Incredible photos from space show the ‘Eye of the Sahara’

Breathtaking images taken from space show the mysterious “Eye of the Sahara” like never before.

The official name of this incredible site is the Richat Structure. You may think it resembles the eyeball of a very large Earth creature, or perhaps a UFO landing site. This prominent circular geological feature is located in the Adrar Plateau of the Sahara, near Ouadane in the Adrar Region of the African country Mauritania.

The fascinating snaps were taken aboard the International Space Station (ISS) on 17 July, 255 miles (411 kilometers) above Earth.

It’s clear to see how the Richat Structure got its name, because it really does look like a giant eyeball due to its concentric rings. Estimates of its diameter range from 25 to 31 miles (40 to 50 kilometers) in diameter.

NASA describes the 30-mile (50km)-long formation, which lies in Mauritania, as a “conspicuous bull’s-eye in the otherwise rather featureless expanse of the desert”.

The Eye of the SaharaEarth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, NASA Johnson Space Center

The space agency said that the structure has been a useful landmark for astronauts since the earliest space missions because of its striking visibility from the cosmos. It was also originally interpreted as a meteorite impact structure because it’s almost a perfect circle.

Experts debated the history of the Richat Structure’s origins of the “Eye” for a very long time.

A number of theories have been put forward over the years to explain the anomalous apparition, including that it’s the remains of the lost city of Atlantis. However there’s no firm evidence to suggest Atlantis ever existed and it was simply a myth created by Plato, an ancient Greek philosopher.

Subsequent research found that this dome was shaped by tectonic uplift during the Cretaceous period — between 145 and 66 million years ago — and has been made visible through erosion, Live Sciencereports.

The Eye of the Sahara continues to amaze people to this day.

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