Picture of the day - April 11, 2005

Grand Canyon Sunrise

Photo courtesy of Scott Dommin.  The Grand Canyon... No other natural landmark is quite so intriguing. It is an immense chasm chiseled deep into the northwestern Arizona desert by the Colorado River. And it's a whopper - 277 miles long, up to 18 miles wide and almost a mile deep! The most awesome section of the canyon along with the plateau areas on both sides are forever set aside as the Grand Canyon National Park. Its roughly four million visitors a year makes it one of the nation's most visited parks and certainly one of the most photographed. Today's amazing picture features the Grand Canyon at sunrise. The different colors are indicative of the diverse layers of sedimentary rock that were left exposed as the Colorado River eroded the soil away creating the huge chasm. The various rocks contain several different minerals (primarily iron) that reflect different wavelengths of light (hence the beautiful colors). At the time of the morning when this photo was taken, the light from the rising sun hit the rocks just right to make them "bloom" in spectacular fashion. When you get around to taking your own Grand Canyon vacation be sure to visit the canyon both early in the morning and late in the afternoon and early evening. The breathtaking views will reward you handsomely for your efforts!   Picture Of The Day Homepage Interesting Articles