Goblin Forest: A Mystical Circle Around a Sacred Volcano

A satellite image captured by NASA's Landsat 8 shows New Zealand's Mount Taranaki surrounded by the eerily circular Egmont National Park, home to the twisted 'Goblin Forest.' The forest's unique appearance is due to kāmahi trees growing over fossilized remains of past eruptions. Mount Taranaki, considered sacred by the Māori and granted legal personhood in 2017, is an active stratovolcano with a history of significant eruptions. It is renowned for its near-perfect cone shape, which has been used as a film double for Mount Fuji.