These Pools Help Support Half The People On Earth

These Pools Help Support Half The People On Earth

What are these electric blue ponds in the middle of the Utah desert? And why do they keep changing color?

Join Derek Muller (Veritasium) as he looks into the weird, bizarre, and seemingly inexplicable images found on Google Earth to discover what on Earth they actually are. It’s a travel vlog, documentary, and science show wrapped into one. It’s Pindrop.

0:00 Intro
0:29 Electric Blue Ponds
2:13 Finding The Truth
5:47 Importance Of Potash
8:41 Potash From Rocks
14:04 Safer Ways To Mine
15:02 Droning
17:28 Potash The Savior

50 Comments

  1. sebigrell on September 14, 2022 at 11:42 am

    It stinks to pump so much water from the Colorado river just to let it all evaporate on purpose. Not saying that they shouldn’t be able to do it I just wish the water wasn’t wasted. If they could reclaim it somehow that would be awesome

  2. Seefinish & Insights on September 14, 2022 at 11:43 am

    Interesting 🙏🙏

  3. Clover on September 14, 2022 at 11:44 am

    yall i was shook when i heard derek introduce himself at the beginning of the video

    i legit had no idea what his name was but i just never questioned it before

  4. MissMoontree on September 14, 2022 at 11:48 am

    I now I get why I did not get it. Many countries call it Kalium 🙂

  5. Unlikey Moment on September 14, 2022 at 11:49 am

    Bro just taught me how to make an explosive.

  6. S QuayleMan89 on September 14, 2022 at 11:49 am

    I’m so confused… I have questions I can’t ask on here. Like seems easy to make a boom boom

  7. Hugo Alvord on September 14, 2022 at 11:50 am

    Hearing how they burned all those trees >:( bastards

  8. Ritchie on September 14, 2022 at 11:50 am

    Eat be ready

  9. Dragonomicon on September 14, 2022 at 11:51 am

    Every time I see anything using gunpowder in media now I’m going to remember that it’s powered by bat poop.

  10. Brent on September 14, 2022 at 11:51 am

    My first thought was salt ponds ,

  11. MajSolo on September 14, 2022 at 11:54 am

    ah! finally something I didn’t know
    "in this world few mysteries remain" lol
    for me it does …

  12. reach right round on September 14, 2022 at 11:54 am

    Don’t let them fool you this is heroin

  13. CC on September 14, 2022 at 11:55 am

    Amazing. Thank you

  14. Snow on September 14, 2022 at 11:55 am

    🔥🔥🔥🔥

  15. Barak Aviv on September 14, 2022 at 11:57 am

    Just wanted to say thank you for all these eye-opening videos you make.
    I really got answers to all the questions I had during this video.
    One question remains, what does the end date for when the potassium will run out, and does scientists looking for alternative solutions?
    Thanks

  16. L Steck on September 14, 2022 at 11:57 am

    And what person, company or Government owns this business? Is it a government agency?

  17. Cisco solo on September 14, 2022 at 11:59 am

    What about volcano ashes?? Would it work aswell

  18. Lombard Cross on September 14, 2022 at 12:02 pm

    It was interesting to see.

  19. Huey Tran on September 14, 2022 at 12:03 pm

    And that my friends is why you don’t drink stuff in chemistry labs

  20. Spoob Fish on September 14, 2022 at 12:05 pm

    These actually cause sever damage to the environment.

  21. How2Honey on September 14, 2022 at 12:06 pm

    Hydro Retention ponds?

  22. Dr. Gonzo on September 14, 2022 at 12:12 pm

    Is the blue copper sulfate intentionally added to these evaporation ponds?

  23. dirty3rdsanchez on September 14, 2022 at 12:13 pm

    18:27 sports people? You mean athletes….right.

  24. Danielle Reid on September 14, 2022 at 12:13 pm

    That’s interesting. I actually didn’t realize the origin of potash was so deep. I love these videos. Keep on posting

  25. Max Koz on September 14, 2022 at 12:13 pm

    why don’t you keep on doing these videos?????

  26. Brandon Hearn on September 14, 2022 at 12:14 pm

    Buddy reminds me of Adam from buzzfeed

  27. Speedy Steve on September 14, 2022 at 12:15 pm

    Kalium

  28. Ben CyBer on September 14, 2022 at 12:17 pm

    When potassium , mix with water , next is …

  29. Podium Fly on September 14, 2022 at 12:17 pm

    Each pond has a different chemical for making EBT cards.

  30. S QuayleMan89 on September 14, 2022 at 12:18 pm

    Nitrogen pond?

  31. DaScratchMasterSquizz on September 14, 2022 at 12:21 pm

    George Washington sure thrived off his Gatorade!! Where would America be with out it?

    Lethargic and dehydrated, but George had other plans.. Gatorade for all

  32. A on September 14, 2022 at 12:22 pm

    Funny how only a year ago it was ok to see the value of fertilizer. The green new deal is outlawing fertilizer. So now we choose. Do 6 billion starve? Or do we use 8x the land to farm on, which means cutting down forest. Looks to me we were doing the best we can.

  33. utahraptor on September 14, 2022 at 12:23 pm

    I hope this comes back

  34. Alexander Carson on September 14, 2022 at 12:23 pm

    props to the bucket

  35. Mind Runs on September 14, 2022 at 12:24 pm

    I love getting these recommended every time you try a new title….

  36. cocoweepah on September 14, 2022 at 12:24 pm

    Good Morning,
    Please MEASURE the curves of bodies of water … from water drops to oceans.
    Cheers !

  37. SoullessWeeb on September 14, 2022 at 12:25 pm

    Now I know how to make gunpowder with sulfur and saltpeter ayyyy

  38. Mabaya Trust on September 14, 2022 at 12:26 pm

    So educative

  39. Honey Eearly Anne Tanedo on September 14, 2022 at 12:27 pm

    So brilliant

  40. Invisible_Maxim on September 14, 2022 at 12:27 pm

    Potashium

  41. Don Pestans on September 14, 2022 at 12:27 pm

    Enjoy this informative vid. Well done but Hunter Gathering did not actually take "all day everyday." At least not year round. If it had we would still be doing it. We would have no songs or art and no one would have figured out that the ash of their fire had a use

  42. Ethan Ztz on September 14, 2022 at 12:27 pm

    any more Pindrop videos coming out ? awesome stuff

  43. Rita Garrett on September 14, 2022 at 12:28 pm

    This video is so cool.

  44. Faiyaz Kazi on September 14, 2022 at 12:29 pm

    Human society is the most wasteful ever Burning trees, to mining, wasting water in a desert
    Could be done more efficiently, with 100yr old technology

  45. E-Z Ward on September 14, 2022 at 12:31 pm

    I’d love to discover a new element like element 115, I think Bob Lazar has some.

  46. Ben CyBer on September 14, 2022 at 12:37 pm

    Kazakhstan,
    do you have patash
    what is the quality

  47. william sandler on September 14, 2022 at 12:39 pm

    Is this (process, ponds) replicated around the world?

  48. Ben CyBer on September 14, 2022 at 12:39 pm

    Kazakhstan,
    do you have patash
    what is the quality

  49. Newly Awakened on September 14, 2022 at 12:40 pm

    Gatorade has almost no potassium. A glass of milk has way more. Like 10x’s more.

  50. Josh Brinklow on September 14, 2022 at 12:41 pm

    It does not benefit everyone, the pools are toxic and kills tons of wildlife.
    Look at the cobalt mines in Africa that makes the lithium work.

Leave a Comment