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The World’s 7 Strangest Airports

Engineers tasked with building an airport are faced with countless challenges: The ideal location needs ample space, endless flat ground, favorable winds and great visibility. But spots in the real world are rarely ideal, and engineers are forced to work with what they have, making sure that the end product is the safest possible structure for pilots. A survey of airports around the world turns up a mixed bag, ranging from dangerous and rugged landing strips to mega-size facilities that operate like small cities. Here, 7CL explores the world's most remarkable airports and why they stand out.

7. Courchevel International Airport (Courchevel, France)

Background:
Getting to the iconic ski resort of Courchevel requires navigating the formidable French Alps before making a hair-raising landing at Courchevel International Airport. The runway is about 1700 feet long, but the real surprise is the large hill toward the middle of the strip.

Why It's Unique:
"You take off downhill and you land going uphill," Schreckengast says. He adds that the hill, which has an 18.5 percent grade, is so steep that small planes could probably gain enough momentum rolling down it with no engines to safely glide off the edge. Landing at Courchevel is obviously no easy task, so pilots are required to obtain certification before attempting to conquer the dangerous runway.

6. Congonhas Airport (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Background:
Most major cities have an airport, but rarely are they built just 5 miles from the city center, especially in metropolises like Sao Paulo. Congonhas' close proximity to downtown can be attributed in part to the fact that it was completed in 1936, with the city experiencing rapid development in the following decades.

Why It's Unique:
While having an airport only 5 miles from the city center may be a convenience for commuters, it places a strain on both pilots and air traffic control crews. "It becomes a challenge in terms of safety to just get the plane in there," Schreckengast says. "Then you throw on noise restrictions and these terribly awkward arrival and departure routes that are needed to minimize your noise-print and it becomes quite challenging for pilots." Fortunately, Sao Paulo's many high-rise buildings are far enough away from the airport that they aren't an immediate obstacle for pilots landing or taking off.

5. Ice Runway (Antarctica)

Background:
The Ice Runway is one of three major airstrips used to haul supplies and researchers to Antarctica's McMurdo Station. As its name implies, there are no paved runways here—just long stretches of ice and snow that are meticulously groomed.

Why It's Unique:
There is no shortage of space on the Ice Runway, so super-size aircraft like the C-130 Hercules and the C-17 Globemaster III can land with relative ease. The real challenge is making sure that the weight of the aircraft and cargo doesn't bust the ice or get the plane stuck in soft snow. As the ice of the runway begins to break up, planes are redirected to Pegasus Field or Williams Field, the two other airstrips servicing the continent.

4. Don Mueang International Airport (Bangkok, Thailand)

Background:
From a distance Don Mueang International looks like any other midsize airport. However, smack-dab in the middle of the two runways is an 18-hole golf course.

Why It's Unique:
Schreckengast, who has worked on consulting projects at this airport, says one of the major problems is that the only taxiways were located at the end of the runways. "We recommended that they build an additional taxiway in the middle, from side to side, and they said ‘absolutely not, that will take out a green and one fairway.'" The airport and the course were originally an all-military operation, but have since opened up to commercial traffic. Security threats, however, have limited the public's access to the greens.

3. Madeira International Airport (Madeira, Portugal)

Background:
Madeira is a small island far off the coast of Portugal, which makes an airport that is capable of landing commercial-size aircraft vital to its development. This airport's original runway was only about 5000 feet long, posing a huge risk to even the most experienced pilots and limiting imports and tourism.

Why It's Unique:
Engineers extended the runway to more than 9000 feet by building a massive girder bridge atop about 200 pillars. The bridge, which itself is over 3000 feet long and 590 feet wide, is strong enough to handle the weight of 747s and similar jets. In 2004, the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering selected the expansion project for its Outstanding Structure Award, noting that the design and construction was both "sensitive to environmental and aesthetic considerations."

2. Gibraltar Airport (Gibraltar)

Background:
Between Morocco and Spain sits the tiny British territory of Gibraltar. Construction of the airport dates back to World War II, and it continues to serve as a base for the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force, though commercial flights land on a daily basis.

Why It's Unique:
Winston Churchill Avenue, Gibraltar's busiest road, cuts directly across the runway. Railroad-style crossing gates hold cars back every time a plane lands or departs. "There's essentially a mountain on one side of the island and a town on the other," Schreckengast says. "The runway goes from side to side on the island because it's the only flat space there, so it's the best they can do. It's a fairly safe operation as far as keeping people away," he says, "It just happens to be the best place to land, so sometimes it's a road and sometimes it's a runway."


1. Kansai International Airport (Osaka, Japan)

Background:
Land is a scarce resource in Japan, so engineers headed roughly 3 miles offshore into Osaka Bay to build this colossal structure. Work on the manmade island started in 1987, and by 1994 jumbo jets were touching down. Travelers can get from the airport to the main island of Honshu via car, railroad or even a high-speed ferry.

Why It's Unique:
Kansai's artificial island is 2.5 miles long and 1.6 miles wide—so large that it's visible from space. Earthquakes, dangerous cyclones, an unstable seabed, and sabotage attempts from protestors are just some of the variables engineers were forced to account for. As impressive as the airport is, Stewart Schreckengast, a professor of aviation technology at Purdue University and a former aviation consultant with MITRE, cautions that climate change and rising sea levels pose a very real threat to the airport's existence. "When this was built, [engineers] probably didn't account for global warming," he says. "In 50 years or so, this might be underwater."

Photos Taken at The Perfect Time

10 Weird and Mysterious Places on Earth

 McMurdo Dry Valleys

McMurdo Dry Valleys are located on Antarctica but, believe it or not, they lack snow. That makes the area to be a desert, of course the coldest one in the world. However, that’s not the only strange things here. The valleys are “bleeding” from the many geysers, because of the high concentration of iron, making picture of world different than Earth.

 The Bermuda Triangle

The question about the triangle that swallows ships, planes and all the people with them still waits for its answer. So many ships and planes have disappeared and so many disasters have happened in the area between Bermuda, Puerto Rico and Miami, and many theories have appeared as well. From compass variations, gulf streams, rogue waves to human errors and conspiracy theories – anything is possible, but none of them is proved yet. However, it’s still one of the most traveled routes in the world.

Easter Island

The well known statues on the Easter Island, the rapa nui, still remain mystery for the researchers. The statues are over 50 feet tall, but no one has a clue who built them, why they built them, how they were brought there, and so on. One of the theories is that a civilization has lived here long time ago, but the people ate everything on the island and either moved somewhere else or were exterminated.

 Fly Geyser

The Fly Geyser, near Gerlach, Nevada, is strange because it somehow grows up. It is three meters high at the moment. It is interesting that this geyser is located on private area, so nobody can enjoy it from close. The owner is Bill Spoo, a man who rejects the opportunity to make a fortune from the tourists, and keeps the beautiful view just for himself and the few researchers and photographers who have to schedule a visit weeks before arriving.

 Lake Vostok

Lake Vostok is the most recent mystery coming from Antarctica, and the whole world probably, as there is possibility for some revolutionary revelations. Scientists believe that in the lake under the ice surface there are some species that have survived 15 billions years. However, these species would be something that the world has never seen before, as they would have developed under complete darkness. The researchers are close to obtaining a water sample, so we should wait for the results.

Mount Roraima

Mount Roraima is located on the triple border point between Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. It is weird because of its shape, but is also mysterious because of the clouds that are always near the peak and the endemic fauna. The tabletop of the mountain, which is the peak actually, is considered as one of the world’s oldest geological formations. It is believed that the plateau was formed by water and winds, but the reason why some species can’t be found anywhere else remain mystery.

 Mystery Spot

Mystery Sport is a tourist attraction near Santa Cruz, California, famous because of its disrespect to the laws of physics and gravity. The odd cabin, although seems like lying on flat ground, makes those who enter inside swinging all the time. The most probable theory that tries to explain this says that it’s all about “tilt-induced visual illusion. The illusion experienced by visitors results from the oddly tilted environment as well as standing on a tilted floor. Inside the tilted room of the Mystery Spot misperceptions of the height and orientation of objects occur. Even when people are standing outside on a level ground, the slant of the building in the background causes misperceptions as we judge the height of people using the slant of the roof rather than the true horizon.”

Racetrack Playa

Racetrack Playa in California is well known due to its sailing stones. No one knows how, but the stones there somehow manage to move from their original position, leaving a track behind them. The reasons are still unknown and are subject of research. It is supposed that the winds in the valley are “responsible” for this.

 McMurdo Dry Valleys

McMurdo Dry Valleys are located on Antarctica but, believe it or not, they lack snow. That makes the area to be a desert, of course the coldest one in the world. However, that’s not the only strange things here. The valleys are “bleeding” from the many geysers, because of the high concentration of iron, making picture of world different than Earth.

Socotra

Socotra is archipelago the Horn of Africa and Arabic Peninsula, but the main island of Socotra is 95% of the whole landmass, while the rest is just small islands. This place is probably the most alien-looking on Earth. One third of the flora and fauna on this island, administered by Yemen government, can be found only here. The umbrella-shaped “blood tree,” the cucumber tree, giant succulent tree, different kinds of birds, spiders, bats and cats have the only habitat on Socotra

Unbelievable Photos All Around Us

I made a list, in my opinion, a veryI made a list, in my opinion, a very unbelievable photos which captured in the right time and I still can’t believe that this photos are made! Photographer of each of this photos was a real lucky-men! But we are left to wonder … Did some of these people be lucky at a time after shooting? I`m not counting the Ladybug and the Cat in that, they are always happy… which captured in the right time and I still can’t believe that this photos are made! Photographer of each of this photos was a real lucky-men! But we are left to wonder … Did some of these people be lucky at a time after shooting? I`m not counting the Ladybug and the Cat in that, they are always happy…

10 Cool Facts About The Human Body

Our bodies are truly amazing things. Using these vessels every day, we sometimes forget just how amazing they are. However, the human body is a truly revolutionary machine of evolution and while we don’t have wings, armor, venom, or claws, there are some truly cool things about our bodies.

1. You Can Live Without Many of Your Internal Organs

Many of us think that if we were to lose one of our internal organs, we would die immediately, and while this is true for the heart, it is not so true for other internal organs. In fact, you can remove your spleen, one kidney, one lung, as well as 75 percent of your liver, 80 percent of your intestines and most of the organs located in your pelvis and groin area. That’s right, all of those organs can disappear and you will still be functioning. You may not function so well, and you may not live for as long as you hoped, but yes, you can live without those organs.

2. The Death of Hundreds of Millions

Each minute, our body is dying, this is a fact. Each time 60 seconds has passed by; our body has lost 300,000,000 cells. Yep, that’s right, that many cells, which amount to the population of the United States, die in our bodies every single minute. While this may seem like a lot of dying cells, and you would think our bodies would decay within hours, there are more cells being born than dying in our bodies. Each day, 10 to 50 trillion (50,000,000,000,000) cells are replaced in our body.

3. Your Hair Is the Superman of the Body.

When we say your hair is the Superman of the body, what we mean is that your hair is pretty much indestructible. Hair decays at an extremely slow rate and that means hair often stays around longer than most other parts of your body. In fact, mummies that date back thousands of years still have hair on their heads. Changes in climate, humidity and temperature can’t hurt your hair, and neither can many different varieties of acids and chemicals. The only real weakness your hair has is to fire, which is probably because your hair is made up of so much carbon.

4. Beware the Power of Stomach Acids.

Your stomach is a very powerful part of your body. The stomach acids that sit inside of our stomach are so strong that they can dissolve zinc. You would think that such a strong acid would eat through our body in seconds, but our stomach lining actually renews itself so fast that there is not enough time for the acid to eat through the lining. If it was not for this renewing capacity, we would have a large hole in our body within minutes.

5. Your Lungs, Bones and Nails!

Here are essentially three facts in one. First, your lungs are full of tiny blood vessels called capillaries. In both your lungs, there are 300,000 million capillaries and if you were to take all of these capillaries and lay them out end-to-end, they would stretch for 1,500 miles. Second, we can break our bones but our bones are actually quite strong. One block of bone the size of a matchbox can support the weight of nine tones, which is actually four times as much weight as concrete can hold. Third, your fingernails are constantly growing and if you lose a fingernail, it will take roughly half a year for the nail to grow back from the base to the tip.

6. We Grow Every Night

 Yes, that’s right, every single night your body grows by a little bit. It is estimated that the human body grows about one-third of an inch while you sleep because your cartilage discs are squeezed by the force of gravity when you are standing or sitting. So, when you wake up and start walking, your height shrinks back down to your normal height.

7. Nature’s Filter

 Your kidneys help to get rid of toxins from our bodies and without our kidneys, both of them, we would die. The reason for this is the amazing filter capacity of kidneys. Each kidney contains one million filters. This means your body has two million individual filters in it, which filter out 1.3 liters of blood per minute and expel 1.4 liters of urine per day!
Without this vitally important filtering, our bodies would quickly fill with toxins and we would soon find ourselves very sick and very close to death. This is why people whose kidneys have failed need to be hooked up to kidney dialysis machines.

8. Our Bodies Are Hot, Hot, Hot!

The human body is one big energy producing machine. When you look at a picture of the human body with infrared technology, all you see is radiating heat. That heat is generated within our bodies and it helps to keep us alive. In fact, the human body generates so much heat that in only 30 minutes, the average body gives off enough heat (throughout the entire body) to bring half a gallon of water to boil. That may not seem like much given you can boil water in only a few minutes on the stove, but remember that your body is boiling this water by doing nothing but what it does every day; keep you alive!

9. We Are Visual Beings

We are visual beings because of the amount of information we process through our eyes, rather than through other senses. While bats may process most of their information through their ears, we process 90 percent of all our information through our eyes. The other 10 percent of the information is processed by our other four senses of touch, taste, smell and sound.

10. Breaking the Speed Limit

Our bodies do not move as fast as other animals, the cheetah for example, but we can exceed 100 miles per hour with something; our sneezes. When we sneeze, we expel air from our nose and mouth at the whopping speed of 100 miles per hour. That is pretty fast considering that it is coming out of our face and many may wonder why we do not blow our nose clean off with that kind of force.