Long Live Darwin!

May 18, 2021 8:20 PM

The Darwin Arch has collapsed "Unfortunately today, our guests of the Galapagos Aggressor III experienced a once in a lifetime event," the company shared. "This morning at 11:20 a.m. local time, the world famous Darwin's Arch collapsed in front of their eyes. "Some in the dive & travel industry are already referring to this now as 'The Pillars of Evolution'. We will miss this iconic site."
posted by grateful (28 comments total)

"Geologic Time Includes Now"
posted by alex_skazat at 8:37 PM on May 18, 2021 [31 favorites]

Some in the dive & travel industry are already referring to this now as 'The Pillars of Evolution'.

A better name would be Darwin's Salute.
posted by Joe in Australia at 9:13 PM on May 18, 2021 [7 favorites]

Yes, that looks so structurally sound that it should have survived millennia of pounding surf.
posted by fairmettle at 9:24 PM on May 18, 2021 [1 favorite]

Yes, that looks so structurally sound that it should have survived millennia of pounding surf.

It probably did.
posted by Big Al 8000 at 9:30 PM on May 18, 2021 [9 favorites]

6 millennia, at least!
posted by hippybear at 9:32 PM on May 18, 2021 [6 favorites]

.
posted by carmicha at 9:50 PM on May 18, 2021 [1 favorite]

Somebody out there thought “Galapagos Aggressor” was such a good boat name that it should have two sequels. What a world.
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 10:50 PM on May 18, 2021 [10 favorites]

Somebody out there thought “Galapagos Aggressor” was such a good boat name that it should have two sequels. What a world.

More than a decade ago there was some guy, I presume Ecuadorian, who kept trying to take over some of the Galapagos for human development by main force, and the navy kept having to stop him. In my (slightly more than yours, perhaps) perfect world, his kids took over his boat and started a tour company.
posted by jamjam at 11:18 PM on May 18, 2021 [1 favorite]

As metaphors go, a *little* on the nose.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 11:34 PM on May 18, 2021 [6 favorites]

lyell lives.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:35 AM on May 19, 2021

There's a whole number of Aggressor dive boats around the world. As an ex-diver the name always baffled me, it's such an odd choice for what is supposed to be a 'don't harm what you're looking at' hobby.
posted by dowcrag at 1:34 AM on May 19, 2021 [7 favorites]

I am quite literally in an airport on my way back from a dive trip (not on weirdly-named Agressor boats, but more appropriately-named Explorer) in the Galapagos right now, where we dove the then-intact Arch this past Friday. The surf-pounding out there is no joke and I personally got my ass rocked a few times. But that stone formation looked so stoic and solid and majestic, we were shocked to hear the news it had fallen not hours after we disembarked. I found myself unexpectedly emotional over a rock in the middle of the ocean.

It never crossed my mind that my group would be some of the last people to see it standing.
posted by danapiper at 3:19 AM on May 19, 2021 [47 favorites]

I hope no fishes got hurt.
posted by L.P. Hatecraft at 3:22 AM on May 19, 2021 [5 favorites]

It’s interesting how much this bums me out even though I’ve never seen it or planned on seeing it, and it’s a natural process anyways. I guess I blame humans instinctually whether fair or not
posted by glaucon at 3:34 AM on May 19, 2021 [5 favorites]

Brings to mind the demise of The Old Man of the Mountain.
posted by TedW at 3:43 AM on May 19, 2021 [4 favorites]

Photo: credited to Ecuador's Environment Ministry
posted by chavenet at 3:47 AM on May 19, 2021

On preview, I see that picture is tweeted within the CNN article. That didn't show up on my phone and I was wondering why there was no picture.

MetaFilter: I blame humans instinctively whether fair or not
posted by chavenet at 3:49 AM on May 19, 2021 [3 favorites]

.
posted by Faint of Butt at 3:51 AM on May 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

Good job nobody was standing on it.
posted by flabdablet at 3:54 AM on May 19, 2021

Same, except I will now refer to myself as the "Pile of Evolution" because pillar would imply I am standing up.
posted by srboisvert at 4:43 AM on May 19, 2021 [4 favorites]

I'm reminded of the collapse of Malta's Azure Window.
posted by Wobbuffet at 5:10 AM on May 19, 2021 [2 favorites]

my bad. sorry.
posted by hilberseimer at 6:01 AM on May 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

Similarly, the Minas Basin (Nova Scotia, Canada) sea arch collapsed in 2015.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 7:53 AM on May 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

It never crossed my mind that my group would be some of the last people to see it standing.

Detective: You say you were one of the last people to dive there and see it intact?

*scribbles in notepad*

Detective: Hm. We have a cold case you might be able to help with. Have you heard of the Library Of Alexandria?
posted by urbanwhaleshark at 8:51 AM on May 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

then they went to look at the ronne ice shelf...
World's Largest Iceberg Breaks Off In Antarctica As Glaciers Retreat
posted by kliuless at 8:56 AM on May 19, 2021

Honestly, my first thought was, “Is Delicate Arch next?”
posted by Big Al 8000 at 10:37 AM on May 19, 2021 [2 favorites]

Yeah, every time I am at ANP, as a geologist, I worry...

Will I never see this again?

{See also: Steamboat Geyser in Yellowstone. Missed a couple of years ago by like, two days)
posted by Windopaene at 1:53 PM on May 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

If Darwin's so great then how do you explain this missing link?
posted by Riki tiki at 5:08 PM on May 19, 2021 [2 favorites]