Starling murmuration over the ruins of Brightons West Pier, England Jan 8, 2026

Starling murmuration over the ruins of Brightons West Pier, England

Today is a day that puts time into perspective. Old Rock Day highlights the vast geological processes that have shaped our world since its earliest eras. In Arches National Park, Utah, United States, Turret Arch—seen through North Window—offers a striking reminder: landscapes can take hundreds of millions of years to assemble. The Entrada Sandstone that forms these arches began as shifting dunes and shallow seas long before erosion carved today"s shapes. Even so, these formations are relatively young. Most rocks on Earth disappear over time because plate tectonics, erosion and volcanism continually recycle the crust. Only the planet"s ancient continental shields preserve truly old material. Canada"s Acasta Gneiss, about 4 billion years old, is the oldest known rock still rooted where it formed.

© Philip Reeve/Photodisc/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Where we go to play
Jan 8, 2024Bernina Pass, Graubunden, Switzerland
Jan 8, 2025Great Wall of China

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jun 6, 202581st anniversary of D-Day
Wait, mountain – you shall bear my castle!
See-through cephalopod
Dec 23, 2023Chinstrap penguins
Jan 4, 2024Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California
A day for the worlds Indigenous populations
Jan 16, 2025Pinnacles National Park, California, United States
A beacon in the golden light
One giant leap for mankind
Dec 15, 2025Spiegelgracht canal in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Aug 20, 2024Sunrise at Grand Teton National Park
Jun 24, 2025Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah, United States
Stairway to heaven?
Feb 14, 2025Happy Valentines Day!
In the spotlight
Jun 20, 2025Seljalandsfoss waterfall at sunset, Iceland
Feb 28, 2024Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland, England
Nov 10, 2023Badlands National Park, South Dakota, USA
May 26, 2024Methow Valley, North Cascades, Washington, USA
Jan 14, 2025Makar Sankranti
Sep 19, 2023Ganesh Chaturthi
A sacred water tank in Hampi
The picturesque Mughal architecture
Oct 29, 2024Great horned owl
Mar 3, 2024World Wildlife Day
May 13, 2024Fish River Canyon, Namibia
Dec 24, 2025Christmas Eve
You otter check this out
Jan 5, 2026A herd of impalas, Londolozi Game Reserve, South Africa
Dec 3, 2024Amber Fort, Amer, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India