The View From Above: Check out this Giant Gobi Desert Glyph... from a glider!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Check out this Giant Gobi Desert Glyph... from a glider!

(Click photo to enlarge)

39°45'6.33"N 98°13'2.00"E

This gigantic glyph (3300 feet long by 2100 feet wide) can be found in the desert just west of the city of Jiayuguan in Gansu, China. It also happens to be a few hundred yards from the beginning of the Great Wall of China, or at least, its remnants. The glyph is of modern construction, and my guess is, it's a pictogram for "Jiayuguan," designed to be seen from the air. It is probably no coincidence that Jiayuguan also happens to be the home of one of the largest glider centers in the world.

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Why "View From Above"

I have an unquenchable thirst for exploration and mysteries. But that isn't the only reason for "View From Above." This blog exists primarily thanks to the despicable ignorance and laziness of the many, many people who will post a picture of some anomaly and simply make guesses about it, rather than do five minutes worth of research. I can't count the many times I've seen aerial pictures of "UFOs parked in a row on the beach" (They're beach umbrellas, you dork!) or questions like, "What's this aircraft doing sitting in the middle of the desert?" (It's a military firing range. They use junk aircraft as targets. Duh!) The unwillingness on the part of most people to do even a minimal amount of research just boggles the mind.

Another pet peeve of mine is the practice of posting an interesting site without a precise location. I don't know if it's laziness, oversight, or a desire to hoard information, but it's irritating as hell to me. That's why mosts of my posts will always include coordinates to the site.

I hope you'll enjoy perusing the sites I've listed. I can't take credit for being the first to "find" most of them, but I will do my best to let you know what I find out about them!

Michael Makai