Sand Dunes Shouldn’t Exist (Here’s Why They Do)

Check out Overview on ‪@pbsterra‬ ►► • What Makes These Dunes...
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↓↓↓ More info and sources below ↓↓↓
How can sand, blown by the wind, form such intricate and beautiful patterns as ripples and dunes? The answer is a surprising secret of self-organization. In this video, we travel to Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado to climb the largest sand dunes in North America and bring you the science of how wind and sand combine to create ordered landforms out of chaos. The science must flow.
References: sites.google.c...
Thank you to Dr. Mathieu Lapôtre (Stanford) and Dr. Orencio Duran Vinent (Texas A&M) for helpful discussions while researching this epsiode.
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[@besmart]

Don't miss my special collaboration with Overview on PBS Terra where we uncover the secret behind *dunes that sing* kzbin.info/www/bejne/jYjVk2Sfrqh_oqs

[@StephenLewisful]

As I watched this video, I thought of another that I had seen recently. The earths core is sloshing around at at a relatively stable frequency. And the wind gets involved after that. Is what I think is happening here. kzbin.info/www/bejne/raetcpqoiqd5atk A 3 minute video that you don't have to watch all of to see where I'm going with this. What do you think?

[@klyanadkmorr]

Is this your Frank Herbert DUNE special? Frank studied sand dunes as his inspiration to start his seminal mythic scifi novel series. ? ☺ I'd always heard sand behaves like fluid so the organizing is just like water particle movement in the wind writ with larger particles and slower in magnitude in development vs time seemingly frozen. eta: yeah you did know♥

[@Tom-dl6ze]

Yo joe is super smart and big brain. love this channel btw.

[@therandomt5510]

We're you in Colorado??????

[@omateftrabelsi3348]

٠ قش

[@robhacklblumstein]

Releasing a video about dunes the week that Dune premieres in the US? Joe knows that if you walk with (the algo)rhythm, then you might attract the views.

[@anatheistsopinion9974]

You might attract a sandworm too

[@themasstermwahahahah]

+

[@jaysabol1821]

@@anatheistsopinion9974 this is why you walk through the desert WITHOUT RHYTHM

[@MonkeyJedi99]

@@anatheistsopinion9974 Walk without rhythm!

[@dmeemd7787]

yep, it's okay to be smart (lol)

[@DavidFMayerPhD]

Story about the Normandy landing. About 3 months before the landing, volunteers were taken to rowing distance from the beach by a submarine. The men were given black uniforms and had their faces blackened. Each was provided with an inflatable raft (black, of course) and a number of glass jars with lids and a black grease pencil. Each jar had a blank label attached. The volunteers' assignment was to row ashore, and collect samples of the sand on the beach, marking each with its location, then return to the submarine with the samples. The volunteers thought that the assignment was nuts, but they did as they were told. The carefully marked samples were later used to determine which locations would support the various vehicles to be landed without bogging them down.

[@rafaelmartinez9259]

@吉川あいみ no

[@ragingwillie483]

that is very interesting, and shows the detail that most never think about for military operations. as for the other replies to this comment, stop being a piece of 5hlt\

[@rafaelmartinez9259]

@@ragingwillie483 ? I said no to the bot

[@recklesflam1ngo968]

@@ragingwillie483 he's replying to a scam porn bot you turnip.

[@rafaelmartinez9259]

@@recklesflam1ngo968 this the first time I've been called a turnip before, lol

[@HarmlessOSRS]

I live in Namibia and walk the dunes everyday with dogs. This makes me appreciate it more when I normally take it for granted

[@Woodledude]

That is super cool! Now you can look for some of the phenomena in the video yourself when you have a moment out with your dogs :3 That's always the best way to experience these things - Using guidance to find your own first-hand observations.

[@HarmlessOSRS]

@Romeo ThePLUG how did you know coast line? Lol walvis and swakop is where I've been

[@victoriaaababyyygiiirl]

@@HarmlessOSRS how did he know the coast line?! I have wanted to move to Nimibia for so long!! Lucky you!

[@HarmlessOSRS]

@@victoriaaababyyygiiirl if you do go to Namibia try the coast. Very quiet and peaceful

[@ecola6539]

@@HarmlessOSRS i agree live here too it's amazing

[@XtReMz98]

As a Canadian pilot, I remember how impressed and startled I was the first time I passed through the Denver/Eagle Colorado area on a clear day. These dunes are clearly visible even at 39000’. There is a gradual transition westward toward gravel and redish rock formation as you approach the Grand Canyon. Even Bob Ross could not describe the marvelous mix of colors that the midwest displays from high up.

[@stacie1595]

That why it's called "colorful colorado" 😊

[@bphlatsax75]

I love flying out west. I live in NC and the transition of America is breathtaking! I always ask my daughter to put me in a window seat. The whole flight I'm in the window marveling and taking pics!! 😉😉

[@BrooksBabbling]

That's just west, not the midwest. It's just as big as Canada down here 😂

[@CarmelloYello]

I just had a psychedelic mushroom trip into the Colorado dunes a few weeks ago and it was one of the most spiritual and amazing experience of my life. The ripples and the texture of the sand added so much to that day!

[@fatassjay]

You've inspired me to go and do the same!!

[@eugenecrawford14]

Its kinda cold there now

[@stevenarmstrong5364]

@@fatassjay make sure you prepare correctly if you're really gonna do it

[@renerpho]

@@stevenarmstrong5364 Very important advice. Please don't go alone, and don't go without planning.

[@talisikid1618]

Grow up.

[@Shargur]

Wow, that was a pretty long ad for Dune, lol.

[@Kali_queval2398]

I’m not against it

[@superflink]

It’s the opposite: how he used the increase of popularity of Dune around its launching date to draw more attention to his video!

[@benjaminhodapp]

Everybody’s gotta have that sweet sweet Dune content this weekend huh?

[@linnazhu3083]

Quite creative, relevant, and informative! ;)

[@itiscujo]

Yeah I don't like seeing science channels following pop culture trends(this video clearly trying to ride Dune's wake.) That's how you go from actually reporting on real science to encouraging woo mentality. So many people now truly believe that theories like quantum mechanics somehow legitimize crackpot, completely unscientific nonsense. Take goop as an example; they throw around a bunch of pseudoscientific statements and take advantage of millions of people who don't know any better because telling them the truth - that science DOESN'T support things like astrology and such - would slightly damage your view count. I truly hope this doesn't become a trend for this channel, I've really enjoyed it for a long time.

[@edgar-sama642]

"i don't like sand it's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere" - Anakin Skywalker

[@slcpunk2740]

🤢🤮

[@ThreeMountainsStudio]

Beautiful writing by Lucas

[@NavajoNinja]

Lets have Last Jedi Guy taste test the sand also.

[@GideonFrazier]

Wakka wakka - jar jar binks

[@MichaelDodge27]

Not like here, here everything is soft and smooth.

[@ruler898]

I'm Canadian. Snow drifts are similar. So its interesting how similar it is despite being from different climates entirely. Even in cold icy wind the snow feels what i assume is similar to a sand storm when it stings you.

[@fe567]

The real question is, after sand gets blown in a particular direction more than other directions, where does more sand come from? Or does dunes/ sandy deserts move overtime to other locations?

[@LincolnDWard]

Dunes do migrate downwind, but new sand is also always being formed as rocks break down.

[@spjr99]

The wind that moves the sand also brings more sand and other materials

[@superpixelated7354]

I feel like deserts are like landfills for sand which I don't know what factors attributed.

[@tommosher8271]

@@superpixelated7354 Sand is the final product of mining. They crush rock down to nothing the extract eevry ounce of the metals within it and the dump the sand into waste piles,

[@JohnFleshman]

I lived in Florence Oregon in the mid 80s and lived my teens in the dunes just outside my yard. Never knew Frank Herbert based the story Dune because of the dunes of coastal Oregon.

[@codijo-myalaskandog122]

This is super interesting... ⚠️ I wouldn't have guessed they had them in Oregon but yet it makes sense... kind of. 🤔 When our boys where little & ambiguous we would take them outdoors away from the tv & we found a place just like this... only smaller... in Wyoming! Outside of Rock Springs. They LOVED IT! 😄👍🆓️

[@jsmoncrief]

One of my favorite places to ride.

[@elisabethandersen1102]

I used to live in WA, and the Oregon coast is the most magical place. The first time I saw it was actually at night, and after climbing over these huge dunes, I finally saw the ocean. The way it was so unobstructed east to west, coupled with the moonlight made it look like you could see the curvature of the earth. Definitely something everyone should experience!

[@deadbodybaby1]

@@elisabethandersen1102 you wouldn’t be able to see that because it’s flat but our eyes are interesting

[@blackhorseman]

Remember that sand moving creates a static charge that can last similar to a battery for weeks or sometime months. Like those "Sand Worms" with lightning around them. Pretty cool "Dune" included that fact.

[@sergiocoronel5402]

5666

[@blackhorseman]

@@sergiocoronel5402 Not really into the whole Angel numerology thing bubba or even "divine/supreme mathematics" theories but it is indeed interesting stuff I have to admit.

[@1gorSouz4]

How do they get discharged, then?

[@windmill9998]

theoretically, on a planet with really low gravity, but really strong wind, could sand dunes be formed from pieces much bigger than sand?

[@rais1953]

You just described Titan. The gravity is low but its atmospheric density at ground level is about four times that of Earth. (Atmospheric pressure at ground level is only 1.4 times that of Earth because of the low gravity.) So it would be interesting to know if the particles in Titan's dunes are larger than the ones on Earth.

[@windmill9998]

@@rais1953 cool! thanks for the thorough reply! :)))

[@astrospeedcuber]

I've never realised how greatly these videos are made - its so cohesive, educational, understandable and informational while being very enjoyable and interesting!

[@mcconkeyb]

For those of us who live where it snows for 6 months every year, dunes are not that exciting, as we get snow drifts (small versions of sand dunes) every year. Some snow drifts even sing, maybe not as strongly as the dunes, but you can still hear it. 😀

[@thenovice129]

I came here looking for the snow drifts comment. It still blows my mind how quickly they form.

[@AndrewBrownK]

Snow drifts sing?

[@mondopinion3777]

@@AndrewBrownK Yes when conditions are just right. Also sometimes "rollers" form at the crest of drifts and descend the other side as hollow tubes about a foot or so in diameter. Google and you can see pics.

[@timsteinkamp2245]

The Golden Gate Bridge also sings and the bridge in Oregon got into a frequency and bounced around until it was destroyed. I just saw a program where they think of making electricity from the vibrations in the wind and not just from turning a shaft. On two bit davinci.

[@ossiehalvorson7702]

@@timsteinkamp2245 The Tacoma Narrows bridge incident wasn't frequency like you're maybe thinking. It wasn't an audible noise like dunes or drifts make, it was just vibration, specifically at 0.2Hz. For reference, a super deep subwoofer bass is often strongest around 60Hz, and 20Hz is about the lowest humans can hear (although at that point it's more like feeling it than hearing it).

[@saltedslug7954]

Bc air is technically fluid. You’d see the same sand pattern near estuaries during low tides

[@Dragrath1]

I think you can also see them in shallow waters below the surface in places where the currents are right too it doesn't need to be tidal per say even tsunami's can make such patterns with the right conditions.

[@JeffMTX]

and in ABL clouds

[@redwolfdragonkirangordondj2840]

Yep

[@naverilllang]

Don't say technically

[@TheLordOfDread]

@@naverilllang but you just said it 👀

[@daemn42]

One of the cool things about Great Sand Dunes National Park is how the dunes are constrained to that area. There are two small creeks that run from the mountains to the north and east of the park, down around the sides of the dunes and peter out in a generally SW direction. The prevailing SW winds push the dunes in a NE direction until they encounter those creeks and then the sand is carried back down by the water around the sides to the SW and deposited there as the water disappears into the sand. Rinse.. repeat.

[@JannPoo]

13:32 "In that story the complex interplay of life and sand on the desert world Arrakis is threatened with collapse at the hand of humans." That's a rather interesting take on the theme of Dune. There is certainly a will from the Fremens to terraform Arrakis into a more hospitable place to live, a goal that is eventually reached after a few centuries, but it's never described as a "threat", and you make it sound like a side-effect of something else, like pollution, while it is a deliberate goal. The spice-farming itself has absolutely no impact in the ecological system of Dune. In the end Frank Herbert was tasked to find a way to "tame" dunes and deserts and his book is about that, not "respecting nature". It should also be noted that Arrakis wasn't originally a desert world, it was in fact a verdant planet like Earth and if there's a lifeform responsible for transforming it into a desert where almost nothing can survive it's the sandworms.

[@feIipeed]

Just saw this video now and came to the comments right as he talked about the "theme" of Dune. I don't think he read it or maybe he didn't care and just wanted a way to put it in the script and thought he had to tie it to environmental justice lmao Unfortunately, Dune does not deal with much justice

[@DonBeardy]

Joe with glowing eyes through sunglasses is intimidating

[@orangeblue4763]

VERY

[@moxxy3565]

He has become the divine being, knower of all knowledge.

[@santcoin4031]

No need to panic. He just bought more BTC

[@hamgelato8143]

yeah, that's the side effect when you inhale too much spice like the Fremen

[@dannydillon997]

Lol

[@ditsaa]

The final touch with William Blake's lines, beautiful! Yes, the sand dunes inspire you to think about something way bigger & larger, and they're very beautiful for that reason.

[@MaryAnnNytowl]

Absolutely true! Plus, I've always loved that Blake poem, anyway!

[@RMBlake007]

Great Great Great Great Uncle Blake....

[@plomox1234]

Just visited great sand dunes National Park this year. If you're in Colorado it's a must see. Absolutely stunning

[@SF-li9kh]

Why is everything "great" ?

[@calebm.mclaren8465]

Came here to name drop the Sand Dunes National Monument locates in Alamosa, CO

[@royfrye2871]

@@calebm.mclaren8465 actually Mosca!

[@godlessrecovery8880]

I think that's where he's at.

[@areyouavinalaff]

4:45 sections of our local beach can look like this at low tide, which reveals the interaction between sand and water. It's the same as the boundary between two liquids of signigicantly different densities, between air and water, water and sand, air and sand. As you said earlier, sand behaves as a liquid, although fluid would be a better term. Sand, air and water can all exhibit fluid dynamics.

[@Monkeymario.]

ngl it looks like ROBLOX

[@ollivyr]

great sand dunes is one of the most magical and amazing places ive ever been. its hard to understand how large a 700+ foot dune is until you're try to hike it

[@FlubberGamer]

It’s incredible how you can find these beautiful patterns within nature, from the ripples caused by the oceans waves, to massive hills laid out in similar, yet vastly larger ripples. All you have to do is to look into the math of it all and you’ll gain a greater appreciation of the beauty of seemingly “simple” things like the dunes for example. I think one of the coolest examples of math in nature explaining a “system” that to us is supposedly chaotic or random, is the equation to calculate the “roughness” of costal lines. I can recall exactly what it was called, but it was found by the man who discovered the Mandelbrot set. This was at a time when we believed it to be possible to “create” a geometric shape not found to be already “created” within nature, there is a beautiful TedTalk by Benoit Mandelbrot on fractals and the art of roughness where he talks about all of this with more wisdom than I would be able to convey in this comment alone, so I suggest anyone interested in this topic, and with a bit of patience to really understand something somewhat complex, to check it out.

[@TheAnimationStrikesBack]

The dislikes are from Anakin Skywalker

[@zanevonholland4472]

I was looking for someone to say this

[@nenmaster5218]

@@zanevonholland4472 I LOVE recommending science-youtubers to people in c-sections under science-youtubers!! May I? Or is this too random?

[@redwolfdragonkirangordondj2840]

LMFAO

[@sumiaota3335]

Is that the same mechanism for sand ripples in the sea bed, substituting water currents for atmospheric wind?

[@k.c1126]

I would assume that the processes are the same... With the caveat that gasses flowing may not behave exactly like liquid . . .

[@cameron8253]

and in huge sections of the american south west from the runoff of the great flood.

[@danwylie-sears1134]

Basically yes. Waves move back and forth, whereas wind keeps going. So the patterns are a little different.

[@Eyes0penNoFear]

@@cameron8253 how can I learn more about this?

[@cameron8253]

@@Eyes0penNoFear kzbin.info/www/bejne/j4qmgZagfcikbck heres a good place to start. then here for another perspective on how things may come about. kzbin.info

[@TurinTuramber]

Small things doing simple things, is how the universe works in a nutshell. Complexity is an emergent property of simplicity.

[@charles-antoinegagne6109]

One interesting question would be the similarity of the little waves on the lake caused by the wind and those of the desert. Really great video.

[@dorothymccoy4061]

The Silver Lake Sand Dunes in western lower Michigan are never mentioned in Dune stories. This is where I grew up. It was wonderful tumbling down the dunes & walking them for a day. The views of a blue Lake Michigan, blue sky, yellow sand and another but much smaller lake were magnificent even to a child. Sadly, now in my senior years many of the houses, trees, etc that were visible then, are covered over now. Even Silver Lake seems smaller. Yet the dunes still have their same shapes. Thank you for explaining why. Meanwhile the western winds keep coming across Lake Michigan.

[@dr.jamesolack8504]

How far are these dunes from Kalamazoo?

[@stevenarmstrong5364]

@@dr.jamesolack8504 I'd say 2.5, maybe 3 hours north of Kzoo

[@shawnhartmann4581]

There was a place in Northern California where I spent my teenage years called Ten Mile Beach. Sand dunes for miles. There were a few houses along the road that were in danger of being "eaten" with dunes towering 60-70 feet above them. There was an old skateboard with a pair of size 16 tennis shoes nailed to it. We'd go out there to party, and that board would always be there. it was great. You could go down a 100 foot sand slope at top speed wasted and if you wiped out not get hurt.

[@christianxxx9393]

Lucky! I had a friend ride a hill wasted (concrete) and I thought he was gonna die lololol

[@nenmaster5218]

@@christianxxx9393 I LOVE recommending science-youtubers to people in c-sections under science-youtubers!! May I? Or is this too random?

[@christianxxx9393]

@@nenmaster5218 sure go ahead (:

[@christianxxx9393]

@@nenmaster5218 wait what’s a c-sect.. oh my god

[@nenmaster5218]

@@christianxxx9393 C-Section = commentsection.

[@18matts]

"I don't like sand. It's coarse, and rough, and irritating, and it gets everywhere." Darth Vader

[@brookiebrooke928]

I grew up next to the St. Anthony Sand Dunes in Idaho. My tiny small home town was known for these dunes. They were great to sled on during the winter and bonfire on in the summer. The sand is SO soft and very light in color. I was always told that it formed due to something in relation to the continental divide? 🤔

[@alkasatardekar8044]

I werg puri txen ot wht. Ts ynohtna dnas senud ni ohadi. Ym unit llams emoh nwot saw nwonk rof eseht senud. Yeht erew taerg ot dels no gnirud wht retniw dna erifnob no ni wht remmus. Wht dnas si OS tfos dna yrev thgil ni roloc. I saw syawla dlot taht to demrof eud ot gnihtemos ni noitaler ot wht latnenitnoc edivid? 🤣

[@josephgoldsborough9138]

Great video for the first 12 minutes. Didn't care about the profound impact, just wanted to learn more about dunes.

[@carlosaguirre8622]

I love how this man makes me entertained while learning about SAND!!! I wish all my teachers had this talent

[@nenmaster5218]

I LOVE recommending science-youtubers to people in c-sections under science-youtubers!! May I? Or is this too random?

[@megan2176]

Love this! I had already planned to send this video to my son, because he loves to quote that line of Anakin's about hating sand because it's "coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere", and then you mention Star Wars in the video! Bonus points! Maybe he'll see this comment too - Hi Mike! :)

[@renerpho]

Let me reply to boost the comment. Hi Mike!

[@megan2176]

@@renerpho Haha, thanks Daniel! I'm not sure he ever saw this comment - he may have been too cool to respond to his mom. :)

[@EddieVanAidan]

Bonus Greek God fact! In music, “Aeolian” is also the term for the minor scale

[@alexmacgregor9631]

I live in the Palouse region of Washington and our rolling hills covered by grass were created the same way as sand dunes but are now one of the richest farming regions in the US.

[@AndyGladbach]

I would love to see a video about why liquid flows down the side of a glass - I appreciate the brief mention here but it's still a mystery to me WHY that happens?!? Why doesn't gravity just take it straight down?

[@pluspiping]

I'm willing to bet it has something to do with surface tension, the same reason a drop of water can stick to the bottom of a horizontal surface as long as it's small enough

[@szymonmatuszewski]

"Hey smart people" - from beautiful Joe always brightens my day

[@MontgomeryWenis]

Here in Michigan, we've got tons of sand dunes. In the city of Hart, they're actually swallowing homes.

[@StapleCactus]

I'm either still a child or a dog, because the entire video was just me going "I wanna dig it. Get me a dozer, I'm going to dig it all to one spot. What's under all the sand? Get me a vacuum cleaner. DIG IT ALL UP!"

[@ciyttcix6661]

Joe looks like the guy that can talk about sand for a very long time.

[@daverei1211]

Not just in air, also those ripples with sand under water too.

[@ravick007]

Hey, about that, it'd be great if you could take a look at these two other questions: why these same ripple patterns that appear in the dunes can form at the bottom of the clouds? And, why, since erosion ends up taking huge amounts of clay, silt and sand into the oceans, the waters of the seas are not turbid? Oh, and, thanks for your videos. They're always awesome!

[@bigkirbyhj666]

Well for one large bodies of water are very murky if you actually look at them. But also the clay and silts are heavier than water so it would eventually sink. So when it gets to the end of the estuary or reach the sea it's lost a lot of the kinetic energy and just gets pushed along the bottom without causing a disturbance higher in the water.

[@Kimmie6772]

See Galveston water. It's not quite pollution (though that doesn't help), it's all the sediment from the Mississippi river that makes it all murky. If you drive a ship through there you can see all the sediment being kicked up in the water. As someone else mentioned, that sediment eventually gets moved to where it can settle and sink. There are sand banks that also get formed by delta deposition.

[@mirrenboarish]

You missed one of the coolest things about wripple and dune movement, migration is not always in the direction of the wind. Dune and wripples can march both up and down wind depending on wind speed and angle of impact. Wripple marching upwind is so counter-intuitive but looks so cool!

[@skram1000]

Waves on water are incredibly beautiful and fractaled, especially out on the ocean

[@deadphishcheesespread]

About 20 years ago me and some friend dropped some acid and climbed those exact dunes. Colorado. It as the first time I ever saw chemtrails. And also learned that since there is nothing to stop sound, you cn hear people talking crystal clear from a half mile away. Most amazing time ever.

[@MaryAnnNytowl]

The similarity between sand dunes and snowdrifts [and when snow was listed as sometimes being sand, too, that explained it!] has always fascinated me. Such beauty from chaos, just like was said in the video, is ... awesome to me. In the real sense of the word. I'm awed by the beauty _and_ the mathematics involved. But, on top of the sheer coolness involved, those humorous lines tossed in, like: "Call me Mr. Sandman." "...where he was played by Voldemort." and the like, PLUS the beautiful quote from _Auguries of Innocence,_ by William Blake, were like... the spices added to a beautiful and tasty dish, making it just - perfection! Thank you so much for this one! It was especially great, between the information and the excellent writing! More, more! _Author! Author! Author!_ _~standing ovation~_

[@TheNinjaFam]

14:07 It looks like there are trees on Mars.

[@orbispictus6127]

If I'm not wrong, that picture shows fractal defrosting patterns on Mars. Those "trees" are actually sublimation spots (small spots where the frost/ice has sublimated away, exposing the darker ground). We also see small fans, which form when jets of gaseous carbon dioxide erupt through a weak spot in the surface ice, ejecting dark surface material that then gets smeared across the surface by the wind.

[@michaellewis483]

They kinda do look like trees but they follow the topography of the dunes and sharply stop at their origin on the dune crest indicating avalached material. Perhaps concentrated hematite or damp soil from sublimation as suggested by Orbis Pictus

[@bgbthabun627]

@@orbispictus6127 sounds good to me, I agree that they do kinda of look like trees though

[@dr.jamesolack8504]

@@orbispictus6127 I disagree.

[@francobuzzetti9424]

i'll make it easy , they are not going up , they are horizontal , that's just diferent color stuff "melting" away from dunes, like avalanches as we see them from above they look vertical , but they are actually like rivers flowing down

[@jacobthompson1682]

On this long awaited day of Dune's debut a vid about sand is what I want.

[@Nigel42687]

Growing up around the great sand dunes we were taught about how sand dunes are formed every year in elementary this is like a refresher lol

[@rbach2]

The take home for me was when you talked about how large rocks erode, dust is lifted into the air, and sand is whats different in between. It should have been common sense physics and now it is. Great video.

[@sumedha9089]

Idk why I always expect Joe to post every 4-5 days knowing that he has got a lot of things to do other than making videos. Maybe because I ran out of IOTBS videos.

[@mauricioabastoflorfranco9201]

Smart of you to upload a dunes video on the eve os the Dune movie US premiere. And thumbs up to the homage made. Walk without rythm, the spice must flow.

[@Beryllahawk]

Love this one! The Blake quote was just perfect at the end. For a bit there I thought you were at Monahans Sand Hills - obviously not a place quite as impressive in scale but pretty darn neat and a place I've actually been. I remember learning a tiny bit about the kinds of dunes there and the wind patterns. (also I remember rolling down several hills and having sand in my - um - everything) A fascinating particulate matter :D Also, good to know how to properly pronounce desertification, I've been saying it quite incorrectly and making the world turn into landscapes of sweets apparently.

[@KrathiaVT]

I’m so happy that I’ve discovered this channel a few days ago. It’s amazing

[@PCNebula]

The "hey smart people" i hear from you single-handedly raised my self-esteem by 70% since i haven't gotten praised since middle school.

[@cyruskabir16]

Me: Ok. This is the last video for tonight. Then I will study. KZbin: Joe just uploaded a new video! Me: God dammit!

[@slimee8841]

Anakin: "I've wondered about this question for a long time..."

[@nenmaster5218]

I LOVE recommending science-youtubers to people in c-sections under science-youtubers!! May I? Or is this too random?

[@pablomorralla3256]

hey just wanted to say that a volcano in "La Palma", an island on "Las Islas Canarias", an Spanish archipelago, is currently erupting. so if you're interested in that stuff you should give it a look

[@cathyb1273]

”Currentlty ?” the volcano has erupted like a month ago.... and does not seem to calm down.

[@pablomorralla3256]

@@cathyb1273 yeah you're right. by "currently" i meant that it's still expulsing lava

[@qzh00k]

Followed Hawaii, Iceland and now La Palma in the Canarie Islands for years of amazing viewing. The comment sections on those natural events is both comedy and tragedy. Enjoy our planet, its cool but warming.

[@1.4142]

The attention is on mount Aso now

[@stevenkeeffe9137]

Very enjoyable and informative video both in presentation and content. As someone who's lived primarily in a coastal area, I'd love to see a comparison how how the wind-driven sand compares to water-driven sand. Similar ripples are formed beneath the surface of moving water of coasts and rivers/streams. I find it very interesting. On desertification: I've always believed (possibly a naive belief) that desertification of the upper continent of Africa is what spawns the tropical storm and hurricanes that affect North America. Could we delve into how to "un-desertify" an area like the Sahara by the intentional planting of drought resistant grasses into those areas that may lead to stable areas for planting more permanent foliage to retain moisture and reverse the desertification process? Many coastal areas have taken such a position to reduce/eliminate wind erosion of shore lines by planting suitable grasses here in the U.S. Or do we just buy an electric car that charges from magical unicorn fairy dust (totally no carbon footprint in the production of electricity or batteries/storage) to solve the "man-made" climate crisis? Yes, yes, I'm one of "those guys" who asks pesky "why" questions and doesn't hesitate to point out inconvenient truths. Electricity requires a huge hydrocarbon input.... unless we're willing to re-approach nuclear power production conversations... you're still using fossil fuels in your electric car, possibly more than for an internal combustion engine running on dinosaur juice. I'm a blast at parties, or so I tell myself.

[@degariuslozak2169]

I somehow skipped to the water pouring part without sound on and out of context I just couldn't stop laughing

[@Saniru_Kodithuwakku]

hi bro joe, Yesterday I made sand castle in my garden but unfortunately my cat pooped on it :(

[@SparrowHawk183]

The dunes, the spice, the worms, Mos Espa, it's all connected!

[@MonkeyJedi99]

I can see the corkboards and the red yarn.

[@rpbajb]

Wasn't it Mos Eisley Spaceport?

[@Dogsrule777]

Checkout Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes in Northern Michigan! It’s a beautiful and ever changing place where you can see erosion in action. ☮️

[@BasedZillenial]

One of my favorite places!

[@versuzzero5335]

Order is just another word for chaos. You cannot have order without chaos. True beautiful and natural sceneries are all made up of little chaotic things and we perceive it as having beautiful and orderly.

[@cesarvidelac]

Have you noticed that stratos clouds behave the same way? I'd love to hear you talk about it, I suspect the mechanism is analog but more complex considering the material (ice cristals) are suspended in mid air. And always walk without rhythm 😁

[@Thebreakdownshow1]

Lol sand dunes are better at self driving than our cars right now.

[@AbhishekKumar-ry9ls]

I am a Geologist who loves physics and maths. I can hear you talk about sand, wind and everything in between for hours 😅😂❤ it's like a melody, a symphony soothing my heart lusty for rocks 😂 I'm Amazed and happy 😊❤ Dune movie reference was on point. I didn't knew that's how the book was written.

[@KingCookieCat]

The sand looks so comfortable, uncomfortable, hot and cold all at the same time

[@santiagorubio5211]

I see, exploiting the dune keyword while the movie Dune is coming out in theaters... Smart 😏😏😏

[@stefansauvageonwhat-a-twis1369]

I already knew science was a mess of people sharing ideas and culture and luck but its rare to actually see it so clearly demonstrated as in this video, it was amazing!

[@adambukowski2472]

The journalism major finally got around to taking geology 101 at the community college. I watched it, good memories. Thanks for posting.

[@Abell_lledA]

One doesn’t experience self-transcendence, the illusion of self only dissipates🎈

[@Monkeymario.]

SALT IS SAND

[@Mr.BobsDog]

To see a World in a Grain of Sand And a Heaven in a Wild Flower Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour

[@alphadawg81]

Germany regularly experiences winds carrying sand from the Sahara desert. Oftentimes literally every thing is left with a noticeable layer of sand.

[@notusneo]

0:01 Joe who?

[@ErikOlexiewicz]

Joe mama

[@francobuzzetti9424]

dunes from space look like the ripples we see on their surface , i see the repeating patterns in everything since i got obsessed with fractals when i was little

[@Kapil__Lanjewar]

I have my own dunes on my scalp... made up entirely of dandruff accumulated over decades and now are perfectly aligned at 33.33 degrees. I even use my hair dryer to move them around. 👍😂

[@crabbyscrappy]

Wow. Only someone like you could get me hyped over sand

[@jacobkain4721]

I'm always so proud when you say, "you may think that.." but I definitely did not think that! Thanks for being awesome and making me feel awesome, too

[@curtbecker-rockhopperbroom44]

We sand buggy riders can park in a line on the steep side of a tall dune then - on count - together coast and brake quickly... this can get a big slab of sand to start down hill singing... or we call it making thunder. Really a deep roar. I've only been able to do it on the Saint Anthony Dunes in Idaho. I've the wind blows well enough over night, we can do it again the next day.

[@brettdowies4182]

I love riding motorcycles and ATV’s on the sand dunes. It is my happy place that has always fascinated me

[@ddnava96]

10+ minutes into a video I chose to watch: "Why should you care about sand?" "Idk, man. I've already watched 10+ minutes worth of it"

[@dawsie]

There is an old telegraph station and small town on the boarder of Western Australia and it was buried by the sand dunes, I was there 30 plus years ago walking along a low wall well I thought it was a low wall as I walked along it the right hand side suddenly had a 9 foot drop it turned out I was walking along a building at the roof top, the wall was part of the Town we were looking for. The small town is constantly being buried and uncovered over the past 100 years.

[@codmpink]

Bravo I never thought I'd watch a 16 minute video about sand.

[@davidfoss4365]

Hi Joe. I read some time back about a 'soliton' dune where one sand dune in the Sahara appeared to blown through a ridge of dunes over the course of several months. It only got a short mention as the artical was about waves, a soliton being a larger than normal wave the persist for sometime. In the quantum world a soliton looks like a subatomic particle. This quantum concept is facinating but I've always wanted to know more about the soliton sand dune. Even after seeing the photos I find it hard to believe.

[@downsidebrian]

I did already know a lot of this, between ADHD-inspired research and my hobbies of gardening and pottery. The difference in how particles of different sizes interact is important to both. In researching gardening, and keeping up healthy soil, I learned that sand is made of relatively big particles - a size range defined by the interactions mentioned here. Clay, on the other hand, is made up of much smaller particles - so small that the electrostatic forces between them add up to something that can hold a shape. Between those ranges, like the visible spectrum of light, is a type of soil particle that's just big enough that the electrostatic forces can't totally hold it together against gravity, but small enough that those forces help it retain some shape. Soil in this range is called silt, and is most of the actual dirt you find in, say, potting soil(although a lot of the mass of that soil is peat moss). Silt is carried by water in just the right way that a flooding riverbank of a slow moving river like the Nile forms a deposition - yes, just like in this video - of silt in the area. Meaning that the goldilocks size of certain particles is actually what allowed the empires of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and China to form. And probably some of the Mississippi River basin, too, although we don't have good records of that time. But if you live in the US and eat corn or wheat, you can probably thank the silt of the Mississippi River for that. If you lived in ancient Rome and benefited from the grain dole(a welfare program where the government would "dole out" grain), you could thank the silt of the Nile for that.

[@Corpsman01]

I love being smart, thanks for the support! Making me smarter everyday!

[@MoonyTheBat]

13:00 Eyyy shoutout to my Oregon peeps! When I took Geology 101 we actually took a trip out to Florence and we visited a bunch of rock formations on the way. When we got there, we stopped at a store in front of a bunch of dunes, and they had bulldozers parked nearby for when they needed to move the sand. We climbed up the dunes and talked about sand for like half an hour. Probably my favorite class I've taken, rocks are cool.

[@daleleisenring4275]

So in 1976 I went on a Dune misadventure in the dunes of Glamis, aka Imperial Sand Dunes. Guy named Dave was proclaimed to be the "king of the 4 wheel drives", and could take his 70ish Chevy truck up to the top of Glamis. No easy task. So about 10 pm at night, the tires almost completely deflated, we began a very slow crawl in up the dunes in that truck! Me and my friend were spotters, standing up in the back of the truckbed, standing up, holding on to a huge rollbar with 4 KC lights and giving directions to Dave by way of pounding on the roof. Im on the left, my friend from high school on the right. How do I know this? I'm left handed. You can only go up the dunes in a truck by staying on the crests. On either side, its a bowl that becomes a sandworm and eats everything that slides into it. Once you start going down into a bowl, you're done. So "Dave the king of 4 wheel drives" explains the strategy. Standing up in the truckbed with the bazillion candlepower KC lights, we can see what the driver Dave cannot. Skeptical that we would make it to the top, I was surprised that moving at a crawl it can be done! IF you have a good spotter or two. Dave gained the admiration of my 16 years old self, and proved he was, indeed, the "King Of The 4 Wheel Drives". So we celebrated by drinking more of the hard liquor we were already intoxicated on, once we made it to the top. Perhaps if we would have done this sober, both of us spotters would not have panicked on the way down, me pounding frantically on the left of the rooftop, and my friend pounding frantically on right of the trucks rooftop simultaneously! It was a no win situation. When Dave started to drift off the crest I knew we were going to get stuck. BOTH OF US spotters saw the problem get worse as this crest split in two, and regardless which way you went, you would end up going into a bowl! So there we were drunk and stuck axles deep in fine sand. So we had to had to go get help. Some guy was blasting about the dunes this night, about 1/2 mile away. Uphill. We will just walk over there. Easy, right? Uh.. NO! You cant walk up these dunes. Fine sand. You must crawl. This mere 1/2 mile exhausted all of us. Its more like swimming uphill, as you must exert great force to not slide. Quite frustrating. Fear was a mind killer as I had not read Dune yet and it told me the windblown fine sand will pick our bones clean if we don't get help before the sun comes up. We got pulled out by the sandrail guy using a chain. Then he gave us each a ride. Hey! What the ...I survived Arrakis and didn't even get a lousy T-shirt? If you have panic disorder, I strongly recommend reading Dune. The "Fear is The Mind Killer" mantra helped cure me of debilitating panic attacks that I had for 15 years.

[@EyeofHorus33]

I still have major trouble believing that there are more stars in the sky, than all the grains of sand, on all the beaches of Earth.

[@PrometheusSleeps]

I can't believe I just watched an entire video on sand, and enjoyed it.

[@BarryB.Benson]

With all the hype around the movie there’s no doubt this video will get more traction than average, u sir are a smart man and I’m sure whenever someone searches up dune they’ll see this video and might check it out

[@abcde_fz]

I knew that!!! Interesting thing about angle of repose. It's why in many parts of the US, your local highway and road department yard has big DOMES on them. These are often 'salt domes', where road salt for winter weather is stored. The angle of repose of halite, (the technical, maybe trademarked somewhere, name of the salt dug out of mines), the angle of repose for your Road Salt is 32 degrees, so a dome is a logical way to store the stuff. And 32 degrees is the usually accepted temperature (F.) for the freezing of water at sea level. I knew this because Dad was a Salt Seller, as opposed to a Salt Cellar, which is another name for a Salt Shaker. Cool...

[@ConCon0403]

imagine aliens come and find our databases and the first video they see is a guy talking about sand

[@quincyquincy4764]

I'm so glad that I kept watching, I'm listening to the audiobook version of Dune right now!

[@Wicklust]

-Watch out for sandworms kids, never know when you're gonna run into one of those things. *Continues to walk like a pleb with constant rhytmical steps*

[@Immortal_Fish]

Therapist:"it's ok, sand won't follow you everywhere Sand on Pluto: