While some people believe their appearance is related to ley lines, extraordinary meteorological phenomenon, or even alien activity, giant crop formations which appear in fields, mostly in Western and Northern Europe, are widely recognised to be the work of pranksters. These formations, the vast majority of which appear in the UK, often secure column inches during the summer months. image expired

Since they first attracted widespread attention in the late 1970s, crop formations have become ever more complex, developing from crop circles into ever more complex representations and fractal patterns.

The increase in complexity of most designs suggests that more advanced tools are being used to create crop formations. An article, published this month in Physics World Magazine, written by Professor Richard Taylor, director of the Materials Science Institute at the University of Oregon, suggests GPS devices, lasers, and ‘magnetrons’ from  household microwaves are used to create the patterns quickly, allowing the pranksters to avoid discovery. Taylor called the creation of crop circles "the most science-oriented art movement in history."

While the general public may be enamoured by the mystery and technicality of crop circles, in a year where dry weather earlier on has led to reduced yields for wheat and barley, their presence in fields will not be welcomed by most farmers.

The Daily Mail reported that a 300 ft crop circle will cost a farmer around £1,000 this year. Due to low yields and rising input costs, farmers are likely to feel the damage all the more in 2011.  The farmer who owns the land where the smoking alien design (pictured) appeared said he has had 125 formations made on his land since 1990.

Every year in Wiltshire, the epicentre of crop formation activity, 50 to 60 patterns are made in crops compared to around 40 to 50 in the entire rest of the world. The phenomenon has generated a successful tourist trade in the region.