Southern Perspective: The value of our beach sand
The sand on the Emerald Coast is known worldwide for being the kind of white which is reflective and blinding under the blazing summer sun. That’s because it’s not even one percent shy of being pure quartz, which is incredibly rare in the world of sand. Our beaches are made of tiny jewels, each grain precious and rare, no matter how much they may look alike.
What It’s Like to Be a Professional Sand Sculptor
Despite the careful artistry and heavy manual labor, being a professional sand sculptor really is fun. “It’s living the dream.” “I’m making sandcastles for a living. Who the hell does that?”
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Explaining the formation of the dunes and the two islands.
Where Are the Finest White-Sand Beaches in the World?
Relaxing on a beautiful, solitary slice of white sand is what many travelers dream about for their vacations and when the sand is so soft and sifting between your toes, it makes a shoreline even more enjoyable. Here are some of the best white-sand beaches in the world.
What’s up with the black sand at Ocean Beach, San Francisco?
Many locals have a same reaction when large swirling patches of black sand cover Ocean Beach: they call the city reporting an apparent oil spill. But in fact, the sand is anything but dirty and is made up of a really cool iron ore derivative called magnetite.
What happened to all the sand at San Pedro’s Cabrillo Beach?
Powerful, El Niño-fueled waves have washed away massive amounts of sand at many of L.A. County’s beaches, causing more erosion than typical winter months. Countywide, beaches have seen 25 to 50 percent erosion since last summer.
Black, Red, Green: Where to Find Hawaii’s Phenomenal Colored Sand Beaches
As if Hawaii’s golden sand beaches weren’t enough, there are stretches of coastline across the Hawaiian Islands that sparkle in a magnificent variety of other colors.
Jewels of the Sea: Microscopic Images of Sand Reveal Jaw-Dropping Beauty
A series of microscopic images have revealed the incredible details of sand and marine fragments from five Indian Ocean destinations.
Sand Waves: Juggernauts of the Outer Banks
These so called sand waves, named such because they were like a tidal wave of sand barreling down upon the islands, have the destructive force of a glacier – unstoppable, consuming all. Anything and everything in the path of these dunes will succumb to its slow march across the landscape…