Strange Maps 25-26° N: the world’s most perilously populated parallel In 100 years, perhaps this map showing humanity clustering around the equator will seem “so 21st century.”
Strange Maps Welcome to Null Island, where lost data goes to die Where the prime meridian meets the equator, a non-existent island captures our imagination — and our non-geocoded data.
Strange Maps U.S. road deaths far outnumber those in Europe. Why? Wyoming's roads are nine times deadlier than Ireland's. California's road safety is on par with Romania's.
Strange Maps Umami: You never say its name, yet you taste it every day Sweet, bitter, salty, sour. These are the four basic tastes we were taught in grade school. But there is a fifth: umami. And it's everywhere.
Strange Maps Map of whale migration “superhighways” might help save them from extinction The world’s great whales aren’t just vulnerable where they congregate, but everywhere they roam.
Strange Maps An interactive map of Irish shipwrecks, littered with thousands of stories We have a morbid curiosity about nautical disaster stories. The Irish "Wreck Viewer" offers a window into centuries of marine misfortune.
Strange Maps Derinkuyu: Mysterious underground city in Turkey found in man’s basement A basement renovation project led to the archaeological discovery of a lifetime: the Derinkuyu Underground City, which housed 20,000 people.
Strange Maps Why not even Minnesota is safe from quakes Minnesota earned its 'blue mark' in the 1975 Morris earthquake, which had its epicenter in the western part of the state.
Strange Maps Why Trump’s Palestine map is important Trump's Middle East peace plan contains the first map of a Palestinian state that 'Israel can live with'.
Strange Maps Ukraine: made by Lenin, unmade by Putin? The Bolsheviks may have created Ukraine’s current borders, but that doesn’t mean dismantling them is good for today’s Russia.
Strange Maps If the ancient Romans had Google Maps OmnesViae is a modern route planner based on the roads of the Roman Empire.
Strange Maps Maybe Ukraine should claim some of Russia’s land, instead One hundred years ago, a Ukrainian flag flew over Vladivostok and other parts of the “Russian” Far East.
Strange Maps The strange plan to fight nuclear bombs with giant rubber fortresses Cold War meets Star Wars in this cut-away of a 1950 “rubber bubble,” the first line of defense against nuclear sneak attack.
Strange Maps On tiny Hans Island, Denmark and Canada create world’s newest land border A dispute marked by flags and booze has been replaced with an official land border.
Strange Maps Is your air as unhealthy as cigarettes? There’s a map for that The World Air Quality Index shows how clean your city’s air is, in real time.
Strange Maps Scottish gritters and James Bond puns: a map for your ice only To clear Scotland’s roads in winter, the local traffic agency employs heavy machinery with punny names. Can you grit and bear it?
Strange Maps NATO-Russia border: “No peeing towards Russia,” warns a sign in Norway Urinating in the direction of NATO’s staunchest opponent could cost you $350 or more. For world peace, aim wisely.
Strange Maps Don’t even try to read “Moby Dick” without this map This might help you make it to the end of Herman Melville’s 19th century classic.
Strange Maps How Europe’s newest bridge unites (and divides) the Balkans A new bridge joins a divided Croatia, but it cuts Bosnia out of Europe — literally and figuratively. A bridge meant to unite also divides.
Strange Maps Why this Japanese seafood dish outrages both Koreas Two mounds of rice and a tiny flag in a sea of curry is enough to re-heat an old territorial conflict.
Strange Maps Mormon geography: why some Latter-day Saints are digging for a ‘lost city’ in southeastern Iowa Using the Book of Mormon as a sacred but ambiguous atlas, the Latter-day Saints have been looking for the lost city of Zarahemla for decades.
Strange Maps Thumbs up? Map shows Europe’s hitchhiking landscape Average waiting time for hitchhikers in Ireland: Less than 30 minutes. In southern Spain: More than 90 minutes.
Strange Maps Peak foliage map: where and when are leaves changing color? Starting just about now, leaves start changing color from north to south, high to low, light to dark.
Strange Maps Alt history: What if the U.S. lost a World War? Opponents of America's entry into the looming Second World War believed the U.S. would be dismembered.
Strange Maps There’s a desert hiding in the heart of France France is split in two by its very own "desert," the Empty Diagonal. The area’s depopulation is fairly recent, and Paris is to blame.
Strange Maps In Europe, trust in others depends on location The 2021 Quality of Government Index shows how much trust the citizens of Europe place in each other and in their elected politicians.
Strange Maps Even these Terrible Maps can teach us something Despite itself, this collection of awful cartography may just make a few useful observations.
Strange Maps How Njoya the Great put his African kingdom on the map This representation of the Bamum kingdom is a rare example of early 20th-century indigenous African cartography.
Strange Maps Which alt-fuel is right for you? That depends on where you live EV charging stations are the most widespread alternative to gas and diesel pumps. Each alternative has its own hotspots and "deserts."
Strange Maps Lol, jaja, xaxa, and all the other ways people laugh around the world This world map shows how the rest of the world LOLs. In France, you MDR; in China, you 23333.