Referring to the desert, we often immediately think of endless stretches of white sand dunes. What’s underneath that layer of sand?
Of course, the answer to the above question will vary depending on your location. Remember, the sand in the desert can always move a very large amount due to the influence of the wind.
The desert is often considered a barren and empty landscape. (Image: Getty).
In fact, there are many different types of deserts and deserts . They depend on the inherent topography of the area.
It could have been mountains, plains, a forest, or even the ocean hidden beneath the sand. It is also not excluded that they are sinkholes, always ready to “swallow” the prey above.
According to National Geographic , the sand near the surface of the desert is composed of coarse dust particles and fine sand. They can stick together to form a deep, rippling trench under the influence of desert winds.
Underneath the fine sand are many pebble-sized stones. They are mostly terrestrial rocks, but have been worn down over time due to river weathering and other factors.
Beneath the desert sand is a whole mysterious world. (Photo: iStock).
Deserts can also form in the sea . At this time, the sea will be the contributing factor to the crushing process of coastal rocks, or on the seabed. After all, they will become dust particles, and contribute a part to the vast desert.
However, this process can take thousands or millions of years.
If we continue to dig down, we can find sand that has been compacted and transformed under pressure to form a layer of sedimentary sandstone , which covers the bedrock of the area.
Here, the secret of what lies beneath the sandy desert will be revealed. They are actually the original landscape of the area, before being covered by a huge amount of sand.
In 2010, scientists found evidence of a large prehistoric lake beneath the sands of the Sahara. It is believed to have formed about 250,000 years ago, when the Nile River flooded the area through a small canal.
Humans have been living in deserts for millennia. (Image: Getty).
Deserts often have no rivers or streams. Therefore , life here is extremely rare because there are very few animals and plants that can adapt to the harsh, arid environment.
Even so, humans have been living in the desert for millennia. Various tribes and cultures have developed nomadic life as herders of sheep, goats, camels, and yaks.
They frequently moved across a large area of the desert with herds of livestock. The destination is the edge of the desert with pastures and land for livestock.
The desert is also home to many rare mineral resources. For example, many deserts have red sand because they contain laterite minerals . Or, for example, the Great Basin in the United States has been famous as a source of evaporite mining for many years.
Some deserts are rich in salt minerals , such as the Atacama Desert in Chile, where sodium nitrate has been mined, which has been used as an explosive and fertilizer since about 1850.
Deserts are also considered important sources of solar energy , due to little cloud cover. Therefore, the desert receives a lot of sunlight and has many favorable factors for building energy plants.
Professor David Faiman from Ben-Gurion University has shown that with current technology, we can meet all of the world’s electricity needs with only 10% of the area of the Sahara.