Like an artist at the canvas, Earth's wind and rain create eerie and intriguing masterpieces from the desert to the rain forest. Formed over the course of millennia, these strange scenes owe their to the whims of the weather.

1. Hoodoos

These stacked, totem-like rocks were once actually a single slab of stone formed as a plateau in horizontal layers over time. As rain gradually chips away at weaker parts of the stone, it leaves an behind.

Bryce Canyon National Park is one of the most popular destinations to see hoodoos in person. According to the , there is no other place on earth with as many hoodoos. Many of the hoodoos in Bryce Canyon were formed by a process called frost wedging, where melted snow that makes its way into the crevices of these rocks then expands as ice, forming cracks in the rock.

Notable hoodoos there include the Indian Princess, which is shaped like a woman’s silhouette; the 3 Wisemen, which are grouped together at the top of a cliff; the Crooked Hoodoo, which seems to defy gravity; and ET, which resembles the famous movie character. Each hoodoo seems to have its own personality – earning them the nickname of “goblins”.

Some of these hoodoos seem pretty precariously balanced – and they are. The National Park Service warns that even walking up to a hoodoo can disrupt the formations’ foundations.

2. Erosion Craters

When we think of craters, we usually think of the ones that have been created by meteors or volcanoes – but not all craters have been created by eruptions or extraterrestrial impacts. In fact, Earth’s weather can take quite the toll on its vast desert landscapes over the course of hundreds of millions of years.

Take for example the Negev desert in Israel and the Sinai peninsula of Egypt. These dry, arid landscapes have had their fair share. Limestone, dolomites, sandstone and chalk dominate these deserts, each eroding at its own pace. The result is a steeply sloped “crater” called a that’s just as extreme as any impact crater.

From the top of their cliffs, these craters offer positively breathtaking views. From the bottom, visitors can see geological history dating back to the age of dinosaurs.

3. Yardangs

Wind and sand combine to form yardangs in a variety of shapes and sizes, from long and thin ridges to tall pillars resembling hoodoos. Much like hoodoos are formed by water and ice, yardangs are formed by erosive dust storms. The most striking yardangs on Earth are in China – and even more amazing formations exist on Mars.

Aerial views of yardang fields reveal a stark, rippled landscape. Standing at the base of a yardang, it typically looks like the hull of a ship. In this way, this geological phenomenon is like a rigid, stone ocean. In China’s Dunhuang Yardang park, these formations take on a variety of peculiar shapes, which as ranging from a sphinx to a peacock to a fleet of stone ships.

4. Sinkholes

are more common than you might think – all it takes is the right type of rock and lots of moving groundwater. According to , sinkholes range from a few feet wide to hundreds of acres, and can stretch up to 100 feet deep.

Some of the most striking sinkholes occur in Mexico. Called cenotes, these sinkholes are beautiful because limestone has collapsed to expose the groundwater beneath them, and the lush foliage continues to grow around them. In some cases, cenotes create access to stunning caves.

5. Karst landforms

Sinkholes also contribute to amazing landscapes that spans hundreds of acres. Known as karst topography, these landforms stretch high up into the sky and often continue underground with complex cave systems. In South China, the karst terrain is spectacular and colorful, earning it . Perhaps the most stunning area is Lijiang National park, where the karst mountains loom tall, known locally as “fenglin” (“tower”) formations.

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