Daisetta, Texas, May 8, 2008—Looking something like a prehistoric tar pit, a giant sinkhole yawns across the landscape of a southeast Texas town.

The huge hole formed suddenly on May 7 and rapidly began expanding, swallowing up vehicles, telephone poles, and oil-drilling equipment. Now some 600 feet (180 meters) wide, the crater seems to have stopped growing but sits filled with debris, water, and oil.

Scientists are stumped as to what caused the formation. Theories include subsidence caused by oil drilling in the area and subsurface erosion caused by the underground storage of salt water, a by-product of oil production.

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