Ephemerality facts for kids

Ephemerality (say: eh-fem-er-AL-ih-tee) is a fancy word for things that last only a very short time. It comes from an old Greek word meaning "lasting only one day."

When we talk about something being ephemeral, it means it's here for a little while and then it's gone. This idea often describes things in nature, like a rainbow or a puddle after rain. But it can also describe things people make on purpose to be temporary, like a sandcastle on the beach. The idea of how long "briefly" is can be different for everyone, so ephemerality is a relative idea.

Things in Nature That Don't Last Long

Water Bodies That Appear and Disappear

An ephemeral water body is a wetland, spring, stream, river, pond, or lake that only exists for a short time. They appear after a lot of rain or when snow melts. They are different from seasonal water bodies, which might exist for many months but not all year. Ephemeral water bodies are much shorter-lived.

Some examples of these short-lived streams include the Luni river in Rajasthan, India, and the Ugab River in Southern Africa. In Central Australia, you can find the Todd River and Sandover River, which also flow only sometimes.

Sometimes, a dry lakebed, called a playa, can fill up and become an ephemeral lake. This happens in places like Lake Carnegie in Western Australia and Sevier Lake in Utah. Even Death Valley, one of the driest places in North America, had a short-lived lake in 2005 after a very wet winter!

Islands That Come and Go

There are also ephemeral islands, like Banua Wuhu and Home Reef. These islands pop up when underwater volcanoes erupt and push land above the sea. But over a few years, ocean waves slowly wash them away until they disappear again. Another interesting example is Bassas da India, which is an island that only appears when the tide is very low.

Plants and Animals with Short Lives

Many plants have an ephemeral lifestyle. This means they spend most of their time as seeds, waiting for just the right conditions. When the weather is perfect, they quickly grow, flower, and make new seeds, all in a very short period. Then they die, leaving their seeds to wait for the next good time.

Some animals are also ephemeral, meaning they have very short lifespans. For example, brine shrimp and the mayfly are known for their brief existence. The placenta, an organ that grows inside a mother's body during pregnancy to help a baby grow, is also considered ephemeral because it's only present for a temporary time.

Things People Make That Are Temporary

Sometimes, people create things that are meant to be temporary. This can be to make them more special or to fit a certain event.

Many types of art are ephemeral because they don't last forever. Early land art, which uses natural materials in the landscape, was often temporary. All sand sculptures, ice sculptures, and chalk drawings on sidewalks are great examples of ephemeral art. They are beautiful for a short time, then they disappear. Artists like Linn Meyers create amazing wall drawings inside museums and galleries that are only meant to last for a specific exhibit.

In the past, very rich people would sometimes pay famous artists to create temporary artworks for special events. These creations were often very expensive and took a long time to build, but they were only used for one party or celebration before being taken apart or destroyed. For example, the artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini once created a temporary volcano for a wealthy family. It took three months to build and was then destroyed in a fireworks show that lasted only an hour!

Images for kids

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  The travelling festival Burning Man was described by one scholar as the "very definition of ephemerality".

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  Art Spiegelman, in reference to the September 11 attacks, described the World Trade Center as “ephemeral as...old newspapers”.