To feel like an astronaut landing on an alien planet and seeing an extraterrestrial landscape, there’s no need to take a long space journey and roam the eternal void. There are plenty of places on this planet where utterly otherworldly landscapes amaze and inspire with their alien beauty.
Formed by earthquakes, volcanic activity, and millennia of work by water, fire, and wind, these places look so strange that people who see them can only admire the magnificence and diversity of the wonderful world around them.
Dry Valleys McMurdo, Antarctica
This remarkable and bizarre location is found on the surface of the snowiest continent on the planet. It has never rained here. This place is called the “Dry Valleys.” They span an area of over eight thousand square kilometers, completely devoid of ice.
Winds here exceed speeds of 300 km/h, and any moisture that touches this barren land immediately evaporates. Resembling a Martian desert, the “Dry Valleys” serve as a natural testing ground for researchers conducting various space and military-related experiments.
Stone Forest Shilin
Centuries of work by Mother Nature, such as erosion from winds and washing by seawater, have culminated in this location, creating an impressive work of art that the Chinese named Shilin. The result of this titanic effort is tall, pointed cliffs resembling stone trees.
In the “Stone Forest,” there are also numerous grottoes and impressive waterfalls. Legends and eerie stories abound about the rituals performed here, and every June, a grand torchlight procession festival is held.
Uyuni Salt Flats
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Located in Bolivia, the Uyuni Salt Flats are unlike any ordinary lake. The salt flat’s surface is perfectly smooth, and when it rains, it turns into a mirror reflecting the sky, making the horizon disappear. This gives the place an appearance as if it has fallen into a parallel world.
Giant’s Causeway
Often referred to as the “Giant’s Path,” this site features over forty thousand basalt columns, formed long ago by a volcanic eruption. This “path for cyclopes” is located in Ireland, near the town of Bushmills.
The shape and height of the columns vary, and in reality, the “Giant’s Causeway” resembles a cobblestone street laid by nature itself. The path gradually descends to the ocean, creating an astonishing sight.
Death Valley
This place lies between the state of California and the lands of Nevada. Once a seabed, now it features strange-shaped cliffs jutting out. It looks as though someone in a rage scattered massive rocks amid dunes, where the ground is covered with a salty hexagonal network.
However, the main mystery of this place is the “moving stones.” Their oddity lies in their ability to move across the salt flats, leaving distinctive tracks behind. Scientists have yet to understand where and why these boulders are moving.