Mihir Patel Professor Andy Hand English 101 April 4, 2010 Sailing Stones: Driving Factors Man is a curios

animal. The curiosity of man has been constantly increasing with time. It is probably one of the strongest reasons why we have achieved so many milestones in recent years. Sending artificial satellites to almost every planet on the solar system and sending message to other parts of the world in fraction of seconds are some of them. It is very interesting how we have made our lives simple by investigating and then inventing things. But, sometimes it is very difficult for us to find sufficient evidences to propose a theory behind a mystery. One such mystery is the movement of the rocks in Racetrack Playa. There are very unusual stone tracks on the racetrack playa located in California. The tracks which often change their direction are almost 3cm deep, several centimeters wide, and vary in length from few meters to a record maximum of 270m. At one end of the track there is usually a stone which ends the path. The stone very much ends like a full stop ending a sentence. The weight of stones almost goes up to several hundred kilograms. There are many theories proposed on these absurd movements of stones, but none have been officially accepted. We all agree with the fact that we need some kind of a force to move anything. These rocks in the Death Valley do not have any significant driving force which can help them move. But still this is truth because of the fact that they have left trails behind them across the surface of the playa. So what is it that causes them move? Several theories have been proposed which run from natural to paranormal to alien. Some say that strange magnetic forces, psychic energy, alien spacecraft, teenage pranks or other supernatural forces play a role in moving these rocks. The teenage prank theory can be instantly turned out because of absence of any human footprints or any other type of disturbances on the smooth

surface of Racetrack Playa. Also, no one would be willing to go and do that in such extreme conditions. People do believe that these stones are moved by some psychic energy which is wandering around in the area. To me, it is a statement which has no weight in it. When people cannot find the solution, they often associate with paranormal and other psychic activities. One of the most bizarre assumptions about the tracks was the descending of U.F.Os from some other planet. The vehicle left the marks on the playa as to leave behind the clues of their presence. Another mind-disturbing assumption was that these stones were actually the souls of the people who used to be the original inhabitants of the place before it was turned into Death Valley. Now they are turning back into humans again: starting it with movements, soon they would reach the shore; turn into monsters and eat up the entire world or maybe transform everything into stones. Nevertheless, science does not have a good relationship with supernatural, so scientists do not believe in such speculation. Instead, they carried out some experiments in scientific perspective to find the ultimate reason which caused the rocks to move. After prolong study of the geological condition of the region, they proposed two main theories. Firstly, most of the studies indicate that the fine layer of clay plays the most important part in moving the rocks along the surface. It creates a slick surface, which allows the rocks to slide under the force of the wind. Bacon T. Cahill, author of Sailing Stones on Racetrack Playa explains that, Due to the smooth, flat surfaces of playas; the wind velocity near the surface has a very thin boundary layer and is appreciable down to millimeters above the ground (Cahill 121). This produces a decent amount of force for a light weighing stone to move. Cahill further provides a data from the USGS Desert land Project, the extreme wind gusts of up to 40m per sec(144 Km per hr) regularly occur on the plays (Cahill 121). The high speed adds on to that force and help in moving the rocks. The second main theory proposed to provide explanation for the motion of rocks is the role of the melting ice from the mountains in the surrounding area. When the ice melts, it mixes with

the small lake on the race track. The water level increases rapidly and due to high winds it flows around the sandy race track with great velocity. This creates the surface of the soil to become slippery and make the way for stones to move more rapidly. The second part of this theory is the temperature. Due to very low temperatures in winters, stones are often frozen into a sheet or floe of ice which makes them slide easily. I think that combination of both these theories make a significant impact in explaining the movement of rocks in the Death Valley. The geological conditions in and around the playa provides suitable conditions for the rocks to move. Robert P. Sharp and Allen F. Glanzer, authors of Geology Underfoot in Death Valley and Owens Valley explains that, The boundary layer is that zone, within wind immediately above the ground, in which velocity increases from zero at the bottom to prevailing velocity aloft (Sharp, Glanzer 171). Due to the smoothness of the Racetrack Playa, the boundary layer can be as thin as two inches. The low averaged boundary layer area is a zone of unusually high shear stress. This stress is not the normal stress which we consider in building bridges or buildings. Sharp and Glanzer explains that, it is type of stress which increases velocity of the wind and decreases the boundary layer thickness. According to some physicists, stress within the boundary layer is a force capable to move the rocks. The force needed to move the rocks decreases because it takes only half the initiating force to keep the stone sliding. The wind factor is considered to play a role in moving the rocks can be generated by the high altitude topography around the area. D. Bacon, T. Cahill and T.A.Tombrello, authors of Sailing Stones on Racetrack Playa explains, The 2 kilometer vertical relief near Death Valley is responsible for high winds that are observed around the playa after the storm (Bacon, Cahill, Tombrello 124). The high intensity winds were a primary indication for the cause of the mystery from the starting. And the cause of such high speed winds was also signified due to the special topography of the region. The theoretical discussion and the experimental work of W.E.Sharp (1960) cast a doubt on the idea, because

he showed that the force produced by the drag of the wind must be sufficient to overcome the frictional resistance of the mud, and that the wind velocities required to move scrapers over wet mud are higher than those to move scrapers which naturally occur (Cooke, Warren, Goudie 212). Many theories have been put forward to solve this mystery but they are always put down by some principles which make a lot of sense. A third theory which is relatively unknown was also put forward by the scientist named Wehmeier in 1986. He argued that the stone tracks arise on Alkali Flat (Nevada) from sub aquatic or in aquatic sliding in which the driving force is the hydraulic energy of runoff (Cooke, Warren, Goudie 212). The facts that the tracks follow flow directions, no ice floes were present at the time of the track formation, and maximum wind velocities were probably inadequate to initiate sliding. Therefore, the factor of involvement of the wind in moving of rocks is also in jeopardy. Another factor providing the decrease in the resistive force on the rocks is the operative decrease in the drag force caused by wind and water, compared to normal conditions. After solving the drag force equation caused by water and wind, scientists found that it is so low that they are almost negligible. This can also be clarified by the fact by the explanation given by John B. Reid, Jr. Edward P. Bucklin, Lily Copenagle, Jon Kidder, Sean M. Pack, Pratigya J. Polissar and Michael L. Williams in the article sliding rocks at the racetrack, Death Valley: What makes them move? They explain, Maximum speeds for Racetrack rocks are on the order of a few tens of centimeters per second, but probably much less with large ice sheets and gentle winds (Reid 822). They further explain that at these low speeds the drag force on ice by water is negligible. Thus, the minimal amount of drag force also provides a suitable condition in making the rocks move. There is a significant impact of ice collars which get accumulated on the stones during winter. When ice melts on the mountains, frozen water gushes with great speed into the Racetrack Playa. The friction between the rocks and the stones becomes minimal at this point. The stones can

easily slide in such frictionless conditions. Brian Dunning, in the transcript of his podcast Skeptoid explains, Solid ice, moving with the surface of the lake and with the inertia of a whole surrounding ice sheet would have no trouble pushing a rock along the slick muddy floor (Dunning 1). This also explains the frequent deviations in the path of the rocks. The land on the Racetrack Playa is not perfectly flat; it has numerous obstructions including smaller rocks. This might lead to the deviation of the flow of water along the surface. Also, change in direction of the winds also causes the rocks to deviate. Stanley, one of the best archeologists of the fifties, took a close look at those rock trails and came up with the hypothesis that they were produced by windblown ice floes which drags the stones across the wet playa surface. It was clarified by the fact that the stones were held in the same position in comparison to each other during their journey across the playa surface. Ron Cooke, Andrew Warren and Andrew Goudie, authors of the classic book Desert Geomorphology says, only ice could provide the planar body to maintain those positions ( Cooke, Warren, Goudie 211). Stanley also did some mathematical calculations on the shape of the tracks (which backs his theory) and found out that the tracks on the race track playa were very much similar to the tracks produced in a rotating floe. The presence of iceramparts and ice floes on the playa in winter provides a significant impact on Stanley s theory. Another important additive to the favorable conditions of the geology of the area is the ideal soil composition. D.Bacon, T. Cahill and T.A. Tombrello, authors of Sailing Stones on Racetrack Playa, explains that Too much salt in the playa sediment will increase the surface roughness, causing the coefficient of friction to be raised significantly, hence impeding the motion of rocks (Bacon, Cahill, Tombrello 124). Friction opposes the motion of an object. It decreases the speed of an object greatly and ultimately causing it to stop. Thus, if the playa sediment would be rough with different salts and impurities, the rocks would not have moved and inch. The motion would have been trapped by the friction.

The constant supply of rocks is one of the most unique aspects of Racetrack Playa. Bacon, Cahill and Tombrello further explains the importance of this astonishing structure by explaining that, The adjacent steep bedrock on the racetrack is not only the factory of rocks floating around, but also provides a convenient method in the form of rocks being shed off of the bedrock face, by which the rocks can be deposited on the playa without creating a sediment that has too many coarse particles (Bacon, Cahill, Tombreallo 124). Thus, the sliding of the rocks in racetrack playa remains a mystery. There is no absolute reason to prove the movement of rocks. The notion of any paranormal activities or any U.F.O landings can be instantly ruled out because researchers have not found any paranormal activity happening within the vicinity when put under the surveillance of cameras. The reason of the mystical movement of the rocks is absolutely scientific. To me, after reading Desert Geomorphology and Geology underfoot in Death Valley and Owens Valley, the reason of the movement of the rocks is the combination of all the scientific theories put forward till now. Wind, Ice floes and the geology of the racetrack playa equally play an important role in the sliding of the rocks. All three factors generate enough evidence to make turn this unsolved mystery to a successfully solved mystery. I am very curious about the solution of this mystery. I hope that if someone is still working on this matter, they get the enough evidence to solve the mystery and get their name in the pages of history.

Works Cited

Cooke Ron, Andrew Warren, and Andrew Goudie, eds. Desert Geomorphology. London: UCL Press Limited, 1993. Print

Sharp, Robert P., and Allan F. Glanzer. Geology underfoot Death Valley and Owen's Valley. 6. Missouls, MT: Mountain Press Publishing Company, 2009. Print.

Bacon, D, T Cahill, and T A. Tombrello. "Sailing Sotones of Racetrack Playa." The journal of Geology 104 (1996): 121-125. Print.

Reid, John B., Edward P. Bucklin, Lily Copenagle, and John Kidder. "Sliding rocks at the Racetrack, Death Valley: What makes them move?" Geology 23.9 (1995): 819-822. Print.

Dunning, Brian, prod. Living Stones Of Death Valley. Skeptoid, 15 Jan. 2007. Living Stones of Death Valley. Web. 1 Jan. 2007.