Exploring the White Sands of New Mexico
To most, sand dunes are as synonymous with deserts as water is to an ocean. However, the deserts of the southwest are certainly no American Sahara. Sand dunes cover but a small percentage of the total land area, with the vast majority made up of silica, composed of weathered quartz. What makes the white sands of New Mexico’s White Sands National Monument, located just outside of Alamogordo, special is their composition- gypsum.