Rock Arches Shine in Stunning Photo

One of the famous sandstone arches of Arches National Park. CREDIT: Jim Karczewski, National Park Service View full size image

The beauty of the unusual rock formations that litter Utah's Arches National Park are clear in this photo, with the sun sitting just above the horizon.

Arches National Park   has more than 2,000 sandstone arches, including the iconic Delicate Arch, that the forces of erosion have shaped over millions of years.

Arches is located in a "high desert," with elevations ranging from 4,085 to 5,653 feet (1,245 1,723 meters) above sea level. The climate is one of very hot summers, cold winters and very little rainfall. Even on a daily basis, temperatures may fluctuate as much as 50 degrees.

The catalogued arches in the park range in size from a 3-foot (1-m) opening (the minimum considered to be an arch), to Landscape Arch which measures 306 feet (93 m) from base to base.

Spires and precarious looking balanced rocks also dot the landscape.