Can we shut the ‘Gate to Hell'? Also, wild baboons and aging; a Roman emperor’s wisdom; fake Niagara Falls?

Also, lower sperm counts; clues to insomnia; Mrs. Genghis Khan; beaver goo in vanilla ice cream?  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌    ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  

 

PICTURES OF THE YEAR VIEW ONLINE

PICTURES OF THE YEAR

BEWARE THE FLAMING HOLE!

Friday, November 17, 2023

In today’s newsletter, we approach a mysterious, otherworldly crater that has been burning for decades, learn about aging from wild baboons, discover plunging sperm counts ... and answer the vanilla-beaver goo question. Plus, happy National Take a Hike day (and here’s why you should.)

PHOTOGRAPH BY CAROLYN DRAKE, MAGNUM PHOTOS Methane belches from a 230-foot-wide, 100-foot-deep pit known as the Gate to Hell. It ignited in the 1950s in a remote desert stretch of Central Asia. It looks like a never-extinguished meteor hole containing, well, demons. How did it begin? Almost certainly a Cold War accident in what was then the Soviet Union. Can it be stopped? Not, say some experts, without the risk of a massive explosion. WHAT’S GOING ON?

PHOTOGRAPH BY GILES CLARKE, GETTY IMAGES ’Hell’ is popular with tourists: Tens of thousands of people have ventured to his remote desert spot in the past five years to see the giant gas crater—and to camp nearby. Read more.

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

SCALA/FLORENCE

How did this Roman emperor handle loss—and try to become a better person? Even today, people are reading his journal. (Above, Marcus Aurelius.) These are the world’s happiest places What wild baboons are teaching humans about aging Debunked: You don’t eat vanilla ice cream that comes from beaver goo

Ketamine can help ease depression, but there are risks Stunning: Our 2023 Pictures of the Year Is Niagara Falls even a wonder anymore—or just a manmade hydroelectric spillway? Why are sperm counts declining worldwide faster than we thought? COVID screwed up our sleep—but gave us clues to fight insomnia

PHOTO OF THE DAY

PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDREA FRAZZETTA Life is a highway: For today’s National Take a Hike Day, we’ve dug back for this image alongside the Appian Way (above), a Roman-era ”superhighway” popular with hikers. There are many reasons to grab your sunscreen and hat and hit the road; here are a few. GET YOUR BOOTS ON

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

PHOTOGRAPH BY BRIDGEMAN IMAGES Who helped build the empire with the largest contiguous territory in history? She did. The history books give her husband, Genghis Khan, the credit. But historians are only now recognizing the strong hand of Börte, a vital military and political adviser. She organized the vast Mongol camps, and other women took a greater hand in ruling the empire. Who was Börte—and what took historians so long? (Above, the royal couple on their thrones.) OVERLOOKED NO MORE

Today’s soundtrack: I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory, Kathleen Edwards Happy weekend! This newsletter has been curated and edited by Nancy San Martín, Jen Tse, and David Beard. We’d love to hear from you: david.beard@natgeo.com.

SHOP DONATE SUBSCRIBE TRAVEL

READ OUR LATEST STORIES

SHOP

DONATE

SUBSCRIBE

TRAVEL

Clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and National Geographic Channel links will take you away from our National Geographic Partners site where different terms of use and privacy policy apply. This email was sent to: mitch.dobbs.pics@blogger.com. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored. This email contains an advertisement from: National Geographic | 1145 17th Street, N.W. | Washington, D.C. 20036 Stop all types of future commercial email from National Geographic regarding its products, services, or experiences. Manage all email preferences with the Walt Disney Family of Companies. © 2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC, All rights reserved.