***Copyright: Please visit the photographer links for licensing conditions for each photo. Some are available through a Creative Commons license, but many are copyrighted against unauthorized use. We were granted special permission to feature them in this Matador photo essay. ***
Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
The largest salt flat in the world reflects the sky during the wet season... Photo: Luca Galuzzi
Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
...and in the dry winter months, it becomes a mosaic of salt tiles. Photo: Sergio Pessolano
Intermission
The Richat Structure, near Ouadane, Mauritania
A circular feature, 50km across, in the middle of the otherwise featureless Mauritanian Sahara. Picture courtesy of NASA. Photographer: trodel_wiki
Alvord Playa, southeastern Oregon, USA
You might not expect to find a desert in the Pacific Northwest, but this dry lake bed averages only 180mm of rain a year. Photo: rasone
Cappadocia, Turkey
Fairy chimneys dominate the landscape between Cavusin and Zelve. Photo: Timothy Neesam
Socotra Island, Yemen
Socotra's isolation in the Indian Ocean has given rise to plant life you won't see anywhere else. This is the dragon's blood tree. Photo: Sotti
Black Rock Desert, Nevada, USA
Best known as the staging grounds for Burning Man, the Black Rock Desert is also home to alien features such as the Fly Geyser. Photo: Stephen Oachs
Intermission
Kauai, Hawaii
Seaside lava ledges make for otherworldly experiences on this often-overlooked Hawaiian island. Photo: PatrickSmithPhotography
Namib Desert, Namibia
Sand rarely gets as red as it does in the deserts of Namibia. Photo: Brian Preen
Torres del Paine, Chile
The most alien of the 8 Natural Wonders of Chile, Torres del Paine's mountain spires cut into the blue sky. Photo: winkyintheuk
Dead Sea, Israel/Jordan
Lowest point on Earth, deepest salt lake in the world, saltier than the ocean...the list of the Dead Sea's bizarreness is a long one. Photo: Pennina Neumann
Strokkur Geyser, southwestern Iceland
Visitors to the Strokkur Geyser are rewarded with this display every five minutes or so. Photo: exfordy
Lake Turkana, Kenya
Lake Turkana lies in Africa's Great Rift Valley. Its salty waters comprise the world's largest desert lake. Photo: Yannick Garcin
Four Corners region, USA
The Colorado Plateau gets funky at the Arizona-Utah border. That's where you'll find Vermilion Cliffs National Monument... Photo: gregmote
Chocolate Hills, Bohol, Philippines
Over 1,700 naturally formed mounds (covered with chocolate brown grass in the dry season) dot the center of the island of Bohol. Photo: Lemuel Montejo
The Sahara
The world's largest hot desert is as big as the entire U.S. Get stranded out here and you'll wish you really were on an alien world. Photo: Jay Brezinsky
