How the berg was born
A NASA satellite has captured the time-eroded traces of the volcano that sculpted the terrain of the Pilanesberg National Park a billion years ago. The image, taken from orbit high above the Earth, shows what remains of the volcano after its cone eventually collapsed in on itself to form the landscape we see today."The Pilanesberg Nasa image shows an example of a rare type of very well preserved ring complex, which formed after the volcano collapsed," said Wits University geology researcher Melissa Plail.The park is within the crater of the collapsed volcano."This picture puts us on the map," said North West Parks and Tourism spokesman Mamaki Phoolo.According to Nasa, Pilanesberg is one of the world's biggest and best-preserved examples of the rare alkaline ring dike complex sometimes formed by volcanoes."The concentric rings of hills and valleys make a near perfect circle, with different rings composed of different types of igneous rock.""The entire structure sits about 100m to 500m above the surrounding landscape. The highest point, Matlhorwe Peak, is about 1500m above sea level."..
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