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Goblin Valley State Park, UT - There may not be goblins in this valley, but the whole park looks so different from most parts of the planet that it’s hard to imagine you’re still on Earth.

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Goblin Valley State Park, UT - At night, it's a good place to gaze at the stars and pretend you’re somewhere else in the galaxy.

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Goblin Valley State Park, UT - Rock formations big and small are everywhere.

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Fly Geyser, NV - Located near Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, this crazy-looking thing was formed when a geothermic company drilled on this site. The company hit water that was hot, but not hot enough for their purposes, and resealed the well… badly. It did not hold.

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Fly Geyser, NV - Over the past 40 years, minerals from the geothermal water have been depositing on the surface of the desert surrounding the geyser, creating a mound covered in algae that gives it a multi-colored hue.

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Fly Geyser, NV - A combination of man-made mistakes and nature taking charge of a situation, Fly Geyser has a uniquely alien appearance.

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Kilauea Volcano, HI -

Volcanoes don’t just exist on Earth. In fact, Jupiter’s moon Io is actually the most volcanically active location in our solar system.

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Kilauea Volcano, HI - NASA researchers found that Io’s volcano Prometheus looks uncannily similar to Hawaii’s Kilauea Volcano.

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Kilauea Volcano, HI - Both Prometheus and Kilauea have lengthy eruptions and flows that move through lava tubes, producing plumes when they come in contact with cooler temperatures, like the water of the Pacific Ocean.

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Antelope Canyon, AZ - This slot canyon exists on Navajo land in Arizona, not on a planet other than Earth.

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Antelope Canyon, AZ - It was created by erosion of sandstone by water, hence its flowing shapes.

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Antelope Canyon, AZ - It’s become a popular tourist destination, given its beautiful appearance and highly photogenic hues.

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Apostle Islands, WI - In Lake Superior, you can find 22 islands called the Apostle Islands.

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Apostle Islands, WI - You can find sea caves on the shores of these islands, which can look a little like they might belong on another planet.

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Apostle Islands, WI - In the winter, the shoreline can look especially alien, with icicles and frozen waterfalls in the caves and rocky coast.

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Death Valley, CA - If you need proof that Death Valley has otherworldly qualities, take note that NASA used the national park as a location to run tests before landing a rover on Mars in 2012.

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Death Valley, CA - It’s certainly reminiscent of Mars, as it’s the driest area in North America.

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Death Valley, CA - Here you’ll find sand dunes, rock faces, jagged hills, and a dry desert floor with crusty patterns and cracks.

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Grand Prismatic Spring, WY - Yellowstone National Park’s famed hot spring has a totally bizarre, colorful appearance, the result of pigmented bacteria and microbes that make their home in the warm mineral waters of the spring.

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Grand Prismatic Spring, WY - The clear blue waters at the pool’s center come from the heat of the water where it boils up from underground, so hot as to make the area completely sterile.

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Grand Prismatic Spring, WY - The spring looks like part of an alien landscape, but the many tourists who travel all the way to Wyoming to gaze at its beauty are glad that it exists here on Earth.

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Badlands National Park, SD - These miles and miles of jagged, rocky peaks sure are something, and that something doesn’t exactly scream “earthly.”

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Badlands National Park, SD - The landscape was created by erosion, which continues to do its thing, shrinking the rocky forms bit by bit.

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Badlands National Park, SD - You’ll have to check this place out before it… or you… disappear.

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Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, ID - Like other weird, vaguely alien areas of the country, Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve owes its appearance to volcanic activity.

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Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, ID - The fact that it’s an International Dark Sky Park makes it look even more like another planet.

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Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, ID - Lava flows and cinder cones lend the land a unique, otherworldly quality.

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Grand Canyon, AZ - The Grand Canyon is otherworldly in its vastness, with its dry red dust, its sheer rock faces, and more. Looking out over the protected landscape, you might feel like you’re somewhere outside of your ordinary world.

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Grand Canyon, AZ - Sunsets and stars are clear, and even river water appears in stark contrast to the canyon’s orange-tinged stone.

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Haleakala Crater, HI - Maui’s Haleakala Crater is a sight to behold, with a landscape of cinder cones and a massive crater backfilled by lava flows, not to mention killer sunsets.

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Haleakala Crater, HI - Adding to the alien appearance are clouds that sometimes hover over the terrain.

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Haleakala Crater, HI - The volcano isn’t exactly done erupting, so you might want to check it out while it’s still dormant.

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Painted Dunes, CA - Who painted these dunes in different hues? Not aliens. The artists behind these bad boys are earthly volcanoes in Lassen Volcanic National Park.

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Painted Dunes, CA - These dunes are actually pumice fields formed from volcanic ash.

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Painted Dunes, CA - The ash oxidized and turned into vivid colors because it fell onto a bed of hot lava, creating this bizarre and beautiful landscape.

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The Wave, AZ - You can find The Wave in Arizona’s Coyote Buttes ravine, though you’d be forgiven if you thought you could find it somewhere in outer space.

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The Wave, AZ - The Wave is made of sandstone structures, curved and undulating, with dunes and stripes of color.

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The Wave, AZ -

The geological formation began to form 90 million years ago. No big deal.

See also:  Why you should visit America's national parks in the winter

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