Mysterious nature

Richat Structure, Mauritania
Located in the Sahara Desert, the formation is humongous as it’s almost 30 miles in diameter. In fact, you probably wouldn’t even notice know you were within it. But from an aerial view – and even from space – it is very visible.

Synchronous Fireflies

The Smoky Mountains of Gatlinburg are famous for the synchronous light show put up by the fireflies there. Hundreds of thousands of fireflies gather and synchronously emit and shut their glow, leaving the forest in a rhythm of darkness and light. Even though we know that the light emission is due to Luciferin to attract mates, the unique flashing pattern and synchronisation of the flies have not yet been solved by the scientific fraternity. You might want to consider getting the passes for this year’s season because the best time to view this glorious illumination performance is May end to mid-June.

Nature evidently has its ways of pushing us to let go of the beaten paths and traverse beyond our mind-blocks. But sometimes, the most beautiful of things are best left unexplained. And it is our enthusiasm to solve those mysteries that keep us going. After all, if not curiosity, what else would lead mankind forward to an arena beyond imagination?!

Naga Fireballs You know you are along the shores of Mekong river when you see glowing balls rise from the water into the sky. Named after the legendary serpentine creatures said to be living in the Mekong river, these are called Naga Fireballs or “bung fai paya nak" by the locals. The size of these glowballs have been observed to range from that of tiny specks to the size of a football. Scientists have postulated that the fireballs maybe a result of large amount of flammable phosphine gas in the marshy lands. But it is highly unlikely for it to spontaneously ignite and if at all did, would never travel at the speed the fireballs are observed to move. And there goes another secret of mother nature that still remains a question mark to mankind.

Fairy Circles

These circular patterns of bare land, surrounded by a ring of stimulated plant growth, range in size from around 2 to 15 metres in diameter. They are found in southern Africa, particularly Namibia, but have also been discovered in Western Australia. They have long been a puzzle to scientists, with many explanations given for their cause. These include the actions of sand termites engineering the circles to create water troughs, radioactive soil, plant toxins, fungi, ostrich dust baths and sleeping spots of oryx. They may be caused by competition between the plants themselves, with the circles of stronger, more vibrant grasses around the edge sucking nutrients and moisture from the poor soil in the centre, but no one has yet to settle on a satisfactory explanation.

Hessdalen Lights

Hessdalen light

Above the Hessdalen valley in central Norway, strange balls of light float in the air. They appear in a variety of colours, such as blue, red and yellow, and in a variety of formations—sometimes flashing, sometimes moving about with great speed, and sometimes staying still in mid-air for up to an hour. They were particularly active during the 1980s, with up to 20 eyewitness reports made every week. The lights are of unknown origin, and there has been no explanation as to what they are, why they are there or where they come from. Project Hessdalen, a research effort launched in 1983, identified six different types of energy. But the source of the energy remains a mystery.

Pink sand beach, Bahamas

The pink sandy beach stretches for 5 km along Harbor Island. There, in the coral reefs, lives a microscopic single-celled organism, foraminifera, whose shells are bright pink or red. But, like all living things, foraminifera die, and their colorful shells are washed ashore, where they are crushed and mixed with sand.