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Mystery: Huge Death Valley Rocks Slide/Move On Own

geology.com — Scientists baffled by rocks (some 100s of pounds) apparently moving, sliding on own across "almost perfectly flat" & dry desert area called, Racetrack Playa. No one has seen movement but long visible trails left behind. Number of theories, based on unique nature of desert surface, wind, etc. [Piece includes photos.]

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  • lekahe, on 01/16/2008, -3/+14This is very interesting. I had heard of these before, but this is a very thorough article
    • OwdenBowden, on 01/16/2008, -4/+2Like G-D's Etch A Sketch
    • green67, on 01/16/2008, -2/+1now I know how Patrick's rock beat "Snelly" and "Gary" in that race I watched with my kids.....oh wait....they're underwater.....ooops...my bad....OK...everybody sing along..."OOOOOOOOO....who lives in a pineaplle under the sea?"
  • allaboutdatiki, on 01/16/2008, -5/+26 ... it's the racetrack, playa. NASCAR for rocks.
    • PixelEater, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1It's not Nascar without the rednecks...
  • forthegift, on 01/16/2008, -3/+12Rocks traveling solo, no problem. But if the mountains start moving, not so sure.
  • calvmari, on 01/16/2008, -2/+26... and a new theory for stone henge emerges!
    • blackbeardtron, on 01/16/2008, -1/+16Aaah, Stonehenge! The largest henge in the world!
    • Otto, on 01/16/2008, -0/+12"In ancient times, hundreds of years before the dawn of history, lived a strange race of people: the Druids. No one knows who they were, or what they were doing, but their legacy remains hewn into the living rock ... of Stonehenge."
  • ScienceDoc, on 01/16/2008, -9/+60Yes this is interesting. But this is about the 20th time it has been on Digg.
    • ryodoan, on 01/16/2008, -6/+30Well, I am glad it came back for the 20th time because I actually missed the first 19 :)
  • TheSavant, on 01/16/2008, -18/+35It has also been solved. This is no longer a mystery. Do some research. It was pretty interesting to read about.
    • ordig, on 01/16/2008, -3/+35thanks for the link.
      any other pearls of wisdom?
      /s
      • LemurHorde, on 01/16/2008, -2/+13Wikipedia explains it a little more in depth than the article. (hoping digg doesn't kill my link...)
        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailing_stones
      • Otto, on 01/16/2008, -1/+23Short answer: The wind along the playa is stronger towards the surface and in combination with very thin ice flows in the winter, this is enough to start the stones moving. Once they're moving, the friction decreases by more than half, and they can move quite far all at once. Mostly happens during a winter storm.

        They got it on film too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1hoiHvOeGc
        • clickwir, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1Actually, they got water on film. No rocks moving. Close....
      • TheSavant, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1You want me to do the work for you? I am not going search the web for some story that I read sometime in the past. Why don't you do your own work instead of just being a sarcastic, lazy slob?
        How's that for a pearl of wisdom? Anything else? I'd be glad to give you a necklace of wisdom.
  • wonderchemist, on 01/16/2008, -1/+30Pfft. They're just silicon based life, moving around the only way they know how. We won't realize it until one of them decides to write out "No Kill I"
  • senorcool, on 01/16/2008, -4/+3I wish they covered why it could or could not be all of the numerous minor earthquakes produces by the San Andreas fault. The waves from the earthquakes would push the rocks in the same direction and to the same effect as the wind theory. Sweet pictures also.
    • clickwir, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1Even a small tremor or quake would be too large to move some rocks in one direction and others in another and some not at all. The ice/frozen ground + wind theory is able to take on things from multiple directions and at a much MUCH smaller scale.
  • santiago1, on 01/16/2008, -6/+19 Spongebob's driving 'em around, just like the pioneers did.
    Squidward: "Hoooold on, there, Jethro!"
    • cyrix, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1Oh wow, that was by far the best episode of Spongebob ever. KRUSTY CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYEAHHHHHHAAAAAAAABBBBBB PIZZA...
  • Grova, on 01/16/2008, -3/+2Thing? Is that you?
  • designerutah, on 01/16/2008, -7/+2The invisible man is just messing with our heads!
  • bigfinger, on 01/16/2008, -4/+3it's the wind
    • guerj, on 01/16/2008, -5/+3If the wind is strong enough to move a 100lb rock, it's strong enough to erase the track.
    • samcrut, on 01/16/2008, -0/+5The wind only effects them when it rains. The ground turns to lubricating mud and the wind can move the rocks a little bit and then the ground hardens when it dries.
  • cchapman85, on 01/16/2008, -7/+0Lol... Someone is playing tricks on you. Running around the desert pushing rocks around. Funny.
  • benjic, on 01/16/2008, -3/+6Heres how it goes down. You have an area with high winds and drastic temperature changes...

    Water vapor collects on the ground forming ice layers at night, high winds push the rocks across very slowly. Or at least thats what someone said the last time this hit the front page.
  • cstatman, on 01/16/2008, -1/+30It's called the "racetrack" and his been studied and documented, and written about extensively.

    youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1hoiHvOeGc

    US Geological Survery: http://wrgis.wr.usgs.gov/parks/deva/ftrac1.html

    essay: http://sophia.smith.edu/~lfletche/deathvalley.html

    its been discussed to tears, yet? is still pretty interesting

    I'll be there in February, and will give a big Digg shout out ... to the rocks.
  • dotlizard, on 01/16/2008, -2/+8crop circles, for the agriculturally impaired.
  • stevemarciano, on 01/16/2008, -2/+14hate the game, not the playa
  • michelsonmorley, on 01/16/2008, -4/+1I expected more footprints in the pictures. Is the soil hard or did they just take pictures of virgin land?
    • vervalsing, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3Nope for some reason there's not a lot of soft soil or mud in Death Valley. I can't for the life of me imagine why...
  • jmpeagle, on 01/16/2008, -3/+5so that's how the great pyramids were built....they built themselves
  • crapmatic, on 01/16/2008, -6/+1Is anyone willing to bet it doesn't flash flood in Death Valley? They do get 2" per year, not counting what the surrounding mountains might get and drain into this basin area. Add some fast currents of water, and a rock can drag along just fine. You can see that the rock tracks look kind of mushy.

    (also speaking of rocks, it sure seems like a lot of dumb comments have crawled out from under one around here)
    • NoCt1, on 01/16/2008, -0/+5Wouldnt the water erase the tracks if it is a flash flood?
    • visceroth, on 01/16/2008, -1/+2the water wouldn't erase the tracks because it doesn't move out it dries up. If there is no moving water than all of the tracks would not be erased. I have been there and there is a sign that says "Do not step on the track when it is wet. Your footprints may be present for years afterwards." The ground out there is VERY hard. No footprints will be visible when a person steps out there when it's dry.
  • nickstl77, on 01/16/2008, -1/+14Yes, interesting article, but it isn't a mystery and hasn't been for some time now. Research revealed a layer of water, wind and sometimes ice helps to propel the rocks across the playa.

    More info, and a decent video of the phenomenon is here: http://onemansblog.com/2007/09/06/death-valleys-sa ...
  • DrunkenSavior, on 01/16/2008, -1/+5Correct me of I'm wrong, but I think the Planet Earth documentary series has time-elapsed video of this that shouldn't be missed. If not, somewhere out there exists TE video of it.
  • travbrack, on 01/16/2008, -4/+3Magnets
    • lamech, on 01/16/2008, -2/+1I would have put a question mark on the end of that, however, I was also curious as to whether or not this could be magnetic propulsion.
    • Privil3g3, on 01/18/2008, -0/+0fail
  • TreatsTheBear, on 01/16/2008, -5/+0Obviously 'shopped.
  • iancorey, on 01/16/2008, -0/+10I often hear diggers complain about the same things posted over and over again. Now I can sympathize. This is caused when there is sufficient depth of water, at night the water will freeze a collar around the rock, the ice is buoyant, the winds push the little rock boats along.

    I mean, um... God does it.
  • rgaino, on 01/16/2008, -2/+4Why did the rock cross the road?
  • diggzoid, on 01/16/2008, -2/+1Odd that they don't seem to mention how fast these things travel, it could be 1 mile per 1000 years or an inch a day. Presumably someone has measured this....
    • SolitarySoviet, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1well you would have to find an average because if its caused by water forming and wind helping then you couldn't possibly give any relevant number unless you KNOW exactly every second of weather the area gets.... and there really isn't anything clockwork about weather no matter how badly we try and predict or record events.... so basically its impossible without pulling a ton of figures out of your ass....
  • URnotheonly1, on 01/16/2008, -2/+4They make great pets! You guys want to buy some?
  • mikedoth, on 01/16/2008, -6/+2Could they be influenced by the magnetic poles, or something magnetic under ground?
  • ouRONIN, on 01/16/2008, -1/+5When there is water on the lake bed it freezes at night. High winds then push the giant sheet of ice along with the rocks.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1hoiHvOeGc
  • freshyill, on 01/16/2008, -2/+7Can we bury this as inaccurate, since it was solved long ago?
  • mikehill33, on 01/16/2008, -5/+1pretyt neat, why doesn't someone film it and post to youtube?
  • andyd273, on 01/16/2008, -1/+1I'm voting on scientists discovering that they are moved by the Nac Mac Feegle.
    Just go out the the playa at night and listen for the shouts of 'Crivens!'
  • rodgerdodger5, on 01/16/2008, -3/+2This guy named Astley moves them at night?
    Video of new evidence:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBGIQ7ZuuiU
  • Obsidian743, on 01/16/2008, -3/+1Am I the only one that wants to know how the hell these random rocks got out there in the first place?
    • visceroth, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1they aren't random rocks. What is not shown in these pictures is there is what is called "The Grandstand" in the middle of this place where the rocks come from.
    • Privil3g3, on 01/18/2008, -0/+0yes. now sit down, you're annoying everyone else
  • banido, on 01/16/2008, -2/+2Paper beats rock, so paper is moving them.
    Mystery solved.
  • mccartyba, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2Not reading the article, but I've read about this back in 2nd grade... Its supposed to be moved by the ice that forms under it during the freakishly cold desert nights.
  • 7fields, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2National Geographic magazine just recently had an article about Death Valley and the Racetrack.
    http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-11/deat ...
    • Privil3g3, on 01/18/2008, -0/+0There are some incredible KAP's by Michael Melford in that issue. I am so keen to try our kite photography but too scared to strap my DSLR to something that might end up hitting a tree
  • fani, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4My money is on rock # 3
  • mi0capa, on 01/16/2008, -0/+0This isnt a mystery anymore, some scientist have these rocks moving on film.
    Its because of the occatinal rains (that create a real slippery surface) and then storng winds to push them along.
  • Scheissen, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2old
  • m0zzie, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1this is interesting and all, but am I the only one who's noticed a lot of articles making front page twice lately? the same story on a different site was on the digg front page about 2 weeks ago too..
  • Treoinmypocket, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2You know what I think is funny?

    All the people decrying that this isn't a mystery anymore and that its been on DIGG before....yet somehow those very same people don't notice that someone has made the very same COMMENT before...in the very same comment thread.
    • FaithclubDotNet, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2I saved your comment so I can post it again when moving rocks from Death Valley gets posted again.
  • mohrt, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2No longer a mystery. Water covers the mud, freezes at night, wind moves the ice (and rock) around on the mud.
  • awwe, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1It was me. I moved them. I'm sorry. :(
  • cl2yp71c, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2I want to see an aerial photo.
    The aliens must've got tired of the corn.
  • jdzz, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1those must be live rocks. To survive it must move out of the death valley
    • lamech, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1I can already picture the wildlife documentary...
  • mydingaling, on 01/16/2008, -0/+0Has anyone seen my rock?
  • GreatSunJester, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1They have found the lost pet rock mating grounds --- last visited in the early 80s.
  • DrunkenSavior, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3What a beautiful Landsat image!

    C'mon fellow geology nerds, back me up here! :(
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