Reprinted with permission from Otherworldly Antarctica: Ice, Rock, and Wind at the Polar Extreme by Edmund Stump, published by The University of Chicago Press. © 2024 by Edmund Stump. All rights reserved. Fortune smiled in 1970 when I landed a position on a research project bound … | Continue reading
Visitors to Sand Cave, tucked inside Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, will be surprised to find themselves standing on beach-like sand, rather than stone. The cavern’s sandy floor is mostly due to erosion. The cave was once a huge piece of sandstone, but over many years, … | Continue reading
South of Panaji, the capital of the Indian state of Goa, there is a popular lookout point called the Dona Paula View Point. Hordes of tourists flock here every evening to see the sunset from a pergola perched atop a small hill. Many popular Bollywood movies have been filmed here, … | Continue reading
As this museum likes to remind visitors, it is "more than just a quilt museum." Located in a three-story, century-old heritage building, the nonprofit showcases everything in the extended quilting world from toy sewing machines to vintage thimbles. They claim to have the largest … | Continue reading
Aranjuez, located around 30 miles (50 km) south of Madrid, is a charming destination with a rich cultural and historical heritage. The city's picturesque landscapes along the Tagus River provide a tranquil backdrop for leisurely strolls. If you decide to visit Aranjuez, do not mi … | Continue reading
In case you thought the momentary absence of the Sun during April’s total eclipse was the biggest solar news of 2024, hold tight. This year is shaping up to be a wild one for our star. The Sun is behaving violently right now, throwing out fiery flares and spewing roiling clouds o … | Continue reading
Vienna is an old city that lived through various empires, sieges, and wars. Signs of these events can still be found throughout the city, but not many pay tribute to the past invaders. The Ottomans attacked the city in 1529, laying siege for two weeks before being driven away. Th … | Continue reading
Located in the historic terminal Kaohsiung Station, the Takao Railway Museum commemorates Kaohsiung's historic railway. Kaohsiung Station opened at this site in 1908 during the Japanese colonial period, when Kaohsiung was part of Takao prefecture. The station served as the termin … | Continue reading
Beitou District, Taipei's hot springs have been popular for over 100 years, dating to the Japanese colonial period. In 1921, the Yoshita family opened the Kazan Hotel in Beitou, aimed at an upper-class Japanese clientele, with on-site hot spring pools and fine dining. It was expa … | Continue reading
A bronze statue of John Henry towers over the entrance to the Great Bend railroad tunnel near Talcott, West Virginia. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Great Bend Tunnel’s completion in 1972, the statue, constructed by Charles O. Cooper, was unveiled near Talcott. It st … | Continue reading
In the fall of 1863, in the valley of the Greenbrier River near Lewisburg, West Virginia saw its final significant Civil War battle at Droop Mountain. Union forces under William Averell defeated John Echols’s Confederate troops, putting an end to the southern resistance in West V … | Continue reading
In 1908, at the height of an overnight oil and gas boom in the small town of Harrisville, West Virginia, a legacy began. Brothers K.C. and Lafayette Berdine had recently relocated to the small town with the hopes of establishing a thriving five-and-dime store. Over a hundred year … | Continue reading
Deep in the Monongahela National Forest, in the western portion of West Virginia, lies one of the most botanically significant areas in the Appalachians: the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area. The largest bog area in the state, "the Glades," as the area is more commonly called, is … | Continue reading
On the top of a hill, in the mountains of southern West Virginia, the Hatfield and McCoy families have come together to brew something sweet on land that was once home to their historic bitter rivalry. Legend has it that the Hatfield-McCoy family feud started with a stolen hog. B … | Continue reading
How often do you really stop to think about what’s beneath your feet? In West Virginia, the wild world below is full of incredible experiences that provide a glimpse into the ancient landscapes, indigenous heritage, key industries, and down-right grit that encompass the state’s c … | Continue reading
Buffeted by the wind, Juan Masello was 80 feet above the surf, rappelling from the jagged cliff face. Ignoring memories of splintered bones and brushes with death, he focused on reaching the ledge beneath the overhang. There he found the crevices he had been looking for. He unfur … | Continue reading
Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major podcast apps. From a rubber duck contest to hypnotizing chickens, in this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast listeners share stories about annual customs, events, and practices that set their hometowns apa … | Continue reading
THIS ARTICLE IS ADAPTED FROM THE MAY 11, 2024, EDITION OF GASTRO OBSCURA’S FAVORITE THINGS NEWSLETTER. YOU CAN SIGN UP HERE. On social media, I’ve watched a lot of videos of people making tiny food. There's something about seeing a person crafting a mini plate of pancakes or a pe … | Continue reading
Opened in May 2023 (the 100th anniversary of the invention of Vegemite), this quirky little museum resides in servo@23, a repurposed '50's petrol station in Beaufort, Victoria. Travelers from Melbourne en route to the Grampians drive right past it. The museum is primarily an ode … | Continue reading
In Germany’s capital, Sonnenallee is colloquially known as Arab Street. The avenue in Berlin’s Neuköllin district, is lined with every kind of Arab-owned commerce you can imagine—bakers, butchers, shisha cafés, antique shops, and electronics dealers from the city’s Middle Eastern … | Continue reading
An unusual spherical observatory sits on the highest point of a 200-foot diameter earth mound in Dublin, Ohio. The Watch House is constructed out of copper, bronze, and stucco, and features holes in the spherical roof in the shape of everyday objects. A reference to the expanding … | Continue reading
Around 280 million years ago, a huge river flowed through Gwondana. It carried tree trunks from the north in an enormous flood after an ice age. The trees were covered under thick mud and became petrified over time Today, Damaraland is an arid semi-desert, and erosion has reveale … | Continue reading
Princess Kristina of Norway, born in 1234, was the daughter of King Haakon IV. She was known for her intelligence and grace. Her marriage to Prince Felipe of Spain was arranged to strengthen the alliances between their kingdoms. Due to the Castilian and Norwegian alliances within … | Continue reading
This piece was originally published in Canada’s National Observer and appears here as part of our Climate Desk collaboration. A coastal First Nation is celebrating global recognition of its marine protected area after recently snagging a “blue park” designation that highlights ex … | Continue reading
The Maridon Museum was founded and endowed by Mary Hulton Phillips, a local philanthropist and art collector in 2004. The museum features four galleries. The front gallery contains a collection of ornate jade and ivory sculptures, the largest of which measures more than four feet … | Continue reading
Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major podcast apps. In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, we visit the Bonnie and Clyde Ambush Museum in Gibsland, Louisiana, where the infamous—but often misunderstood—couple’s story came to an end. Our p … | Continue reading
This Atlas Obscura–themed crossword comes from independent crossword constructor Brendan Emmett Quigley. He has been a professional puzzlemaker since 1996, and his pieces have appeared in dozens of publications. He's also a member of the Boston Typewriter Orchestra. You can solve … | Continue reading
Emily Finch is a doctor of geology, but she has recently changed her Twitter handle to “Dr Eelmily Finch.” That’s because she has fallen head over heels for eels: “I’ve been greeting strangers with ‘DO YOU KNOW ABOUT EELS?’ Well, consider yourself a stranger in my path. Strap in. … | Continue reading
Each week, Atlas Obscura is providing a new short excerpt from our upcoming book, Wild Life: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Living Wonders (September 17, 2024). Most of the time, Chile’s Atacama Desert is gritty, cracked, and red. The desert gets less than 0.6 inch (1.5 cm) o … | Continue reading
Joyce Chen’s eyes water as she looks into the camera and reads aloud the letter of intent in her 1972 Chinese visa application. Twenty-three years earlier, she fled China’s Communist Revolution, only to watch a chasm grow between her birthplace and the United States, her adopted … | Continue reading
The Stockton Diamond Railroad Crossing is a marvel of engineering and a humorous display of the state of rail in America. The Stockton Diamond is a crossroads of double-track freight and passenger rail owned and operated by Union Pacific and BNSF; the duopoly that controls all fr … | Continue reading
Since Drexel University's Academy of Natural Sciences has been housed at its current location since 1876, it's not surprising that some of the public exhibits have changed over the years. Even more surprising, though, is how much has remained the same. Perhaps the best-known feat … | Continue reading
Drexel University's Academy of Natural Sciences has been housed at its current location since 1876. The museum is well known for its 37 dioramas located in the North American, African, and Asian halls on the first and second floors. What you won't find on the museum's current map … | Continue reading
Wonder is everywhere. That’s why, every other week, Atlas Obscura drags you down some of the rabbit holes we encounter as we search for our unusual stories. We highlight surprising finds, great writing, and inspiring stories from some of our favorite publications. The New Zealand … | Continue reading
Gold was struck in this area around 1860, but little activity occurred then because nearby Aurora overshadowed the location. Most of the early prospectors were Freemasons, however, and they did leave their names on the district. Masonic didn't boom until the early 20th century. A … | Continue reading
West Cheshire has been known for its underground salt deposits for centuries, and people have been mining the salt since prehistoric times. Various processes had been used to extract the salt, including physically removing the solid salt, pumping freshwater through the salt layer … | Continue reading
Taking inspiration from Alberto Giacometti and Lucian Freud, British artist Sean Henry specializes in sculpting lifelike clay and bronze human figures. Two of Henry's sculptures, a man and a woman, can be seen on High Street in Colchester, England, a city around 60 miles northeas … | Continue reading
During the first half of the 20th century, public mosaic works were common across Europe, often combining Symbolist themes with depictions of allegorical figures, historical events, and national heroes. One outstanding example is found in the arched street passage beneath the tow … | Continue reading
Nestled among England's picturesque South Downs, this tiny church is one of the country's smallest. Measuring just 16 square feet, the Church of the Good Shepherd, also known as Lullington Church, can accommodate a congregation of only about 20 people. Interestingly, the church w … | Continue reading
Located in the Polish city of Poznań, about 180 miles west of Warsaw, the Museum of the History of Poznań (or The Town Hall Poznań Museum) traces the city's history from the 10th century until today. The museum is housed in the city's historic town hall, which can trace its earli … | Continue reading
The fountain of books, made of travertine in 1927 by Pietro Lombardi, is located via degli Staderari, which practically divides Palazzo Madama from Palazzo della Sapienza, the current seat of the state archives and the ancient university until 1935. The fountain, enclosed in a ni … | Continue reading
Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major podcast apps. In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, Dylan sits down with science writer and journalist Rebecca Boyle, who has a new book about all the ways in which the moon has impacted nearly every … | Continue reading
Following the stone steps toward the sea from Ayia Thekla chapel, visitors will find a cross on the left-hand side carved into the stone bedrock. Underneath is an open doorway leading into a small cave entrance which leads to a candle-lit shrine. Believed to have been carved in t … | Continue reading
Harrison's lighthouse stands looking over the Caribbean Sea on the northwest coast of Barbados. The building has been abandoned since circa 2007, but was constructed around the 1920s, some of the outbuildings remain including the keeper's house. | Continue reading
In the far northwestern corner of Italy, the small city of Aosta is situated in a stunning Alpine setting. Founded in 25 B.C. and nestled in a long, steep-sided valley, the city has long been a stopping point on the Via Francigena, the ancient Roman road and pilgrimage route betw … | Continue reading
Skeletal remains with rods clamped across their necks, dirt in their mouths, or spears pinning down their body: These are just a few tactics that Europeans of the past used to ward off the resurrected dead—or zombies, if you will. Several archaeological sites have pointed to “rev … | Continue reading
Experts have determined the Defynnog Yew to be more than 5,000 years old, making it one of the United Kingdom's oldest yew trees. Some have disputed this estimate, instead calculating the tree to be only around 1,500 years old. Either way, the yew is one of Britain’s oldest trees … | Continue reading
Around the corner from the Panshanger Orangery is a large tree fenced off. This is the Panshanger Great Oak. The tree is estimated to be around 500 years old and may have been planted by Queen Elizabeth I. Winston Churchill also visited and planted one of the acorns from the tree … | Continue reading