Over the boardwalk Jul 28, 2020

In this shallow stretch of Shark Bay in Western Australia, a natural record of Earth"s history lies just below the water"s surface. Hamelin Pool Marine Nature Reserve protects our planet"s biggest collections of stromatolites—small sedimentary rock towers built up over the centuries. Each layer captures fossils of the many microorganisms that populate our oceans. Some of the stromatolites in Hamelin Pool contain fossil specimens that are 3 billion years old. When you"re strolling down the boardwalk of Hamelin Pool, you"re walking over an unparalleled collection of biological history. The view of the Indian Ocean"s not bad either.

© Abstract Aerial Art/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Jul 28, 2018Defying gravity on a swing ride
Jul 28, 2019Road-trip worthy attraction in the heartland
Jul 28, 2019Road-trip worthy attraction in the heartland
Jul 28, 2021A goldie gala
Jul 28, 2022Longs Peak, Rocky Mountain National Park
Jul 28, 2023San Blas Islands, Panama
Jul 28, 2024Bathing huts in Skåne County, Sweden
Jul 28, 2025World Nature Conservation Day

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Dec 18, 2021Full moon
Oct 20, 2020Reflecting on fall
Jun 10, 2018Travel Sunday: Sintra, Portugal
Jan 15, 2022To Sua Ocean Trench
Apr 21, 2024National Park Week continues
Apr 10, 2022Siblings Day
Dec 28, 2019Did they forget to fly south?
Jun 17, 2019World-class art comes to Arkansas
Oct 8, 2024World Octopus Day
May 24, 2019Not your average sandcastle
Apr 21, 2018Celebrating National Park Week, April 21-29
Nov 9, 2020Autumn in Piedmont
Dec 25, 2022Merry Christmas!
Jan 5, 2020Digging the birds
Mar 30, 2022Belted Galloway cows
Jan 13, 2018Fire-damaged forest near Wolf Creek Pass, Colorado
Dec 27, 2024Lake Bled, Slovenia
Jun 24, 2024Kelimutu, Flores, Indonesia
Nov 26, 2020Happy Thanksgiving from an expert face-stuffer
Jun 14, 2025Flag Day
Jan 23, 2020Across the great plains of Africa
Sep 28, 2022A. M. Foster Bridge in Cabot, Vermont
Apr 4, 2019Taking the forest to the cloud
Jan 22, 2018Bird’s-eye view of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California
Mar 11, 2019You re feeling sleepy
Jan 24, 2022Manhattan
Dec 7, 2022National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
May 5, 2024Happy Cinco de Mayo!
Mar 25, 2025Tolkien Reading Day
Apr 18, 2022Square Tower House in Mesa Verde National Park