Abiqua Falls in Oregon is a beautiful example of a basalt column amphitheater. Over 90 percent of all volcanic rock is basalt, but only a small fraction of it forms into the hexagonal columns that you see here. When molten lava hits the atmosphere, rapid cooling causes it to contract into these characteristic columns. It"s just part of what makes Abiqua Falls so spectacular.
Midwinter freeze
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
International Sloth Day
-
Sweetheart Abbey, Scotland
-
Methow Valley, North Cascades, Washington
-
Honoring the rangers on World Ranger Day
-
Aït Benhaddou, Morocco
-
Forward-thinking women of history
-
Veterans Day
-
High seas commerce
-
Brown pelican, San Diego, California
-
Polar Bear Week
-
Green sea turtle on World Oceans Day
-
Fallen but not forgotten
-
International Geodiversity Day
-
River Quoich in Aberdeenshire, Scotland
-
Moeraki Boulders, South Island, New Zealand
-
Mountain goats at Glacier National Park in Montana
-
Salzburg, Austria
-
Native American Heritage Day
-
Sutherland Falls in Fiordland National Park
-
Celebrating World Water Day
-
It s Computer Science Education Week
-
International Day for Monuments and Sites
-
Three Natural Bridges, Wulong Karst, China
-
Colle Santa Lucia, Dolomites, Italy
-
The Monastery of Roussanou, Greece
-
Ayutthaya Historical Park, Thailand
-
Sunbeams across Tartu County, Estonia
-
Rockin with the rockhoppers
-
Let s get lost
-
Chicagohenge