The silent racers of Racetrack Playa
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Decades of wild guesses
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The great 2014 breakthrough
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The science of ice sails
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YOUR GOAL
Master of The sailing stones of Death Valley
artiteacher Slide stones along their desert trails to discover how wind and ice move them.
artiteacher Sailing Stones of Death Valley
Thin ice and a gentle breeze slide the heavy rocks across the clay.
artiteacher The breakthrough revealed that the stones do not move on mud alone, but are pushed by incredibly thin ice sheets.
Slow motion racers: The sailing stones move so slowly—just a few inches per second—that you could easily outwalk them without even trying!
artiteacher On December 20, 2013, the researchers became the first humans in history to witness the stones actually moving.
An area of flat, dried-up land in a desert basin that is sometimes temporarily covered with water. In 2014, scientists first witnessed ice sheets pushing rocks across the muddy surface of Racetrack Playa.
What did the Norris researchers install on Racetrack Playa alongside their cameras?
What was the name of the research project started by the Norris cousins in 2011?
For how long did the GPS trackers record a single continuous sailing stone movement?
Who were the two researchers who finally solved the sailing stones mystery in 2013?
What was the top speed of the moving sailing stones recorded by the GPS trackers?
On what exact date did humans first witness the sailing stones move in Death Valley?