Black Rock Desert in Nevada (Mars branch on Earth)

Black Rock Desert в in the state of Nevada ( Mars branch on Earth )
Unusual places on Earth. Deserts. State of Nevada. Black Rock Desert.
Unusual places of the world. Unusual places in the world photos. Photos of the Black Rock Desert.

«Black Desertin the American state of Nevada — an amazing corner of our planet where hot geysers soar into the clouds and the sand is colored black. This desert is part of the dried-up prehistoric Lake Lahontan, which existed 18-7 thousand years BC during the last Ice Age.

This mystical place with dry black rocks and sparkling geysers attracts with its otherworldly atmosphere.

The Black Rock Desert is a salt flat, a closed basin lake in the northwest of Nevada. The desert stretches 110 km long and 32 km wide. It is part of the closed Great Basin.


This desert features numerous volcanic and geothermal formations.


This famous geyser called Fly is actually no taller than a human. But thanks to the fortunate angle of the shot and lighting, photographers managed to create an image as if it were the most beautiful giant on the planet, constantly erupting three streams of water:


Minerals, algae, and cyanobacteria give it this incredible color:


Once upon a time, there was a ranch called Fly where this geyser is located, but in 1916, the ranch owner drilled a well in hopes of turning the desert into fertile wet meadows, but accidentally drilled into a geothermal pocket of water. However, it wasn't until 1964 that boiling water began to shoot to the surface, creating this geothermal beauty:


The landowners where the geyser is located have been offered several times to sell their land to open access for everyone, but so far they have refused. This monument is surrounded by fences and gates, so tourists need to ask the owners for permission to visit this land in advance.


Since the 1990s, an annual festival called Burning Man has been held in the desert, attracting several tens of thousands of people to the desolate areas of the desert. During the festival, monetary transactions are completely prohibited on its territory, as well as vehicle movement.


This place is famous for its paleontological features, as well as the fact that in the 19th century, migration routes to California passed through here. Additionally, this location is often used to measure the speed of ground and rocket vehicles.


The dry surface of the lake bed in the southern part served as a testing ground for setting land speed records. The speed record — 1,228 km/h — over a one-mile (1.6 km) distance was set by Andy Green from the UK in the 'Thrust SSC' vehicle in the Black Rock Desert in October 1997. The car was powered by two 'Rolls-Royce' jet engines. It was the first car to exceed the speed of sound.