Geologists have been able to explain much about the way the earth was formed, how its mountain ranges and basins rose and sank from shifting and stretching tectonic plates, and other formerly enduring mysetries of the ages. But there’s one thing, strange and seemingly inconsequential — albeit fascinating — that science hasn’t been able to explain.
Deep in the basin of foreboding Death Valley is a flat area locals call “The Racetrack,” for one reason: rocks and boulders which dot the area seem to be engaged in a strange (and unspeakably slow) race across the dessicated mud. Long furrows in the mud are giveaways of the rocks’ motion, which is usually zigzagging but sometimes form complete circles, but what puzzles experts is just how they move. Some think the wind has something to do with it — though some of the rocks weigh as much as 700 pounds — while others guess that rare instances of rain in Death Valley turn the basin into a slick, lubricated track that would allow the wind to move the rocks more easily.
But despite decades of research — and even GPS tracking of individual rocks — nobody knows for sure. For now, at least, conspiracy theorists, UFO believers and other amateur explainers (even you!) still have a shot at being right.
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We’ve always heard it refered to as “The Devil’s Racetrack”. Another interesting geological feature not to far from it is “The Devil’s Postpiles”. Funny how places like Death Valley and The Badlands have horrible, no good, very bad placenames. You wouldn’t find “The Cute Little Bunny’s Racetrack” for example…
posted by Jason! on 3-8-2007 at 9:37 am
I suspect the wind.
The movement of the rocks reminds me of another bizarre natural wonder – snow rollers.
posted by Barnaby on 3-8-2007 at 9:45 am
It’s probably kids trying to drag rocks into the car and the Mom says NO WAY! I’m always finding rocks that my kids bring in my minivan or put in their pockets!LOL!
posted by CropTillDawn on 3-8-2007 at 9:54 am
It’s just a guess but mabey the ground is soft and tilted in some areas, allowing the rock to just fall or mabey its according the time of the year and the earth simply defies all laws :)
posted by Benny on 3-8-2007 at 10:21 am
could it have something to do with the rotation of the earth?
posted by sdfaljk on 3-8-2007 at 10:33 am
Benny, it’s “maybe” not “mabey.”
posted by Ivy on 3-8-2007 at 11:39 am
My guess: Intelligent Design.
posted by emawkc on 3-8-2007 at 2:29 pm
Go Aliens!
posted by Pointy-Hatted Geek on 3-8-2007 at 6:49 pm
Although I truly have no clue why anyone, even an alien, would actually want to drag rocks around. Except maybe just to confuse us. (Because you have to admit, it is pretty funny sometimes.)
posted by Pointed-Hatted Geek on 3-8-2007 at 6:51 pm
Clearly this is the work of dark wizards
posted by chet on 3-8-2007 at 7:16 pm
Personally, I think it must have something to do with gnomes.
posted by Alison on 3-8-2007 at 7:47 pm
Has anyone considered that maybe some sort of gas is escaping from the rock? If the gas is forced out of one of the rocks in a continuous pattern it might possibly move them. This could explain how they could move in a complete circle. That or the Balck Helicopters I hear so much about. Cheers
posted by Krick on 3-8-2007 at 8:27 pm
Wikipedia’s “Racetrack Playa” entry has a lot of information about it. The leading theory is that it’s ice flows freezing around the stones, which get pushed around by the wind, dragging the stones with them.
posted by Laen on 3-8-2007 at 10:12 pm
I go with the alien idea. Maybe they just enjoy messing with us. Or it could be those nasty Death Valley Gnomes.
posted by Rachel on 3-8-2007 at 10:15 pm
To emawkc: that Intelligent Designer would be called God, and although there usually is a scientific explanation for most things on the earth, sometimes God is glorified by showing humans how infinite He is and how petty we are, even in all our science, as proved by “natural wonders” that we can’t explain.
posted by les on 3-9-2007 at 7:45 am
Vibrations in the earth are causing the rocks to move like the pieces in those old vibrating football games. The little plastic players used to like scooting around in circles too.
It ain’t the Devil, though, I know that much. He’s too much of a slacker to pull a prank this cool.
posted by Mark on 3-9-2007 at 12:34 pm
cooling and heating at pretty much regular rates would move the rocks slightly after each cycle. This continuous cycling of cold and heat over time would make the rocks appear to race ever so slowly. the tracks are just displacement of the damp mud underneath.
posted by dziome on 3-9-2007 at 3:14 pm
Yes… the heat/cold/heat theory isn’t bad. That effect would be even more profound if temperatures dropped bellow zero Celcius, thereby freezing water into ice which takes up more space than water. Ice pushes things regardless of size and weight.
As the earth circles the sun throughout the year, the face of the rock which lies in shadow would gradually shift and the path of the rock would be that of a large circle.
posted by Storm on 3-10-2007 at 8:04 am
Aliens are making crop circles the hard way.
posted by brrrrt on 3-10-2007 at 3:25 pm
WELL TIME & temp do play a role. also the speed of the earth speeds up while cooling down as it gets closer to the earth. Basically with the forgone knowledge,we should employ the idea of Occum’s razor…in a given situation needing explanation, usually the simplest answer is the correct one. Did I help anyone?
posted by JOHN BROWN on 3-11-2007 at 12:59 pm
Somehow ya just know that the CIA is to blame here… ;)
posted by Rob O. on 3-11-2007 at 6:03 pm
Magnetism will move the rocks. There could be strong magnetic fields under the mud. Or the vibrations from micro-quakes (much more prevelant further down the Colorodo) could move the rocks.
posted by Scott O on 3-12-2007 at 3:42 pm
I blame CERN.
posted by Adam on 3-26-2008 at 12:57 pm
Has anyone looked for a hatch anywhere close by?
posted by Owen on 4-22-2008 at 6:00 am
Yeah, har har har.
It is all fun and jokes until you get run over by one of these. Try explaining THAT to your insurance company! “I was just sleeping in my tent and this rock slid into me!” “You mean it ‘rolled’ into you.” “No, it SLID into me! As in ‘sliding’ in the past tense.” “Sure- NEXT!”
posted by Scott on 4-22-2008 at 7:49 am
You’ll put an eye out if you’re not careful!
posted by Kevin on 4-22-2008 at 11:16 am
Agreed Mark… my first instinct was vibrations in the earth. Not big enough to be shockingly noticeable, but enough to move stones bit by bit.
posted by Casey on 4-22-2008 at 2:34 pm
I recently visited the racetrack, and I was horrified to discover that a huge number of these wonderful rocks had been stolen and moved. Especially near the parking area, you can see tracks with no rocks, and tracks with rocks which don’t fit, or a rock on each end.
It is evident where the rocks fell from-a loose hillside on the south end (L side of the picture), as all the tracks lead from there. I personally believe wind moves them. The wind was pretty stiff when I was there, though calm elsewhere. The nature of the rock gives the fallen pieces flat, squared sides which provide a)a flat surface to slide on and b)a good surface area to function as a ‘sail’
posted by Katie on 4-22-2008 at 2:43 pm
hey Brian Dunning from Skeptoid.com has a great short podcast about these stones…he shows pretty solidly that it is the ice flows that move around the rocks.
check it out here
skeptoid.com/episodes/4021
posted by Joe on 4-22-2008 at 11:58 pm
There is a small but significant horizontal component to gravity’s force, similar to tidal forces.
posted by jg on 4-28-2010 at 9:52 am
uhhh, magnetism?
posted by mark on 6-12-2010 at 1:48 pm