Badlands National Park in South Dakota Jul 22, 2025

Badlands National Park in South Dakota

As the sun sets over Badlands National Park, the landscape transforms into a stunning display of color. The national park, located in southwestern South Dakota, features a dramatic terrain of eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires carved by millennia of wind and water. Spanning over 379 square miles, the park is divided into three main units: the North Unit, home to the visitor center and scenic Badlands Loop Road; and the Stronghold and Palmer Creek units. The park"s dramatic terrain is the result of sedimentary rock layers eroding at a rate of about one inch per year, revealing colorful bands of volcanic ash, silt, and clay. These formations are not only visually striking but also rich in fossils, including remains from the Oligocene Epoch (about 33.9 to 23 million years ago), such as ancient horses, camels, and saber-toothed cats.

© Petr Bednarik/Danita Delimont/Alamy

palette

Today in History

Jul 22, 2018Travel Sunday: On the Ganges in Varanasi, India
Jul 22, 2019Let’s go mothing
Jul 22, 2020Wildebeest on the move
Jul 22, 2021Singing praises of the oceans
Jul 22, 2022Our Lady of the Rocks
Jul 22, 2023National Hammock Day

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 15, 2025National Mushroom Day
Mar 20, 2025Spring equinox
May 10, 2021An ancient sailing tradition takes to the water
Apr 6, 2024Castle Day in Japan
May 3, 2018Nazar amulets, Goreme National Park, Cappadocia, Turkey
Aug 2, 2023Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
Mar 19, 2020Sunburst at Angkor
Aug 29, 2025Aerial view of Plaza Mayor, Madrid, Spain
Jan 18, 2018Entoloma hochstetteri mushroom at Lake Mahinapua, New Zealand
Jan 12, 2021Sailing on thick ice
Apr 9, 2021A timeless view of the night sky
Apr 24, 2021A garden of prickly delights
Dec 15, 2022Borovets ski resort in Bulgaria
May 20, 2018Who doesn’t love a ‘Puppy’?
Sep 14, 2023Przewalskis horses, Hustai National Park, Mongolia
Dec 23, 2018Make your list and check it twice
Sep 7, 2018An historic forest
May 24, 2020Let s get lost
Dec 3, 2021Frost on autumn leaves
May 27, 2018Travel Sunday: San Francisco
May 19, 2024Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy
Apr 21, 2019The Easter Bunny’s story
Feb 26, 2022Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
Dec 11, 2022Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada
Dec 23, 2023Festivus
Jan 31, 2024International Zebra Day
Apr 20, 2018No, it s not a leaf. Happy Look-alike Day
Dec 8, 2024Notre-Dame Cathedral reopens
Dec 7, 2018Honoring our fallen heroes
Apr 12, 2019A story of wind and ice