It is listed as the seventh of the top ten Google Earth finds by Time Magazine. The Guardian was also covered by Canada's Global Television. Pierre Shale, Chadron, Brule, and Sharps formations are discussed. PCWorld magazine has referred to the formation as a "geological marvel". Badlands National Park: An explanation of how the Badlands of South Dakota has formed over millions of years is provided with emphasis placed on the processes of deposition and erosion. The Badlands Guardian was also described by the Sydney Morning Herald as a "net sensation". They altered the suggested 'Guardian of the Badlands' to become Badlands Guardian. Out of 50 names submitted, seven were suggested to the Cypress County Council. In 2006 suitable names were canvassed by CBC Radio One program As It Happens. Its age is estimated to be in the hundreds of years at a minimum. Although the image appears to be a convex feature, it is actually concave - that is, a valley, which is formed by erosion on a stratum of clay, and is an instance of the Hollow-Face illusion. The 'head' may have been created during a short period of fast erosion immediately following intense rainfall. The arid badlands are typified by infrequent but intense rain-showers, sparse vegetation and soft sediments. The head is a drainage feature created through erosion of soft, clay-rich soil by the action of wind and water.
Its scale is much larger than the figures of Mount Rushmore. The apparent earphones are a road and an oil well, which were installed recently and are expected to disappear once the project is abandoned.
Additional man-made structures have been said to resemble a pair of earphones worn by the figure.
Viewed from the air, the feature has been said to resemble a human head wearing a full Aboriginal type of headdress, facing directly westward. The Badlands Guardian (also known as Indian Head) is a geomorphological feature located near Medicine Hat in the south east corner of Alberta, Canada.