Modern Mysteries

Sailing stones, sliding rocks, and moving rocks all refer to a geological phenomenon where rocks move in long tracks along a smooth valley floor without human or animal intervention. The Racetrack Playa — a barren lakebed in Death Valley National Park — is home to one of the world’s natural wonders: ‘sailing stones’ that mysteriously meander across the dried mud, leaving tracks in their wake. Since the 1940s, these rocks have fueled wonder and speculation because no one had seen them in action — until now.