ls that have adapted suc
cessfully to this

constantly changing environment.At
the northern end of the Chihuahuan Des

ert lies a mountain-ringed valley
, the Tularosa Basin. Rising from t

he heart of this basin is onexplosives
e of the world's great natural wonders

-the glistening whi

te sands of New

Mexico. Great wave-like dunes of gypsum san

It's going to be a real blast!

d have engulfed 275

575-835-5492

square miles of desert here


and created the largest gypsum
dune field in t
he world. The dunes, bri


lliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, driven by strong southwest winds, covers everything in its path. Within the extremely harsh environment of the dune field, even plants and animals adapted to desert conditions struggle to survive. Only a few species of plants grow rapidly enough to survive burial by the moving dunes, but several types of small animals have evolved white colorations to camouflage them in the gypsum sand. White Sands National Monument preserves a major part of this gypsum dune field, along with the plants and animals that have adapted successfully to this constantly changing environment.At the northern end of the Chihuahuan Desert lies a mountain-ringed valley, the Tularosa Basin

. Rising from the heart of this basin is one of the world's great natural wonders-the glistening white sands of New Mexico. Great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert here and created the largest gypsum dune field in the world. The dunes, brilliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, driven by strong southwest winds, covers everything in its path. Within the extremely harsh environment of the dune field, even plants and animals adapted to desert condi

tions struggle to survive. Only a few species of plants grow rapidly enough to survive burial by the moving dunes, but several types of small animals have evolved white colorations to camouflage them in the gypsum sand. White Sands National Monument preserves a major part of this gypsum dune field, along with the plant

Explosives Camp's First Priority is Safety.ere and created the largest gypsum dune field in the world. The dunes, brilliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, driven by strong southwest winds, covers everything in its path. Within the extremely harsh environment of the dune field, even plants and animals adapted to de

How Much Does it Cost?sert conditions struggle to survive. Only a few species of plants grow rapidly enough to survive burial by the moving dunes, but several types of small animals have evolved white colorations to camouflage them in the gypsum sand. White Sands National Monument preserves a major part of this gypsum dune field, along with the plants and animals that have adapted successfully to this constantly changing environment.At the northern end of the Chihuahuan Desert lies a mountain-ringed valley, the Tularosa Basin. Rising from the heart of this basin is one of the world's great natural wonders-the glistening white sands of New Mexico

. Great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert here and created the largest gypsum dune field in the world. The dunes, brilliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, drive

Students are not allowed to have vehicles on campus.

n by strong southwest winds, covers everything in its path. Within the extremely harsh environment of the dune field, even plants and animals adapted to desert conditions struggle to survive. Only a few species of plants grow rapidl

y enough to survive burial by the moving dunes, but several types of small animals have evolved white c

olorations to camouflage them in the gypsum sand. White Sands