Amazing Dunia: Nature

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Waterfall in Gullfoss, Iceland

Gullfoss ("Golden Falls"; About this sound Icelandic pronunciation (help·info)) is a waterfall located in the canyon of Hvítá river in southwest Iceland.

Gullfoss is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country. The wide Hvítá rushes southward. About a kilometer above the falls it turns sharply to the right and flows down into a wide curved three-step "staircase" and then abruptly plunges in two stages (11 m and 21 m) into a crevice 32 m (105 ft) deep. The crevice, about 20 m (60 ft) wide, and 2.5 km in length, extends perpendicular to the flow of the river. The average amount of water running over this waterfall is 140 m³/s in the summertime and 80 m³/s in the wintertime. The highest flood measured was 2000 m³/s.

As one first approaches the falls, the crevice is obscured from view, so that it appears that a mighty river simply vanishes into the earth.

During the first half of the 20th century and some years into the late 20th century, there was much speculation about using Gullfoss to generate electricity. During this period, the waterfall was rented indirectly by its owners, Tómas Tómasson and Halldór Halldórsson, to foreign investors. However, the investors' attempts were unsuccessful, partly due to lack of money. The waterfall was later sold to the state of Iceland. Even after it was sold, there were plans to utilize Hvítá, which would have changed the waterfall forever. This was not done, and now the waterfall is protected.

Sigríður Tómasdóttir, the daughter of Tómas Tómasson was determined to preserve the waterfall's condition and even threatened to throw herself into the waterfall. Although it is widely believed, the very popular story that Sigríður did save the waterfall from use is not true. A stone memorial to Sigriður, located above the falls, depicts her profile.

Together with Þingvellir and the geysers of Haukadalur Gullfoss forms the Golden Circle, a popular day tour for tourists in Iceland.

Gullfoss appears on the cover of the album Porcupine by the British band Echo and the Bunnymen. Additionally, the falls are referenced in the novella, The Odd Saga of the American and a Curious Icelandic Flock; during a dinner, Snorri expresses a preference for Gullfoss, while Dr. Gustafsson favors Glymur.

Gullfoss features in the music video for the single "Heaven" by the band Live. During the video a young man and a young woman separated by the Hvítá river exchange written messages carried on rocks that they throw to each other over the river and the falls. At the end of the music video the young man attempts to swim across the Hvítá river downstream from the Gulfoss. His young lady friend is so horrified by seeing him being washed down the Hvítá river that she also jumps into the river in order to help him. They then float down the river holding onto each other.

A newly discovered volcano found buried beneath a thick layer of ice in Antarctica could speed up ice loss and raise global sea levels when it erupts, scientists say.The finding, detailed in the current issue of Nature Geoscience, marks the first time that an active volcano has been discovered under the ice of the frozen continent.

When it erupts—which no one can predict—the volcano "will create millions of gallons of water beneath the ice—many lakes full," study leader Doug Wiens, professor of earth and planetary science at Washington University in St. Louis, said in a statement.This water will rush beneath the ice toward the sea and feed into one of the major ice streams that drain ice from Antarctica into the Ross Ice Shelf, Wiens explained.

The Tequendama Fall (Spanish: Salto del Tequendama) is a 132m high waterfall on the Bogotá River, located about 30 km southwest of Bogotá in the municipality of San Antonio del Tequendama. Established in around 10000 BC, El Abra and Tequendama were the first permanent settlements in Colombia. One of the country’s major tourist attractions, the falls are located in a forested area 20 miles (32 km) west of Bogotá. The river surges through a rocky gorge that narrows to about 60 feet (18 m) at the brink of the 515-foot- (157-metre-) high falls. During the month of December the falls become completely dry. The falls, once a common site for suicides, may be reached by road from Bogotá.

Beneath the stars, two scientific explorers descend into the icy depths of a moulin on the Gorner Glacier in Switzerland. The freshly exposed rock above the glacier on the left-hand side shows how the ice has melted under an increasingly warm world. These explorers are mapping the changes taking place beneath the surface. Their work must be carried out at night because high daytime temperatures create vast amounts of meltwater, making exploration difficult and dangerous.

Palau is an archipelago of about 250 islands, located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is its own country – the Republic of Palau, although geographically it is part of the larger island group of Micronesia. For over 30 years it was a part of the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific under United States administration. It finally gained its total independence in 1994.

Palau is a beautiful tropical paradise, and one of the true unspoiled destinations on the planet. Most of the 100-plus islands are small low-lying coral islands, ringed by barrier reefs and uninhabited. The country's population of around 21,000 is spread across 250 islands forming the western chain of the Caroline Islands.

The most famous of Palau’s sights are the Rock Islands – a group of green islands covered in foliage with a few bright white sandy beaches. Formed by ancient coral reefs, the bases of these limestone formations have been slowly eroded over millennia into quirky mushroom shapes. There are between 250 to 400+ islands in the group, according to different sources, with an aggregate area of 47 square kilometers and a height up to 207 meters.

More than 400 shiny new species, ones completely unknown to science, have turned up in the Amazon rain forest, according to the latest report from the WWF. The list of novelties includes 45 orchids, a thumbnail-size frog (already highly endangered, with a Latin name that means “that may be lost”), an elusive lizard with a flame pattern that rivals a 1980s sofa, a piranha that refuses meat, and a titi monkey whose babies purr like cats when content.

—Caquetá tití monkey: Its young have a delightful behavior of purring in the nest. This Colombian species is already considered critically endangered due to widespread habitat destruction and fragmentation. Rural peoples in eastern Colombia, who rely heavily on pockets of remaining forest, sometimes hunt the animal for food, according to IUCN.

—Allobated amissibilis: The tiny “thimble frog,” believed to be highly endangered, is endemic to the Iwokrama Mountains of central Guyana. The area may soon be open to tourism, putting the animal at increased risk of extinction.

—Passiflora longifilamentosa: This gorgeous new species of passion flower impresses with its exotic flowers and brightly hued fruits. Together with vivid purple petals, the new species displays fantastic “noodles” or “spaghetti” (corona filaments) that burst from the flower’s center.

—Chrionius Challenger: This snake is found at high elevations in Guyana and Venezuela, and is the namesake of a character from Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World.

—Gonatodes timidus: It impresses with body paint of black and whitish-to-yellow in stripes and blotches, but this lizard earned its Latin name from its shy nature, rather than its stunning looks. When pursued it tends to scoot away between and under rocks, making it very hard to spot and even harder to catch.

—Apistogramma cinilabra: This previously unknown species of cychlid is almost certainly endemic to one small lake in Peru. It is remarkably adapted to the very low oxygen levels of its environment.

Dudhsagar is one of the world's most exquisite falls. It lies high up in the Mandovi River's watershed and so are not particularly spectacular during the dry season. During the monsoon season however, the falls are transformed into one of the most powerful falls in India. Dudhsagar Falls is listed as India's fifth tallest waterfall and is 227th in the world at 310 m. The water plummets hundreds of metres (over a thousand feet) in large volumes during the rainy monsoon season, forming one of the most spectacular natural phenomena in Goa. It is a major part of the Goa ecosystem. It is a four-tiered waterfall with a total height of 310 metres (1017 feet) and an average width of 30 metres (100 feet).

The maps here show the world as it is now, with only one difference: All the ice on land has melted and drained into the sea, raising it 216 feet and creating new shorelines for our continents and inland seas.

There are more than five million cubic miles of ice on Earth, and some scientists say it would take more than 5,000 years to melt it all. If we continue adding carbon to the atmosphere, we’ll very likely create an ice-free planet, with an average temperature of perhaps 80 degrees Fahrenheit instead of the current 58.

Africa

Australia

Europe

Antarctica

Asia

South America

Psychotria Elata, commonly known as Hooker Lips or the Hot Lips Plant for the shape of its bright red bracts that resemble two luscious lips.This weird plant might look like the work of a photo editing software, but those kissable lips are all natural.The plant has apparently evolved into its current shape to attract pollinators including hummingbirds and butterflies. According to Oddity Central, the bracts are only kissable for a short while, before they spread open to reveal the plant’s flowers.

While it may sound like something taken straight from the books of fiction, the Sandbox Tree (Hura. Crepitans) is all too real for the scores of Central and South American farmers who've had their cattle injured by these explosive plants. Upon ripening, the fruit of the Sandbox tree will explode like a botanical hand-grenade carrying seeds up to 40m at 240kph, easily penetrating any animal or poorly placed window.

Tianmen Mountain is a mountain located within Tianmen Mountain National Park, Zhangjiajie, in northwestern Hunan Province, China.

A cablecar was constructed by the French company Poma from nearby Zhangjiajie railway station to the top of the mountain. Tianmen Mountain Cableway is claimed in tourist publications as the "longest passenger cableway of high mountains in the world", with 98 cars and a total length of 7,455 metres (24,459 ft) and ascent of 1,279 metres (4,196 ft) The highest gradient is an unusual 37 degrees. Tourists can walk on kilometres of paths built onto the cliff face at the top of the mountain, including sections with glass floors. An 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) road with 99 bends also reaches the top of the mountain and takes visitors to Tianmen cave, a natural hole in the mountain of a height of 131.5 metres (431 ft).

A large temple is also located on the summit with chairlift or footpath access. The original temple here was built in the Tang Dynasty. Today a more recent construction with Tang dynasty architecture occupies the site and includes a vegetarian restaurant in the 10000 sq mi of setting.

On September 25, 2011 Jeb Corliss glided through the 100 feet (30 m) wide archway in the mountain using a wing suit. The flight began from a helicopter at 6,000 feet (1,800 m), and ended with a safe landing on a nearby bridge.

The "Guatape Rock" that borders the lake is a rock formation, that formed along the Antioquia Rock Base (batolito de antioquia), 70 million years ago. With 2/3 of its height below ground, the exposed vertical face is over 200 meters high and visible from throughout the surrounding countryside. Visitors can scale the rock via a staircase built into one side, a path that includes more than 649 steps to the top. On the flat top of the rock, food vendors offer outdoor tables overlooking vistas that stretch to the horizon in every direction. Above the food vendors are two gift shops, and an open-air viewing area to see the spectacular scenery.

Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route is an international mountain sightseeing route some 90 kilometers (56 miles) long. The route goes across the 3,000-meter-high North Alpine mountains, the so-called “roof of Japan,” and connects Toyama and Shinano Omachi. You can enjoy the panorama by taking a train, highland bus, trolley bus, cable car, and ropeway. Since the lines opened in June 1971, the Tateyama mountain area has been transformed from an isolated spot into one of the nation’s best sightseeing areas, where a million guests visit every year.

Murodo-daira of Tateyama has one of the heaviest snows in the world, and the snow reaches about seven meters (23 ft) on average. In particular, the snow mantle at Otani, a five-minute walk from Murodo Station, sometimes gets more than 20 meters (65.6 ft) because of snowdrifts. The famous “Snow Walls” are formed by expelling this heavy snow, and the 500-meter-long area with such snow walls is open to sightseers from mid-April to late May.

When juvenile, the yellow boxfish is bright yellow in color and 4 cm. long. As it ages, the brightness fades and very old specimens will have blue-grey coloration with faded yellow. It reaches a length of 45 centimetres (18 in) when fully grown.

It feeds mainly on algae, but will also feed on sponges, crustaceans and mollusks. It can be found in reefs throughout the Pacific Ocean and Indian Ocean as well as the south eastern Atlantic Ocean.

Tanzania is a beautiful land with vast landscapes, mountains and lakes. One of those lakes is Lake Natron, and in an astonishing place where all sorts of strange phenomena occur, as captured

in these striking shots by photographer Nick Brandt.

So, what on earth is going on? Thure Cerling, professor of geology and geophysics at the University of Utah, suggests that the animals in Brandt’s photographs likely died of natural causes. Since there are few predators in the area, their bodies remain and become salt-encrusted when the lake’s water level drops. Brandt then turns the petrified animals into “action” shots, creating an eerie life/ death dichotomy.

Quite apart from Lake Natron’s peculiar Medusa like qualities, and although it’s not apparent in these black and white pictures, the lake also has distinctive colour: because of the lakes cyanobacteria, the lake is red!

Because the water is so alkaline, the only fish that live in Lake Natron are alkaline tilapia (Oreochromis alcalica).

So really salty, and really hot: Daily temperatures in the area routinely reach 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius).

The Waitomo Glowworm Caves attraction is a cave at Waitomo on the North Island of New Zealand, known for its population of glowworms, Arachnocampa luminosa. Glowworms or Arachnocampa luminosa are tiny, bioluminescent creatures that produce a blue-green light and are found exclusively in New Zealand.

The Waitomo Glowworm Caves were first explored in 1887 by local Maori Chief Tane Tinorau accompanied by an English surveyor Fred Mace.The attraction has a modern visitor centre at the entrance, largely designed in wood. There are organized tours that include a boat ride under the glowworms.

Lake Natron is a salt lake located in northern Tanzania, close to the Kenyan border, in the eastern branch of the East African Rift.Nestled between rolling volcanic hills and deep craters, Lake Natron sits at the lowest point of the rift valley – 600m above sea level – and is probably the world's most caustic body of water.The lake is fed by the Southern Ewaso Ng'iro River and also by mineral-rich hot springs.

The lake has a deep red color characteristic of those where very high evaporation rates occur. As water evaporates during the dry season, salinity levels increase to the point that salt-loving microorganisms begin to thrive. Such halophile organisms include some cyanobacteria that make their own food with photosynthesis as plants do. The red accessory photosynthesizing pigment in the cyanobacteria produces the deep reds of the open water of the lake, and orange colors of the shallow parts of the lake. The alkali salt crust on the surface of the lake is also often colored red or pink by the salt-loving microorganisms that live there.

Giola, The lagoon, located near the village Astris, is often called the most natural swimming pool. Indeed, it is a unique water reservoir, which provides a pleasant swimming experience.

You may have heard about the island of Thassos already: the mythological Syrens, who have attracted sailors with their beautiful singing, have resided here. Aegean Sea rinses its shores and fills the pool with water. But since the pool is separated from the sea with a rock wall, the water in the lagoon is much warmer, making it much more pleasant to dive in.

The small county of Luoping lies in the relatively underdeveloped eastern part of the Yunnan Province, neighboring Guizhou and Guangxi provinces. It sits 220 kilometers east of the capital Kunming. Every spring, the entire county will transform into an ocean of canola flowers, attracting thousands of travelers and photographers to enjoy the spectacle.

Lake Gippsland (actually a network of lakes) in Australia teems with microorganisms that produce a ghostly blue glow thanks to their natural luminescence. This makes this body of water a beautiful and unique tourist attraction.

Waterfall in Gullfoss, Iceland

Active Volcano Found

Tequendama Falls

Gorner Glacier, Switzerland

Rock Islands of Palau

New Amazonian Species

Dudhsagar Falls in Goa

World’s New Coastlines

Hot Lips Plant

Explosive Fruit

Tianmen Mountain

The Guatape Rock in Colombia!

20 Meters of Snowfall

Yellow Boxfish

Lake Natron

The Glowworm Caves

The Red Colored Lake

Natural Swimming Pool

Flower Ocean in China

Glowing Lake