Geography — Page 2
Wonders of our planet
220 facts
Egypt has only one railway station with high-speed trains.
Egypt's high-speed train station is located in Alexandria. The country has plans to expand the network, but currently…
The city of Saint Petersburg was built on 42 islands.
Saint Petersburg, Russia, is composed of 42 islands connected by more than 300 bridges. The city is crossed by canals…
Mongolia has the lowest population density in the world.
Mongolia has about 2 inhabitants per km², making it the sovereign country with the lowest population density in the…
The Atacama Desert is the driest non-polar place on Earth.
Some weather stations in the Atacama have never recorded a single drop of rain. It is so arid and Mars-like that NASA…
The longest mountain range on Earth is almost entirely underwater.
The mid-ocean ridge is a continuous submarine mountain system that stretches about 65,000 kilometers across the…
The town of Boring, Oregon, is officially paired with the village of Bland, Australia.
Embracing their unfortunate and funny names, the two towns officially became 'sister cities' in 2013 to promote…
The world's shortest commercial flight lasts just 90 seconds.
Operated by Loganair between the Orkney islands of Westray and Papa Westray in Scotland, the distance is just 2.7…
There is a place on Earth where the sun doesn't set for 69 days.
In Utqiaġvik, Alaska, the sun stays above the horizon for 69 consecutive days in summer. In winter, the reverse…
The border between Denmark and Canada is one of the most curious in the world.
Hans Island, a small uninhabited island in the Arctic, has been disputed by Denmark and Canada since 1973. The…
Australia's capital was built in the middle of nowhere because of a dispute.
Sydney and Melbourne were disputing the status of Australia's capital. To resolve the impasse, it was decided to…
The Great Blue Hole in Belize is a giant marine sinkhole over 120 meters deep.
Formed during the last ice age, this perfectly circular underwater sinkhole is a popular diving site known for its…
Japan has more registered pets than children under the age of 15.
Due to a declining birth rate and an aging population, the number of cats and dogs as companions has vastly…
The Panama Canal uses a system of locks that act like water elevators.
Ships are raised 26 meters above sea level to cross the continental divide and then lowered back down, saving them…
The Nile River is one of the few major rivers in the world that flows from south to north.
It flows northward because the land to the south (in the African highlands) is at a much higher elevation than the…
The Namib Desert in Africa is the oldest desert in the world, having existed for at least 55 million years.
Its ancient dunes and extreme aridity make it one of the least hospitable places on Earth, yet it is home to uniquely…
The Amazon River is the largest river in the world by volume, discharging more water than the next seven largest rivers combined.
It accounts for roughly 20% of the total global river discharge into the oceans, creating a massive plume of fresh…
Monaco is smaller than Central Park.
The Principality of Monaco has an area of approximately 2.08 km², making it the second smallest country in the world…
Lesotho is a country inside another country.
Lesotho is one of the few examples of a national enclave. Its entire territory is completely surrounded by South…
Vatican City is a country inside a city.
With only about 0.49 km², Vatican City is the smallest independent country on the planet. The curious fact is that it…
Indonesia is made up of over 17,000 islands.
The Indonesian archipelago is one of the largest in the world and brings together more than 17,000 islands, although…
The largest desert in the world is Antarctica.
A desert is defined by the lack of precipitation, not by heat. Antarctica receives very little rain or snow, making…
The driest desert in the world is in South America.
The Atacama Desert in Chile is the driest non-polar place on Earth. In some areas, it has never rained since records…
The oldest volcano in the world is in Brazil.
The Nova Iguaçu volcano in Rio de Janeiro is about 2 billion years old and has been extinct for a long time. It is…
Istanbul is located on two continents.
The city of Istanbul in Turkey is divided by the Bosphorus Strait. The western part is in Europe and the eastern part…