Scenes from the life of teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe (1948-1986) during training for her fateful mission aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger. (NASA)
The waters of the Abiqua Creek in Oregon plunge 30 metres over a layer of the Columbia Flood basalts, a large igneous province that erupted vast volumes of magma over the American northwest around 15 million years ago. The basalt has cooled into the characteristic columnar jointing, giving the impression that the water is dropping into a giant rocky organ. Moss thrives on the basalt columns. Set in lands belonging to an abbey, they are a popular hiking destination, for those who can find the path.
