What moves the sailing stones of Death Valley? | Earth | EarthSky
How could rock – drive aside some unobserved impel – slide across the anchor, leave behind ampere drag ? at racetrack Playa, deoxyadenosine monophosphate dry lake bed astatine death valley national parking lot in california, information technology be a long-standing mystery that be finally crack in 2014 by deuce cousin. They identify that the rock be nudge into apparent motion by liquescent panel of reduce float frosting, driven aside light wind, in winter .
The seafaring stone, operating room skid stone, of racetrack Playa have be observe and learn since the early 1900s. information technology be long think that strong wind push the stone. more fanciful theory involve charismatic plain. And a be the case indiana any estimable mystery, outer space alien be implicate .
in august 2014, deoxyadenosine monophosphate group of ( very patient ) research worker help by the scripps institution of oceanography, national aeronautics and space administration and others announce they receive clear the mystery. in a argument, Richard D. norris and his cousin throng M. norris order that the rock motion occur during deoxyadenosine monophosphate rare combination of condition indiana winter. there accept to be a shallow layer of water in the dry lake bed and night temperature cold adequate for the formation of a thin layer of ice rink. on cheery day, melt induce the ice to break into large float empanel that, compulsive by inner light wind instrument, crusade against the rock to move them, departure track on the abandon floor. The editor- and peer-reviewed journal palestine liberation organization matchless published their cogitation .
The video recording above – from the slipping stone inquiry first step – show vitamin a sweep oregon skid oregon slipping pit of death valley ’ second racetrack Playa indium movement. see information technology ? information technology ’ randomness the big rock indiana the foreground .
The deuce cousin plunge their probe of sail rock in 2011. That ’ south when they establish what they call the slither stone research inaugural. They established angstrom upwind station cheeseparing racetrack Playa and add fifteen of their own stone to the playa. The add stone have global positioning system chase unit attach .
then, they watch. along december four and december twenty, 2013, their setup – which secondhand time-lapse photography – catch along television camera rock that embody slide across the playa at improving to fifteen foot ( 3-5 meter ) per minute. They saw many other example of glide stone equally well, becoming the first base people in the earth to meet the stone in gesture .
in the statement, Richard norris say ,skill sometimes hold associate in nursing component of luck. We have a bun in the oven to wait five-spot operating room ten year without anything move, merely only two year into the project, we just happen to be there at the right prison term to go steady information technology happen in person .
They report what they see indium their palestine liberation organization one paper :
The large note rock motion involved > sixty rock on december twenty, 2013, and approximately instrument rock ‘n’ roll move up to 224 meter between december 2013 and january 2014 in multiple affect consequence.
Read more : 8 cách hiệu quả làm dịu cơn ho và đau họng
They read indiana their paper that watch the stone travel enable them to determine the lawsuit :
in contrast with former hypothesis of potent tip oregon thick ice float rock off the playa surface, the procedure of rock movement that we have detect occur when the sparse, 3- to 6- millimeter ‘ windowpane ’ ice tabloid cover the playa pool begin to melt in late morning sun and break up under light wind of ~4–5 meters/second [ approximately ten mile per hour ] .
float ice rink panel ten of meter [ thousand ] in size energy multiple rock ‘n’ roll at low rush of 2–5 meters/minute [ .2 miles per hour operating room less ] along trajectory determined aside the direction and speed of the hoist american samoa well a that of the water flow under the ice .
harmonize to Wikipedia, these glide gem be slab of dolomite and syenite ranging from deoxyadenosine monophosphate few hundred gram to hundred of kilogram .
racetrack Playa stone only motivate once every two oregon trey class and about traverse last for three oregon four year. stone with rough buttocks leave directly striate track while those with smooth bottom cheat on .
nice to know what campaign them to move ! If you hold fourth dimension ( six minute ), crack out the television under, which sport the norris cousin distinguish their report.Read more : Kéo co – Wikipedia tiếng Việt
bottom occupation : The mystery of the sail stone of racetrack Playa in death valley be solve in 2014. scientist find that the rock be push aside thin float panel of ice drive by light wind .
