The Roaring Sands of Witsand
In the middle of the red Kalahari lies a ridge of white dunes that groan and roar when you slide down them.
What was reported
Witsand, in South Africa's Northern Cape, is a strip of brilliant white dunes about 9 km long, surrounded by the red sands of the Kalahari. Local people call it the Brulsand, the roaring sand.
On hot, dry days, when the sand is disturbed or slides down a slope, the dunes make a deep groaning or roaring sound, sometimes compared to a low-flying aircraft. Visitors slide down the slopes to hear it.
Explanations offered
Like the singing dunes of China and the Sahara, the sound comes from dry, well-rounded grains of sand moving together in an avalanche. It only happens when the sand is very dry, which is why the dunes are quiet after rain. Scientists still debate exactly how the grains synchronise.
- When
- Known for generations
- Where
- Witsand Nature Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa
- Witnesses
- Visitors and local communities
- Status
- Mostly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.