Mysterious ‘fairy circles’ keep cropping up in deserts | Tech News
Mysterious, bare patches of ground have been appearing in polka-dot patterns in the deserts of Namibia and Australia.
Scientists studying the phenomenon known as ‘fairy circles’ have recently counted 263 sites where these bald spots can be found.
These fairy circles have been spread across three continents and 15 countries, including Madagascar, Western Sahara, Horn of Africa, Southwest Asia, and Central and Southwest Australia.
‘We conducted a global and systematic assessment of fairy circle-like vegetation patterns and discovered hundreds of [fairy-circle]-like locations on three continents,’ wrote the team led by environmental scientist Emilio Guirado of the University of Alicante in Spain.
They also studied the different environmental conditions that these circles appeared in.
Areas with these fairy circles were found to have more stable productivity over time than surrounding areas without them.
The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal, is the first map of fairy circles worldwide.
Despite their widespread nature, scientists are still trying to figure out what causes them.
One theory is that they are caused by sand termites that damage grass roots; another is that the circles help the vegetation maximise sparse water resources.
The problem with studying fairy circles is they are mostly found in parts of the world that are highly inhospitable and difficult to get to. So, a lot of research relies on drone and satellite imagery.
However, this method has helped researchers find more of these circles which they hope will help in establishing a common factor.
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