Cities
The peculiar logic behind how metropolises grow, die, and reinvent themselves.
72 articlesLatest Cities
Zheleznogorsk/Krasnoyarsk-26: Siberia’s Secret Nuclear City
Explore the hidden history of Krasnoyarsk-26, a Soviet secret city built to produce weapons-grade plutonium, its luxurious gilded cage existence, and the devastating environmental legacy that outlasted the Cold War.
The Most Extreme Prison in Russia
Discover Black Dolphin, Russia's most notorious supermax prison. From its brutal conditions to its depraved inmates, explore what makes this modern-day gulag inescapable.
Alnwick Poison Garden: The Deadliest Plants in the World
Explore England's Alnwick Poison Garden, where deadly plants require government permission to grow and visitors risk fainting among nature's most dangerous killers.
The Boötes Void: The Biggest, Emptiest Thing in the Universe
Discover the Boötes Void, a 330 million light-year expanse of near-nothingness that changed our understanding of cosmic structure, and explore the theories behind this mysterious region of space.
Cactus Dome: The Nuclear Tomb in Paradise
The Cactus Dome on Runit Island contains 111,000 cubic yards of radioactive waste from US nuclear testing. As sea levels rise and concrete cracks, this Cold War tomb threatens to release its poison into the Pacific.
The Caribbean Capital City... That is a Ghost Town
How Mariupol, Ukraine's tenth-largest city, was besieged, destroyed, and rebuilt as a Russian city—erasing its people, culture, and identity in one of the most brutal urban campaigns of the 21st century.
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Nauru: How the Richest Country in the World Destroyed Itself
The cautionary tale of Nauru, a Pacific island nation that went from being the world's richest country per capita to an environmental wasteland—and why its story matters for humanity's future.
The Neverending Coal Fire of Pennsylvania
Discover the haunting story of Centralia, Pennsylvania, where an underground coal fire has burned for over 60 years, transforming a thriving mining town into an abandoned ghost town.
North Sentinel Island: The Truth Behind the World's Most Isolated Tribe
Discover the real history of the Sentinelese people, from ancient cartographers' warnings to the 2018 killing of John Allen Chau, and the complex dilemma of whether to leave them alone or seek contact.
NSWC Carderock: The US Navy's Giant Indoor Ocean.
Discover how the US Navy tests warship designs at NSWC Carderock's Maneuvering and Seakeeping Basin, a massive indoor ocean in Maryland that simulates typhoons, rogue waves, and combat conditions.
The Pacific Just Suffered a Mega Earthquake. Here's What Happened.
In June 2025, a colossal magnitude earthquake struck off Russia's Kamchatka peninsula—the sixth most-powerful ever recorded. Here's how the Pacific Rim responded and why disaster was narrowly avoided.
The Pacific Ring of Fire: Nature's Greatest Threat
Explore the Pacific Ring of Fire, where 90% of earthquakes and most volcanic eruptions occur. Learn about plate tectonics, historic disasters, and the future of this volatile region.