NASA’s Picture of the Day: Unusual Rocks in Death Valley
Explanation: How did those big rocks end up on that strange terrain? One of the more unusual places here on Earth occurs
inside Death Valley, California, USA. There a dried lakebed named Racetrack Playa exists that is almost perfectly flat,
with the odd exception of some very large stones, one of which is pictured above. Now the flatness and texture of large
playa like Racetrack are fascinating but not scientifically puzzling -- they are caused by mud flowing, drying, and
cracking after a heavy rain. Only recently, however, has a viable scientific hypothesis been given to explain how
300-kilogram stones ended up near the middle of such a large flat surface. Unfortunately, as frequently happens in
science, a seemingly surreal problem ends up having a relatively mundane solution. It turns out that high winds after a
rain can push even heavy rocks across a momentarily slick lakebed.