This document summarizes several unique natural phenomena that occur on Earth. It describes sundogs as bright spots on either side of the sun caused by light refraction through ice crystals. It also mentions the Great Blue Hole, a large underwater sinkhole in Belize formed when sea levels rose and flooded an inland cave. Additionally, it discusses the annual migration of millions of red crabs on Christmas Island to the coast to breed.
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Natural phenomenons
1. That Actually Occur On Earth
~Prepared by~
Jayesh Mange
MEFGI Rajkot
TA3-B
130970119531
2. Sun dogs
Sundogs are an
atmospheric
phenomenon that
consists of a pair of
bright spots on
either side of the
Sun, often co-
occurring with a
luminous ring. These
are created by the
refraction of light
from plate-shaped
ice crystal.
3. Great Blue Hole (Belize)
The Great Blue
Hole was originally
an inland cave at a
time where sea
levels were much
lower. But as sea
levels began to
rise, the cave was
flooded. Today,
the hole is over
300 meters across
and is 124 meters
deep.
4. Christmas Island red crab
migration
Measuring up to 12
centimeters wide, the
Christmas Island red
crab is a species of land
crab endemic to
Christmas Island and
the Cocos Islands in
the Indian Ocean.
Usually, the crabs hide
in burrows in local
forests, however, each
year they migrate to
the coast to breed. For
over a week, local roads
turn red as millions of
crabs move to the
coast.
5. Giant crystals
Naica, Mexico, the Cave
of the Crystals was
discovered as recently as
in 2000 but since then.
The cave contains giant
selenite crystals some of
which measure up to 12
meters in length. Since
the cave is extremely
hot with temp reaching
up to 58 C, it is still
relatively unexplored but
it is estimated that the
crystals have been
forming for over
500,000 years.
6. Spider web blankets
Wagga Wagga, Australia
a few years ago an
enormous and unique
phenomenon happened.
As a consequence of
severe floods, local
spiders (as well as
people) were forced out
of their homes but the
spiders reacted in a way
that surprised even
experienced biologists.
By joining hundreds of
thousands of spider
webs together, they
created a gigantic
platform that saved
them from drowning.
7. Grand prismatic spring
Found in the Yellowstone
National Park, it is the
largest hot spring in the
United States, and the
third largest in the
world. Notable for its
vivid colors caused by
pigmented bacteria living
around the edges of the
mineral-rich water, the
spring is approximately
80 by 90 m in size and
50 m deep. It discharges
an estimated 2,100 liters
of 70 属C water per
minute.
8. Basalt columns
Basalt is a common
extrusive volcanic rock
formed from the rapid
cooling of basaltic lava.
The basalt formations
can take various shapes
but one of the most
impressive forms is the
basalt column. Millions of
years ago, they were
just regular lava plateaus
but over time, fracture
networks started to
appear within the
plateaus, creating some
of the world卒s most
amazing rock formations.
9. Danxia landforms
Found in several areas in
China, the Danxia
landforms are a unique
geo-morphologic type of
landscape characterized
by a striking, mainly red
coloration. Masses of
cretaceous sandstone
and limestone have been
eroded by wind, sun and
rain for millions of years,
creating spectacular
rock formations including
pillars, ravines, columns,
canyons etc.
10. Bio-luminescence
Bioluminescence is the
production and
emission of light by a
living organism.
One of the most
astonishing examples
of this unusual natural
phenomenon can be
seen on the Vaadhoo
Island, Maldives,
which is famous for
the bioluminescence
display of the
phytoplankton known
as dinoflagellates.
11. Living rock (Pyura chilensis)
It is a tunicate (a marine
invertebrate animal)
found in dense
aggregations on the
coast of Chile and Peru.
Internal organs inside
the rock is actually an
immobile creature
feeding on
microorganisms that it
filters out of the
seawater. For no obvious
reasons, the living rocks
contain about 10 million
times more vanadium (an
extremely rare element)
in their bodies than is
found in the water
12. Mummifying lake
Located in northern
Tanzania, the Lake
Natron is a salt and
soda lake, notorious
for its extremely high
content of salt and
calcium with scorching
temp of up to 60 C.
Though some animals
have managed to adapt
to the harshness of
the lake, most animals
that venture into
these waters find
themselves victims of
the lakes
mummification ability.
13. Rainbow eucalyptus
Scientifically known as
Eucalyptus deglupta,
the rainbow
eucalyptus is a 6 foot
(1.8 m) wide and over
200 foot (61 m) tall
tree. The tree is
characterized by its
unique multi-hued
bark.
14. Running rocks
Also known as sailing
stones or moving
rocks, it refer to a
geological phenomenon
in which rocks move
and inscribe long
tracks along the floor
without any human or
animal intervention.
The origin of this is
not completely clear
yet. The heaviest
running rocks that
have been reported
weighed about almost
320 kg.
15. Pororoca wave
The Pororoca wave is
12 feet high tidal
wave that travels as
far as 800 km up the
Amazon River. The
longest wave in the
world forms only twice
a year from February
to March, when the
tides of the Atlantic
Ocean meet the mouth
of the Amazon.