BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK Photograph by Jsoo1 on Wikimedia Commons Badlands National Park is a national park in southwestern South Dakota that protects 242,756 acres (98,240 ha) of sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires blended with the largest undisturbed mixed grass prairie in the United States. On January 29, 1939, it was established…
Yale’s Rare Book and Manuscript Library Photograph by Lauren Manning The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library (BRBL) at Yale University was a 1963 gift of the Beinecke family. The building was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Gordon Bunshaft of the firm of Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill. It is the largest building…
The Cupola is an ESA-built observatory module of the International Space Station (ISS). Its seven windows are used to conduct experiments, dockings and observations of Earth. It was launched aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-130 on 8 February 2010 and attached to the Tranquility (Node 3) module. The Cupola’s 80 cm (31 in) window is…
Photograph by LEGO On May 23, 2013, LEGO unveiled the world’s largest LEGO model, a 1:1 replica of the LEGO® Star Wars™ X-Wing starfighter, in New York’s Times Square. The massive replica took 32 master builders, five million LEGO bricks and over 17,000 hours to complete. The model weighs nearly 20,865 kilograms (46,000 pounds),…
WORLD’S SHORTEST ESCALATOR Photograph by TOKYO ESCALATOR Located in the basement of More’s Department Store in Kawasaki, Japan is the world’s shortest escalator. With only 5 steps, the escalator has a modest rise of 32.8 inches (83.4 cm). It was recognized as the world’s shortest escalator by the Guinness Book of Records…
Artwork by Florentijn Hofman | Photograph by South China Morning Post Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman’s Rubber Duck has made its first visit to China. From May 2 – June 9, the 16.5 meter (54 ft) inflatable rubber duck will be bobbing around from Ocean Terminal to Harbour City, Hong Kong. Hofman’s inflatable rubber duck…
The Allure of the Seas is the largest passenger ship ever constructed and the statistics are simply mind-boggling: – 225,282 GRT (gross register tonnage) – 1,187 feet (362 meters) long – 215 feet (66 meters) wide – 213 feet (65 meters) high from the water line – 30 feet (9.1 meters) draft – 22 knots…
DUNMORE HEAD, IRELAND Photograph by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen on Wikimedia Commons At the end of the Dingle Peninsula lies the picturesque area you see above, Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland (excluding the islands). The photograph was taken by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen from Slea Head. The peninsula is named after the…
Located in Singapore, the Float at Marina Bay is the largest floating stage in the world. Made entirely of steel, the floating platform measures 120 meters (393.7 ft) long and 83 meters (272.3 ft) wide. The platform can bear 1,070 tonnes and is fixed to the seabed by six pylons. The gallery at the…
THE LONGEST BRIDGE IN EUROPE Photograph by F Mira The Vasco da Gama Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge flanked by viaducts and rangeviews that spans the Tagus River in Parque das Nações in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It is the longest bridge in Europe (including viaducts), with a total length of…