Environmental Graffiti

Atacama’s Inhospitable Valley of the Moon

There are spots on earth that seem not of this earth. Chile’s Valle de la Luna, or Valley of the Moon, is one of those places. Barren, inhospitable and bursting with bizarre, polychromatic rock formations, it’s easy to see why this unique setting gets its name. Those who didn’t know better might think the scenes on the desert planet of Tatooine in Star Wars were filmed here, so otherworldly does this bone-dry landscape appear.

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The Giant Hand Buried in the Atacama Desert

It looks like the extremity of a giant man, buried by a monumental sandstorm. In the wasteland of Chile’s Atacama Desert, 75 km to the south of the city of Antofagasta, a strange and unexpected sight confronts the eye: four fingers, a thumb and part of a palm, emerging from the sand. Set against the azure sky, this surreal giant hand is of course not made of flesh but stone.

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8 Incredible Martian Landscapes

As 40,000 fans say goodbye to the now-retired Mars Phoenix Lander on Twitter and Facebook, its discovery of water on the Red Planet may strengthen scientists' position that Mars is the ideal location for future human colonization. But with the first manned space mission nearly 20 years away, even a visit seems like a pipe dream. So in lieu of the real deal, we found these eight Blue Planet locales that can give you an idea of what a view from your Martian home might look like.

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