Exploring the Seven Natural Wonders of the World
Aren't you naturally curious?
Way back in 2008, an exciting enterprise went out and tried creating a list of the New Seven Wonders of the World. There was only one problem, they wanted to do it in a democratic fashion.
Now, I’m always one for democracy, but this case was different. Their system was based on online voting and text messages, and people weren’t even prevented from voting twice.
Long story short, the new list was made with heavily biased votes from countries that wanted tourism boosts. And the controversy only seemed to help build up the esteem of the new list in the end, for better or worse.
But one of the more positive responses was by two organizations, CNN and Seven Natural Wonders. Their mission was to use this controversy to create an awareness campaign list of the most beautiful natural sites on our planet.
Their goal:
“The mission is to help people discover and explore the natural wonders of the world, to teach them about the wonders and the things that threaten their existence, and to inspire them to create a philosophy and practice of conservation.”
I can get behind that any day. But you might find yourself asking, what’s better than democracy? Well, not whatever Elon Musk thinks vox populi, vox dei means, that’s for sure.
So, how did they select the Seven Natural Wonders?
Through a combination of voting and pre-selection. From what I could gather, the pre-selected list was for up to seven choices of natural wonders in each continent, with public voting used afterward to narrow down the list.
Not exactly a real form of democracy, but I can see why they went this route. When you have completely untethered public voting, you might end up with stuff like this:
The Seven Natural Wonders of the World
Anyway, in the end, the final results were pretty satisfactory. The final Seven Natural Wonders of the World are:
Parícutin, Mexico
Aurora Borealis (AKA the northern lights)
Let’s explore what they are and why they’re so damn wondrous, shall we?
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the biggest coral reef in the entire world. It’s located off the northeast coast of Australia and consists of more than 1,400 miles (2,300 km) of coral. In total, there are around 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands that make up its entirety. Not only is it the single biggest structure created by organisms, but the mass can even be seen from space!
And what is the surrounding area of water called? Why of course, the Coral Sea.
This sea, thanks to the coral reefs, is one of the most biologically diverse areas on Earth. And as I’m sure you can guess, it’s in danger from climate change and humanity’s activities. Over 90% of coral reefs surveyed in 2022 showed signs of a mass bleaching event, the sixth one since 1998.
Sadly, these lead to deaths among the tiny coral polyps that create the reefs in the first place, and it’s why you hear 50% of the Great Barrier Reef has perished. That’s why they created the special protection zone called the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, to help slow our destruction.
On a lighter note, you can still visit to go snorkeling or diving. Just don’t litter, please.
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is on the top of everyone’s minds. And there’s good reason for it, it holds the tallest peak on Earth, measuring 29,031.7 ft (8,848.86 m) above your feet.
Interestingly, it’s not actually the tallest mountain in the world because of one important distinction; water. Much of Mauna Kea in Hawaii is underwater, but its dry prominence — yes, apparently that's a thing — is 30,610 ft (9,330 m), slightly higher than Mount Everest.
Ever since monkeys started climbing things, I’m sure it didn’t take long before some dreamed of mounting this mountain. Many tried, and many died. It’s said over 300 bodies lie dormant on the cliffside, being walked by as ever more climbers trek up the side each year.
But after millennia of dreaming, and over 12 failed attempts, Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay finally reached the summit in 1953. What did it take for this exhibition to get there? Oh, only 20 sherpas, 350 porters, and a massive amount of supplies for only 10 final climbers.
Nevertheless, they did it. And almost a thousand try every year. The unfortunate who don’t live to make it back often serve as morbid mile markers and stark reminders of the dangers of cats and curiosities.
If you have the frozen stones to visit Mount Everest yourself, you can read more here.
Parícutin, Mexico
One of the lesser-known natural wonders of the world is Parícutin, located in Michoacán, Mexico. It stretches 9,200 ft (2,800 m) way up into the sky.
Parícutin is a giant cinder cone volcano, with the cone only existing since 1943 after a massive emergence from the ground that didn’t stop erupting for nine whole years!
That also makes it the youngest volcano in the entirety of the Northern Hemisphere. Who’s the new kid on the block? You are, Parícutin, you cute giant angry fire beast, you.
The aftermath of the eruption was bad, but as far as volcanoes go, it was no Pompeii. Two towns were completely buried in lava and three others felt it. Three unfortunate souls were also caught in the crossfire.
But fortunately for all of us but not for Vulcan, the volcano now lies dormant — so you can go visit if you wish. Tours to visit Parícutin consist of a 12-mile (19 km) journey by walking or horseback. There, people can see hardened fields of lava, the sandy banks of the volcano, and even the entrapped ruins of a church.
The Northern Lights: Aurora Borealis
The Northern Lights, or as they’re known to scientists, aurora borealis, are the magnificent splendor of colors cascading across the night sky in the far north of our lovely planet. Auroras display brilliant patterns of light appearing as flowing curtains and rays consisting of light from across the spectrum.
Auroras occur when masses of particles ejected from the sun interact with the upper atmosphere and ionization — and all them pretty colors — results. They also have a southern cousin, not the incestuous kind, which is called the southern lights or aurora australis.
Unfortunately for many a traveler, the aurora borealis is anything but consistent. As in, it doesn’t occur every night. So some travelers who only visit for a short time often miss their goal. They’re also easier to see in the winter, when the darker skies make these light shows a bit easier to spot.
If you find yourself wanting to see them, as I certainly do, you can choose spots to visit in Canada, Russia, Alaska, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, and Norway.
Interestingly, almost every other planet in the solar system has its own auroras, so there’s no need for them to be jealous.
Harbor of Rio de Janeiro
The Harbor of Rio de Janeiro is the largest natural harbor by volume of water in the world and certainly earns its place on the list of Seven Natural Wonders of the World. For some, it’s also known as Guanabara Bay.
The beautiful natural site is located beside the city of Rio de Janeiro, named after the bay itself, in a state with the same name on the southeast coast of Brazil. Rio de Janeiro comes from a history of early European explorers who named it the January’s Lagoon (Ria), but later confusion settled the name as January’s River (Rio).
Within the harbor is a massive cauldron of water surrounded by mountains of granite and quartz. From nearby, you can even see the famous gargantuan statue of Christ the Redeemer sitting on nearby Corcovado Mountain.
For visitors, it’s often advised to take a sweet ride on the Sugarloaf Mountain cable car to truly encapture the beauty of the area.
Grand Canyon
If you haven’t heard of the Grand Canyon, then can you really call yourself an American? Exceptions are made for all the other readers, of course. The Grand Canyon is an insanely huge canyon in Arizona, USA, carved out by the Colorado River starting around 6 million years ago.
The natural wonder is 277 miles (446 km) long, 18 miles (29 km) wide at its fattest, and can go up to 6,093 ft (1,857 m) straight down. In modern-day, the entire area is enclosed within the Grand Canyon National Park, which seeks to protect the area from harm. What kind of harm you could do to a giant canyon remains a mystery to this author.
For an incredibly long time by human standards, Native American people had settlements in and around the canyon, including in its plethora of cliffside caves.
Of course, many people go to visit today.
Some go for a three-minute look after a 30-hour drive and wonder why they did it. Others go for a day or two and hike on one of the numerous hiking trails. People from the 1% will often take a helicopter to truly take in the breathtaking view.
Victoria Falls
Victoria Falls is one of the largest waterfalls in the world and is a spectacular sight to behold. The waterway is located right on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe in the southern part of the African continent. The 132 million gallons (500 million liters) of water that flow over it every minute is fed by the beautiful Zambezi River.
The height of the edge stands 108 m (355 ft) above the river below and the lip of the falls is 5,604 ft (1,708 m) wide. That’s why many consider it to be the largest waterfall on earth, even if it isn’t the tallest or widest. The combination of the two makes it the largest sheet of falling water of anywhere on our precious planet.
There are a few different sites to view the thunderous roar of the water, and you can even jump across the border to take advantage of both. If you’re feeling a bit more dare devilish, you’re welcome to bathe in the Devil’s Pool right before the big plunge.
Although is also advised to bathe during and before the trip, too, as it can get pretty hot there.
J.J. Pryor
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Nice to see you having fun with AI. Not sure I agree with all the choices, but then again I am not a world traveller. They are all pretty stunning places.