The Sahara Desert is an environment like no other. So vastly different from what we are accustomed to, this desert terrain produces phenomena that both impress and shock scientists alike. As the largest hot desert in the entire world, there is no doubt Sahara holds wonders we cannot even fathom. For one, it is home to ‘walking mountains’ that are only just becoming understood now.
How the Sahara Desert is so unique, with the mysteries it holds within
The Sahara Desert is not just huge; it is enormous. It runs for around 9 million square kilometers, covering more than 10 countries across Africa. This region is known for its extreme climate and weather, with temperatures that peak to almost unbearable levels, but also drop quite low at night. The arid land makes life difficult, but over millions of years, life has learned to adapt.
The funny thing is that the Sahara Desert wasn’t always a desert; it actually used to be green and tropical, with rivers, lakes, forests, and animals like giraffes and crocodiles; a huge contrast to today. Now, the region is home to towering dunes and volcanic plains, and animals like camels, foxes, antelopes, and reptiles. Other deserts are vastly different from this one, but equally as mysterious.
These areas give an air of silence and mystery. Such vast open land is unusual for people who come from cities and towns, and there is so much we don’t know about this place. One aspect that scientists are starting to learn more about is the ‘walking mountains’ that have baffled us for years; these huge sand structures in the desert that seem to move all by themselves.
‘Walking mountains’ in the Sahara Desert: What exactly are they?
So no, they are not literally mountains that walk, but this desert phenomenon is still very intriguing, and does somewhat live up to its nickname. These natural structures appear as huge, pyramid-shaped mounds of sand when viewed from the ground, but when seen from above, they change shape completely. It is this aerial view that gives them their other nickname: the star dune.
According to Smithsonian Magazine, Star dunes are characterised by:
“Tendrils of sand radiate out from a central peak, giving the dunes a resemblance to starfish.”
Scientists know that the wind is at play here, but due to the desolate region they are located in, these star dunes have not been studied very closely. However, that is changing. New research on a massive star dune in eastern Morocco, named Lala Lallia, has provided some eye-opening information that gives us a better understanding of what these monstrous formations really are.
New technology has provided unique discoveries for scientists working on star dunes
To study Lala Lallia, scientists actually walked over the entire star dune, stopping every few feet to use advanced technology called ground penetrating radar, to take images of the layers of the dune. They didn’t find anything as crazy as what was found in Peru, but using this technology, along with samples of the sand, the scientists studied the age of each layer in the dune to learn more about how and when it was deposited.
It turns out that Lala Lallia is younger than expected, at only 13,000 years old, and has recently had a ‘growth spurt’ around 1000 years ago. They also confirmed that the dune forms from wind blowing in opposite directions, and that it actually moves slowly to the west by over 1 foot each year! So it really is a ‘walking mountain’ to some extent.
This research shows how important new technology can be, and how incrediblle mother nature truly is. To think that this massive desert was once full of water, and that it now holds gigantic sand structures that can actually move, it’s pretty incredible. Check out these other amazing desert discoveries that have been found.