There are many interesting things on Earth, and some of them are quite strange. And they have nothing to do with science fiction. These are quite real phenomena recorded by scientists. Some of them look scary, while others are mesmerizing with their uniqueness. In this review, the strangest facts about planet Earth.
1. Reversible poles
Over the past 20 million years, the Earth's magnetic poles have changed places approximately every hundred thousand years. All this means that if 800 thousand years ago a man with a compass appeared on Earth, then the north could be in Antarctica. Scientists are convinced that the metal core of our planet is responsible for the pole change. At the moment, the North Pole is moving at a speed of about 64 km per year.
2. Big Moon
Our planet has an unusually large satellite. The moon has a diameter of a quarter of the earth's. This pair of celestial bodies in the solar system is surpassed in size ratio only by a pair from Pluto and its satellite Charon. By the way, the Moon is also very close to the Earth. This is great luck. For this reason, among other things, we can observe solar eclipses.
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3. Migration of bats
The largest mammalian migration on Earth is like a horror movie. It's about the migration of bats. This phenomenon can be observed every year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kasanka National Park in Zambia. There are so many mice that they are able to completely stick around a tree, turning it into a black, teeming mass.
4. Killer mushrooms go on the attack
The largest organism on our planet is not a blue whale, an elephant, or even a tree. These are mushrooms. The largest mushroom network was found in the United States, in the state of Oregon. Of course, the mushrooms themselves are not very large and they grow on the ground. But underground they are connected by a system of mycelium, better known as "mycelium".
In 1998, scientists began investigating the strange death of a huge number of trees in the national park. It turned out that the mushroom colony Armillaria ostoyae (Dark mushroom) killed them. The mushrooms destroyed 61 trees. The age of that mycelium was from 1900 to 8650 years!
5. Alien place on Earth
These are not footage from Mars. This is the Danakil depression in Ethiopia. The lowest place on the planet, the hottest, the driest and the strangest. There are almost boiling mountain streams, incredibly salty lakes, and poisonous fumes ooze everywhere. With all this, there is life here. In such an extreme place, several colonies of microorganisms live at once.
6. Underwater waterfall
Looking at the southwestern part of the coast of the island of Mauritius, you can see what resembles a waterfall, which is located under water. In fact, this is an illusion that appeared due to the accumulation of sand, silt deposits and the unusual location of the local reefs.
7. Giant crystals
In Mexico, under the city of Nike, at a depth of about 300 meters, there is a remarkable cave. It is almost completely filled with selenite crystals (a type of gypsum). Some of them reach a length of 10 meters and weigh about 50 tons. It is curious that this place was discovered only in 2000, and by chance. Silver miners stumbled upon him.
8. Living clouds
Sometimes you can see dark clouds moving quickly and easily changing their shape. In fact, these are not clouds, of course, but giant flocks of starlings. It is curious that the birds do not just fly, but also chirp. This phenomenon is called "murmur".
9. Long-lived underwater grass
Posidonia is a long-lived seagrass that can be found off the shores of the Mediterranean. Today it is considered one of the oldest and oldest living organisms on our planet. Some underwater meadows are more than 5 thousand years old. It is interesting that this herb has no natural enemy, except (as ironic and sad as it is) the person himself, whose activities cause enormous harm to the meadows.
10. Boiling river
There is a real boiling river in the Amazon jungle. Its temperature is only a few hundredths of a degree less than 100 degrees Celsius. Due to this, a mysterious, mystical fog almost constantly hangs over the river. Small animals in this river can boil alive!