7 Geological Phenomena So Crazy, You'll Think They're Photoshopped!

Circles of Fairness

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Found in the Namib Desert in southern Africa, fairy circles are circular regions of dead ground around by a ring of tall grasses. Usually ranging in diameter from six to thirty feet, these circles are uniformly spaced and occasionally span hundreds of acres. Although the reason of these circles has long been unknown, some ideas try to clarify this unusual occurrence. According to one well-known hypothesis, termites burrow beneath the desert's surface and build underground tunnels allowing water to flow uniformly over the area, hence generating the circles. This produces a pattern of alternating moist and dry sections that, while leaving the center empty, encourage the development of grass around the circle edges. According to another view, rivalry among the grasses for few resources, such nutrients and water, drives the circles. This produces a self-organizing arrangement of plants that produces the characteristic circular form of the fairy circles. Although their precise origin is yet unknown, the intriguing geological occurrence known as fairy circles has captivated both scientists and tourists equally.