How Did the Giant’s Causeway Form? The Story Behind the Stones — Transcript

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1. 0:00welcome back to curious kids
2. 0:02HQ today we're traveling to a place
3. 0:04where science and myth come together in
4. 0:06the most incredible way a place so
5. 0:09unique it looks like something out of a
6. 0:10fairy tale it's called the Giants
7. 0:12Causeway and it's located along the
8. 0:14rugged Coastline of Northern Ireland
9. 0:17this amazing place is made up of about
10. 0:1940,000 hexagonal stone columns that fit
11. 0:22together like a giant puzzle creating a
12. 0:25natural pathway that leads into the sea
13. 0:27but here's the question was the Giant
14. 0:30Causeway created by the forces of nature
15. 0:33or by a mighty giant with a plan let's
16. 0:35dive into both the science and the
17. 0:37legend behind this stunning sight to
18. 0:40understand how the Giant's Causeway was
19. 0:41formed we have to go back almost 60
20. 0:44million years back then this part of
21. 0:46Northern Ireland was very different
22. 0:48instead of cool Green Hills and Coastal
23. 0:50Cliffs the land was covered in active
24. 0:53volcanoes when these volcanoes erupted
25. 0:55they spewed out tons of molten Basalt
26. 0:57lava the lava spread across the
27. 1:00landscape creating a massive glowing hot
28. 1:03flow that eventually began to cool now
29. 1:06here's where the magic of geology takes
30. 1:07over as the lava cooled down it started
31. 1:10to crack imagine a mud puddle drying up
32. 1:13it starts to split and form small cracks
33. 1:15the same thing happened here but on a
34. 1:17massive scale the cracks in the cooling
35. 1:19lava deepened and expanded creating tall
36. 1:22hexagonal Columns of stone these columns
37. 1:25fit together so perfectly that they look
38. 1:28like they were crafted by hand over
39. 1:30millions of years the surrounding
40. 1:32landscape eroded away revealing the
41. 1:34pattern of interlocking columns we see
42. 1:36today so in short the Giant's Causeway
43. 1:40is the result of a volcanic eruption and
44. 1:42the natural cooling process of lava but
45. 1:45wait that's only part of the story the
46. 1:48scientific explanation is fascinating
47. 1:51but the locals in Northern Ireland have
48. 1:53a story that's just as amazing if not
49. 1:55more according to Legend the Giant's
50. 1:58Causeway wasn't built by Nature at all
51. 2:00it was built by a giant named Finn mul
52. 2:03The Story Goes Like This Finn mul was an
53. 2:06Irish giant who was known for his
54. 2:08strength and bravery one day Finn heard
55. 2:11about another giant living across the
56. 2:13sea in Scotland a fearsome giant named
57. 2:15Ben and Donner the two giants exchanged
58. 2:18some not so friendly words each claiming
59. 2:21to be the strongest eventually they
60. 2:23decided to settle their argument with a
61. 2:25good old-fashioned fight but there was
62. 2:27one problem Finn and Ben and donor were
63. 2:30separated by the north channel the
64. 2:32stretch of water between Ireland and
65. 2:34Scotland Finn couldn't just swim over to
66. 2:36Scotland for a fight so he had to come
67. 2:39up with a creative solution using his
68. 2:41enormous strength he began to pick up
69. 2:43massive stones and place them into the
70. 2:45sea creating a pathway or Causeway that
71. 2:49stretched all the way to Scotland once
72. 2:51the causeway was complete Finn set off
73. 2:53across the sea to face Ben and Doner
74. 2:56however as he got closer he realized
75. 2:58just how big his opponent was Ben and
76. 3:00donor was huge much larger than Finn had
77. 3:02expected suddenly Finn wasn't so eager
78. 3:05to fight after all thinking quickly he
79. 3:08ran back to Ireland and asked his clever
80. 3:10wife una to help him come up with a plan
81. 3:13una decided to disguise Finn as a baby
82. 3:15she wrapped him up in a blanket and
83. 3:17placed him in a giant cradle when Ben
84. 3:19and Donner arrived in Ireland looking
85. 3:21for Finn he saw the baby in the cradle
86. 3:24and was shocked if the baby was this big
87. 3:27he thought then how big must Finn mul be
88. 3:29frightened Ben and Donner fled back to
89. 3:32Scotland tearing up the causeway as he
90. 3:34went to prevent Finn from following him
91. 3:36and so All That Remains of Finn's bridge
92. 3:39to Scotland is the Giants Causeway which
93. 3:42we can still see today today the Giants
94. 3:45Causeway is a UNESCO world heritage site
95. 3:48which means it's protected for people to
96. 3:50appreciate and enjoy for generations to
97. 3:52come thousands of visitors come each
98. 3:54year to walk among the stone columns
99. 3:57explore the rocky Coastline and Marvel
100. 3:59at the patterns left by ancient lava
101. 4:01flows and the myths of giants even
102. 4:04though the Giant's Causeway is now a
103. 4:06peaceful place the weather and waves
104. 4:08constantly shape it slowly wearing down
105. 4:11the rock it's a reminder that nature is
106. 4:14always at work whether it's through
107. 4:15fiery volcanoes or gentle ocean waves
108. 4:18the Giant's Causeway is filled with
109. 4:20interesting details from the shape of
110. 4:22the stones to the wildlife that calls
111. 4:24this area home here are some fun facts
112. 4:27about this magical site
113. 4:30hexagonal shapes The Columns at the
114. 4:32Giants Causeway are mostly hexagonal but
115. 4:35there are some with four five seven or
116. 4:37even eight sides this natural pattern is
117. 4:40a result of how the lava cracked as it
118. 4:41cooled the Giant's boot among the rocks
119. 4:44you can find a giant stone that looks
120. 4:46like a massive boot locals call it the
121. 4:48Giant's Boot and according to Legend
122. 4:51it's one of Finn mul's lost shoes other
123. 4:54causeways did you know there's a similar
124. 4:56formation on the Scottish side the
125. 4:58fingles cave on the is of Stafa has
126. 5:00similar bassal columns which adds to the
127. 5:03idea that the causeway once stretched
128. 5:05all the way across the sea birds and
129. 5:08seals the coast around the Giants
130. 5:10Causeway is home to many kinds of
131. 5:12wildlife if you visit you might spot
132. 5:14puffins corant or even seals lounging on
133. 5:17the Rocks if you ever have the chance to
134. 5:19visit Northern Ireland the Giants
135. 5:21Causeway is a mustsee destination you
136. 5:24can walk along the tops of the columns
137. 5:26explore tide pools and enjoy the
138. 5:28stunning Coastal scenery the local
139. 5:31Visitor Center offers exhibits and
140. 5:33guided tours that explain both the
141. 5:34science and the legend of this amazing
142. 5:37place for those who can't visit in
143. 5:39person many online tours and videos
144. 5:41allow you to experience the magic of the
145. 5:44Giants Causeway from anywhere in the
146. 5:46world it's like stepping back in time to
147. 5:49a place where Giants might have roamed
148. 5:51and volcanoes shaped the land the Giants
149. 5:54Causeway is a place where two worlds
150. 5:56meet the world of science and the world
151. 5:59of Legend
152. 6:00on one hand it's a perfect example of
153. 6:02how volcanic activity and the natural
154. 6:04cooling of lava can create stunning
155. 6:06geological formations on the other hand
156. 6:09it's also a land filled with stories
157. 6:12myths and the adventures of Finn mul the
158. 6:15clever giant who built a bridge to
159. 6:17Scotland standing among the hexagonal
160. 6:19pillars it's easy to imagine Giants
161. 6:22walking along the rocky path battling
162. 6:24with wits and strength and whether you
163. 6:27believe in the power of volcanoes or the
164. 6:29strength of Giants one thing is certain
165. 6:31the Giants Causeway is one of the most
166. 6:34unique and fascinating places on Earth
167. 6:36thanks for joining us on this journey
168. 6:38curious kids the Giants Causeway shows
169. 6:41us that sometimes places are special not
170. 6:44just because of how they were formed but
171. 6:46because of the stories people tell about
172. 6:48them whether you're fascinated by the
173. 6:50science of lava flows or the tale of
174. 6:52Finn mul this place has a little bit of
175. 6:54magic for everyone stay curious keep
176. 6:57exploring and who knows what ERS will
177. 7:00discover next time on Curious Kids HQ