jessicahester1's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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chill week

Way Before Roller Coasters, Russians Zipped Down Enormous Ice Slides

These artificial mountains were fast, thrilling, and probably very dangerous.
August 21, 2019
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chill like a ...

The Swole Women of Sparta Wrestled, Danced, and Drank

This summer, chill like an ancient lady and sweat, recite poetry, and swig wine.
August 20, 2019
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mexico

How a 16th-Century Spanish Questionnaire Inspired Indigenous Mapmakers of Mexico

Bureaucratic paperwork led to pretty maps that highlight power structures and visual identity.
August 15, 2019
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pollution

'Snowglow' Sounds Charming, But It's a Menace to Night Skies

Fresh powder can worsen light pollution, according to new research from Germany.
August 13, 2019
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cabins

How to Restore a Hermit Hut in the Idaho Wilderness

A team of forest archaeologists and preservationists trekked into the wilderness to rebuild a century-old cabin.
August 12, 2019
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moon

The Moon Went on Tour Through England

It dangled over church pews and disco dancers in Dorset.
August 7, 2019
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whales

The 'Moby-Dick' Musical Is Swimming With Sea Shanties and Nurdle Ballads

We watched it with a whale anatomist to see if the cetacean science holds water.
August 2, 2019
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railroads

Wuppertal's Beloved Floating Monorail Is Moving Again

All aboard!
August 2, 2019
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fatberg

Fed Up With Fatbergs, an Australian Water Company Recorded a Jazzy Jingle About the Sewer

Only flush the “three Ps,” please.
August 1, 2019
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for sale

Stare Into the Belly of the Earth With 17th-Century Polymath Athanasius Kircher

How a visit to Vesuvius shaped his prescient vision of a hot core.
July 30, 2019
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textiles

In the 1890s, Female Medical Students Embroidered a Yearbook on a Pillow Sham

The newly minted doctors had deft handiwork.
July 26, 2019
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data

The Tree That Is Live-Tweeting Climate Change

With a little help from scientists, an oak in the Harvard Forest is sharing updates about its life.
July 25, 2019
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urban planning

For Sale: An Old Map of Small-Town Chicago

Recognize anything?
July 24, 2019
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glaciers

The Trek to Bid Farewell to an Icelandic Glacier

A plaque will soon mark the site of Okjökull, one of Iceland’s dearly departed.
July 23, 2019
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everyday wonder

How to Find a Meteorite

It's a long shot—but if you're keen to look, here's how to start.
July 18, 2019
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stonehenge

Does the Mystery of Stonehenge Involve Pig Fat?

New research says the megaliths may have been dragged to the site with the help of lard.
July 17, 2019
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relics of the 1920s

The Short Life and Strange Death of Maryland's Ghost Fleet

The long-languishing ships of Mallows Bay are getting a second life as a National Marine Sanctuary.
July 16, 2019
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models

Diving Into the Submerged History of Summer, Lake Tahoe–Style

3D models of sunken boats mean there's lots to explore—even for those who want to stay dry.
July 12, 2019
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for sale

For Sale: A Home Built in an Old Train Depot

House-hunting rail enthusiasts, rejoice.
July 11, 2019
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panoramas

The Painted Panoramas That Will Make You Yearn for Yosemite and Dream of Denali

Step into Heinrich Berann's sweeping portraits of America's national parks.
July 11, 2019
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paintings

Found: Very Old Paintings on the Fancy Vault Doors of Wyoming’s Capitol Building

Rugged mountains and peaceful streams were hidden under layers of brown paint.
July 8, 2019
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seaweed

Welcome to the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt, the Seaweed Superhighway

Researchers suspect that the smelly macroalgae will keep piling up on ocean shores.
July 5, 2019
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solar system

How Do You Do Color Commentary for an Eclipse?

Live from space, it’s a grand celestial phenomenon!
July 2, 2019
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plaques

Michigan Is Trying to Make Its Historic Markers More Accurate and Less Racist

It can take a lot of time—and some heavy bureaucratic lifting—to tell an honest story about a state's past.
June 28, 2019