Deserts

Each bare patch of clay-crusted earth is about 13 feet across.

The Magical Mathematics Behind 'Fairy Circles'

Competing theories suggest that the patches come from termite activity, grass competition over water, or a combination of both

Researchers identified seven prehistoric human footprints at Alathar, a dried-up lake bed in Saudi Arabia.

Human Footprints Found in Saudi Arabia May Be 120,000 Years Old

If confirmed, the footfalls would represent the oldest evidence of Homo sapiens' presence on the Arabian Peninsula

A unique moss species thrives underneath translucent quartz rocks in the hot, dry Mojave Desert while its neighbors shrivel.

Desert Moss Beats Heat by Growing Under Quartz Crystals

Researchers find the translucent rocks keep the moss moist while letting just enough light pass through its milky interior

A visitor walks on the Badwater Basin salt flats on August 18, 2020 in Death Valley National Park, California.

Death Valley Hits a Blistering 130 Degrees, Potentially Setting New Record

If confirmed, this scorcher would be the hottest temperature recorded on Earth since at least 1931

Bald Eagles Found Nesting in Arizona Saguaro Cactus for First Time in Decades

The prickly perch is an exciting sign of success for the birds, which came off the endangered species list in 2007

The Blue Mountains of Niger. Arable land in the fast-growing country shrank nearly 50 percent per capita from 1996 to 2016.

Photographs From One of the World's Most Troubled, and Least Understood, Regions

A photojournalist journeys to the Sahara-Sahel desert of remote northern Africa to catalogue the state of emergency on the ground

This Little Brazilian Dinosaur Ran Across the Desert on One Toe

The recently unearthed dog-sized theropod is a rare example of monodactyl dinosaurs

Wildflower enthusiasts waiting to exit toward Walker Canyon on March 9, 2019.

Superbloom Turns Southern California City Into a #Poppynightmare

Lake Elsinore has seen tens of thousands of people descend on Walker Canyon to see the recent superbloom, overwhelming local resources

Southern California Will Soon See Another Booming Superbloom

If the rain keeps up, the deserts and burn scars will soon explode with acres of colorful poppies, lupines, lilies and other ephemeral flowers

Mansa Musa as seen in the Catalan Atlas.

New Exhibition Highlights Story of the Richest Man Who Ever Lived

Read about Mansa Musa, emperor of Mali, who once disrupted Egypt's economy just by passing through

"Slab City: Dispatches from the Last Free Place" is a new book that explores a one-square-mile patch of desert in Imperial County, California, that once served as a military base. Seen here is a sentry box that once guarded Camp Dunlap’s southwest perimeter.

Inside Slab City, a Squatters’ Paradise in Southern California

Architect and author Charlie Hailey and photographer Donovan Wylie capture one of America’s last free places

This critter soaks in the heat of a 112 degrees Fahrenheit day in Death Valley.

Death Valley Scorches Its Own Record for the Hottest Month in History

Temperatures averaged a blistering 108.1 degrees Fahrenheit for the month of July

Take a 3D Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West

New state-of-the-art scans allow virtual visits to the architect's winter home and gives conservators detailed blueprints

Yes, You Can Go Sandboarding in the Namib Desert

The Namibian town of Swakopmund is a top tourist draw for desert lovers. Popular activities include quad-biking and sandboarding down its massive dunes

Most White Sands moths are white to blend in with their environment, but a select few black species have evolved as well.

Dissecting Moth Genitals In the Name of Science

How “moth evangelist” Eric Metzler uncovered hundreds of moth species in the barren dunes of New Mexico

Fossil Tracks May Record Ancient Humans Hunting Giant Sloths

The tracks suggest a human—perhaps in search of food—closely followed the movements of the massive creature

Several views of a fossilized finger bone found Al Wusta site, Saudi Arabia.

Rare 85,000-year-old Finger Bone Complicates Our Understanding of African Migration

The fossil builds on the theory that humans left Africa in multiple waves, and suggests they made it as far as the Arabian Desert

Bears Ears National Monument

Five Things to Know About the Redrawn National Monuments

The president is reducing two massive National Monuments by millions of acres. Read the context behind the decision and what to expect going forward

This Artist Is Crowdsourcing "Singing" Sand From Around the World

Amsterdam-based artist Lotte Geeven is making sand symphonies for a public artwork debuting next spring

Watch First Video of Sand Cat Kittens Romping in the Wild

The elusive kittens were documented sitting under a bush in the Moroccan Sahara last April

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