'mammoth anomaly in the south dakota badlands'

[Sushi]

Originally Posted by Dantheman62

I'm pretty sure that's snow, and the white dots are either little patches of snow or sand/dirt. Maybe dried up buffalo poop! LOL.

It's not snow. The soil composition of the Badlands is unique. It's oily, which you really notice when it rains. The place is a little dangerous when it gets wet because the terrain is very slippery. When you're on the ground there you can see the rainbow effect on the pavement akin to oil and water mixing. Personally, I believe the OS are probably sitting on a deposit there.

In prehistoric times this area was the bottom of a lake. From space it's highly reflective, so it looks like its covered with snow when it really isn't. Increase altitude in Google Earth and have a look at the surrounding area and you'll see that fields are green.