Utah was just hit by giant hail that smashed cars as a rare tornado touched down—but scientists say an even more alarming threat is silently tearing the ground apart beneath the state. Fissures have opened across rural areas like Cedar Valley and Enoch, cracking for miles as aquifers drain faster than they recharge.
Ground fissures in Utah have opened across rural areas in recent years, creating deep cracks in the earth that can extend for miles. The Utah Geological Survey attributes them largely to groundwater depletion. When aquifers are drained faster than they can recharge, the soil loses structural support and collapses. In some cases, the ground settles unevenly over buried bedrock ridges, causing the s…
A massive anomaly has just appeared beneath New Mexico, and experts are racing to figure out what’s happening below the surface. The region sits on a hidden network of abandoned mine shafts, many of which were never properly mapped—leaving homes, roads, and public spaces vulnerable to sudden collapses.
Cornwall’s history as a mining region has left a lasting mark on its landscape. Beneath the surface lie more than 20,000 abandoned mine shafts, some of which are now unstable. In recent years, a number of collapses have occurred, drawing attention to the hidden risks below homes, roads, and public spaces.In February 2020, a tree fell in a garden in Camborne during a storm. Soon after, the ground o…
Hundreds of sinkholes are suddenly swallowing ground worldwide, and experts say they’re spreading faster than ever. These massive openings have devoured cars, homes, and even entire streets in recent months, forcing evacuations across multiple countries.
Sinkholes have opened in several parts of the world in recent years, drawing attention to a geological hazard that often develops without visible warning. The ground can hollow out slowly beneath the surface until it eventually collapses, sometimes swallowing vehicles, damaging buildings, and altering landscapes.A large sinkhole appeared near the Turkish city of Karapinar, roughly 65 miles from th…