Deciphering tens of tons of stone blocks balancing on a 30-50cm fulcrum attracts many visitors

How can a mass of tens of tons of stone stand tall on the cliff with only a small support below?

In the natural world there are so many strange things happening that it's hard for us to imagine them being real. Typically, rocks with the ability to self-balance in a precarious state are only on a small fulcrum.

These rocks are not only found in one place, they are found in many parts of the world. For example, Idol Rock in the UK, Mushroom rock in the US, Vaaniral Kal in India, Devils Marbles in Australia, Myanmar Gold, Chongqing - China.

And the participation of scientists on the case of the rock block in Chongqing has partly deciphered this common phenomenon in the world.

Currently, the stone forest at An Miao Camp in Peng Thuy District, Chongqing, China is home to such a strange rock. Therefore, this is also a tourist destination that attracts many tourists every day.

A stone weighing tens of tons is precarious on a tiny rock in Chongqing.

As the name suggests, An Mieu Trai rock forest is a place made up of only horizontal and vertical rocks. At first glance, the rocks here look like giant mountains. According to the analysis of scientists, the characteristic feature of An Mieu Trai rock forest is karst topography (this is a typical weathering phenomenon of limestone mountains eroded by water).

The constant movements of the lithosphere (Earth's outermost hard shell) have caused the sea water covering this area to recede, giving the opportunity for limestone cliffs to grow. During the early history of this area, it was covered with basalt and sedimentary soil.

Experiencing many ups and downs of history along with the external impact of nature along with a special hydrological climate, An Mieu camp's rock forest has been stratified and developed and brings great values ​​such as: now.

The rocks here feature typical karst topography.

The rocks here have a distinctly hierarchical feel. In addition, due to the karst topography, there are gray-white limestone rocks everywhere. Although there are many giant rocks here, the rock that can balance itself naturally forms only one. This rock has a rather fancy shape with a flat bottom and surface. It has a length of about 7m, a width of about 3m, an average thickness of about 1m and a weight of about tens of tons.

The pedestal of this rock is actually a small rock. This rock is only about 30 cm thick, only about 50 cm in diameter.

Scientists analyzed the composition of both rocks and determined that they were both limestone. Limestone is a sedimentary rock, in terms of chemical composition, mainly calcite and aragonite minerals (different crystalline forms of CaCO3). Limestone is often accompanied by high levels of chemical impurities such as dolomite (magnesium carbonate), silica (silicon); and clay (argillaceous) in different proportions.

This strange rock has attracted many domestic and foreign tourists to An Mieu camp.

They are usually formed in shallow, warm, and clear waters. They are an organic bio-sedimentary rock that can form from the accumulation of numerous shell debris; algae; corals and their droppings. It may also be a chemically sedimentary rock formed by the precipitation of CaCO3 from lake or ocean water. In other words, this self-balancing rock dates back to ancient times when this place was still an ocean.

Over hundreds of millions of years, along with the changes of nature, the sea water in An Mieu camp gradually dried up, the seabed turned into land. After a lot of rain and wind, the stone forest as it is now gradually formed. However, according to scientists' observations, geomorphological terrain such as An Mieu camp rock forest is still very rare.