An astronaut captured this image of the Oyyl Dune Field in Kazakhstan from the International Space Station. To the south and east of the dune field (right and lower parts Keep reading
Tag: dunes
How Dunes Form
On its face, the idea that sand and wind can come together to form massive mountainous dunes seems bizarre. But dunes — and their smaller cousins, ripples — are everywhere, Keep reading
Ice and Dunes
Although dunes are usually associated with scorching climates, they can form in any desert, including in the frozen steppes of western Mongolia. This sunrise photo, taken by an astronaut aboard Keep reading
Dune Invasion
Migrating sand dunes can encounter obstacles both natural and manmade as they move. Dunes — both above ground and under water — have been known to bury roads, pipelines, and Keep reading
Blue Dunes
This false-color image shows a Martian dune field near the northern polar cap. The image itself covers an area 30 kilometers wide, but the dune field stretches over an area Keep reading
An Oasis Among Dunes
The Saudi Arabian oasis of Jubbah sits in the bed of an ancient lake. It’s protected from the westerly winds that sculpt the surrounding dunes by the wind shadow of Keep reading
Dunes Avoid Collisions
The speed at which a dune migrates depends on its size; smaller dunes move faster than larger ones. That speed differential implies that small dunes should frequently collide into and Keep reading
The Sand Sea’s End
The northern extent of Africa’s Namib Sand Sea ends where the reddish dunes meet the Kuiseb River and the hard, rocky land on its other side. Within the sand sea, Keep reading
Namibia From Above
From above, we see an all-new perspective on the flows of air and water that shape our world. Although they look like abstract art, these aerial photographs of Namibia by Keep reading
Dune Networks
In sandy deserts, winds can build a vast network of dunes whose shapes depend on the winds that built them. This photograph, taken by an astronaut aboard the International Space Keep reading