Established on October 24, 1994, Death Valley National Park is a beautifully landscaped yet challenging area where unique wildlife species have developed a knack for adaptation. survive in arid, harsh environments.
Here are some things you may not have known about Death Valley:
1. Death Valley is the lowest point in North America
This unique valley is located on the border between the two states of California and Nevada. At 86m below sea level, the Badwater Basin in Death Valley is a surreal landscape that deceives the senses. What many visitors mistake for snow is actually a thick layer of salt that covers the entire ground.
Here, after heavy rains and storms, minerals from the soil and rocks will be brought down by rain water to form temporary lakes, after the water evaporates, the minerals will recrystallize to form salt. This process has lasted for thousands of years and creates an impossibly thick layer of salt.
2. You can’t stand the heat in Death Valley for too long
In July 2018, the valley – the hottest place on Earth – experienced the hottest month ever recorded, the highest daytime heat reaching nearly 53 degrees Celsius for four consecutive days. You can even fry an egg in this heat, but that doesn’t mean you should.
3. Life comes from wildflowers
Contrary to the name, which has a sense of death, in the spring, Death Valley brings a vibrant life. When the conditions are right, the hills here will be covered with yellow, pink, purple or white flower beds.
First, a heavy rain will wash away the coating of the wildflower seeds and allow them to germinate. For the tree to continue to grow, rainstorms must come steadily and continuously throughout the winter and spring months. Although only in full bloom for a short time, the flower fields leave a lasting impression on visitors and attract large numbers of pollinators such as butterflies, hummingbirds and bees.
4. The rocks can move on their own
The Racetrack Playa area is home to one of Death Valley’s oldest mysteries. Scattered on the bottom of this dry lake are hundreds of rocks that can move on their own and leave long tracks on the ground. Some rocks weighing more than 300kg can move to a place 457m away from the first position.
For many years, the origin of the rocks’ movement remained a big question in the scientific world. By 2014, however, researchers had discovered a number of possible causes for the rock to move. Specifically, when floods occur in winter, low temperatures at night will cause water to close into a thin layer of ice and gradually melt during the day. At this time, strong winds will push the rocks forward on the slippery surface, leaving streaks in the mud below. Although the secret of the moving rocks has been discovered, its attraction to visitors remains unchanged.
5. If you listen carefully, the sand will sing for you
Although the dunes make up only a small portion of Death Valley, it remains one of the most memorable attractions in the park. At the top of the dunes, you can experience one of the desert’s strangest phenomena: singing sand. As the sand slides down the slopes of the high dunes, a sound like the low notes of a pipe organ or drones can be heard in the distance. The cause of this phenomenon is unknown, but is most likely due to friction between sand grains.
6. Golf course but not for golfing
Devils Golf Course is the name given to the area with the strangest terrain in the valley, people often say that this is a place where “only the devil can play golf”. This area has been eroded by wind and rain to form beautiful jagged towers.If you listen carefully, you can even hear the tiny explosion of billions of salt crystals expanding and contracting under the heat. terrible.
7. Fish that live in the desert
Finding fish that live in the desert may sound impossible, but surprisingly there are six species of fish that can survive in the saltwater and harsh conditions of Death Valley, one of which is the Devils Hole Pupfish. are in danger of extinction. It lives only in the 34 degrees Celsius waters of Devils Hole, where water temperatures and oxygen levels can be lethal to most other fish. These iridescent blue fry several centimeters long are among the rarest fish in the world.
Source: US Department of the Interior