable in the dump sites was simply degraded and all the metal and other items were eventually removed and sold as scrap or used in art. The pounding waves broke down the glass and pottery and tumbled those pieces into small, smooth, coloured pieces that often become jewellery-quality, which cover Glass Beach and the other two glass beaches in Fort Bragg.
Edition 22
(15 June 2021)
Jellyfish Lake is a marine lake located on Eil Malk Island in Palau. Eil Malk is a part of the Rock Islands, a group of small, rocky, mostly uninhabited islands in Palau’s Southern Lagoon, between Kokor and Peleliu. There are about seventy other marine lakes located throughout the Rock Islands. Millions of golden jellyfish migrate horizontally across the lake daily. The native name for the Jellyfish Lake is Ongeim’l Tketau. It is connected to the ocean through fissures and tunnels in the limestone of an ancient Miocene reef. However the lake is sufficiently isolated and the conditions are different enough that the diversity of species in the lake is greatly reduced from the nearby lagoon. Jellyfish Lake is stratified into two layers, an oxygenated upper layer and a lower anoxic layer. Two species of Scyphozoan jellyfish live in Jellyfish Lake, Moon Jellyfish and Golden Jellyfish. The Golden Jellyfish and other species in the lake have evolved to be substantially different from their close relatives living in the nearby lagoons. The Jellyfish Lake is accessed by a short trail fom the beach on Eil Malk to the lake.
Vinicunca
Vinicunca also known as Winikanka, Montana de Siete Colores, Montana de Colores or Rainbow Mountain, is a mountain in the Andes of Peru with an altitude of 5,200 metres above sea level. It is located on the road to the Ausangate Mountain, in the Cusco region, between the districts of Cusipata, province of Quispicanchi, Pitumarca, and province of Canchis. According to the Cultural Landscape Office of the Decentralization of the City of Cusco, the seven colours of the mountains are due to its mineralogical composition: the pink colour is due to red clay, fangolitas (mud) and arilitas (sand); the whitish colouring is due to quartzose, sandstone and marls, rich in calcium carbonate; the red is due to claystones (iron) and clays belonging to the Upper Tertiary period; the green is due to phyllites and clays rich in ferro magnesian; the earthy brown is a product of fanglomerate composed of rock with magnesium belonging to the Quarternary period; and the mustard yellow comes from the calcareous sandstones rich in sulphurous minerals.