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Apr 2, 2024 • 13 tweets • 6 min read • Read on X
Art or Reality?

Let us explore Earth's most extraordinary secrets of nature's marvels, where the surreal landscapes defy not only the imagination but science itself! 🧵⤵️ The Door to Hell, a burning natural gas field in Derweze, Turkmenistan. By Tormod Sandtorv - Flickr: Darvasa gas crater panorama, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18209432
Thor's Well in USA

Often referred to as the "drainpipe of the Pacific," Thor's Well is a seemingly bottomless sinkhole that swallows the seawater around it. The sheer force with which the water is drawn in and expelled creates a dramatic spectacle, especially during high tide or stormy conditions. This natural wonder is actually a sea cave that has collapsed, with its roof now gone, allowing water to fill it from the bottom.Credit: Nigel Ten Fleming @TenFleming on X
Danakil Depression in Ethiopia

Known for being one of the hottest places on Earth with temperatures that often soar above 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius), the Danakil Depression is also one of the lowest points on the planet, dipping more than 100 meters below sea level. This desolate landscape is dotted with acid pools, lava lakes, and mineral deposits in neon colors, a result of volcanic activity and salt mining.Credit: @beyzhive on X
Vinicunca in Peru

Also called the Rainbow Mountain, Vinicunca is famous for its multi-colored strata, which are the result of various mineral deposits that have been exposed by erosion. The stunning hues of red, yellow, purple, and green make it seem as if the mountain was painted. This visual phenomenon becomes particularly vibrant after a rainfall.Image
Zhangye Danxia in China

These are the Rainbow Mountains of China, known for their otherworldly colors that mimic a marbled painting. Layers of different colored sandstone and minerals pressed together over 24 million years and then buckled up by tectonic plates have created this natural masterpiece.Credit: Weird Science - @weird_sci on X
Lake Hillier in Australia

This pink-colored lake on Middle Island is one of the most striking natural phenomena. The distinctive color of the lake is due to the presence of the organism Dunaliella salina, which produces a pink pigment as part of its photosynthesis process, and possibly in combination with the presence of halophilic bacteria in the salt crusts.Credit: Nature Is Weird - @NaturelsWeird on X
Pamukkale in Turkey

Known as "Cotton Castle" in Turkish, Pamukkale's terraces are made of travertine, a sedimentary rock deposited by mineral water from the hot springs. The cascading white pools with warm waters are not just a visual delight but also a popular spot for therapeutic bathing.Image
Darvaze Gas Crater in Turkmenistan

Nicknamed the "Door to Hell," this burning natural gas field collapsed into a large cavern, which geologists set on fire to prevent the spread of methane gas, and it has been burning continuously since 1971. The fiery pit is a surreal sight, especially at night.Image
Rainbow River in Colombia

The Caño Cristales, often called the "Liquid Rainbow," gets its multicolored appearance from the unique plant species that line its floor. Different colors, including red, yellow, green, and blue, are visible at different times of the year, thanks to the reproductive process of the plants.Image
Chocolate Hills in Philippines

Over 1,200 uniformly cone-shaped hills dot the landscape of Bohol. During the dry season, the grass-covered hills dry up and turn chocolate brown, giving them their name. Their formation is still a subject of debate, with theories including oceanic volcano eruptions, uplift of coral deposits, and a combination of erosion and weathering.Credit: https://www.matteocolombo.com/media/b696b84e-ae59-4555-82da-20f6612b3c3a-dramatic-light-over-chocolate-hills-bohol-philippines
Sand Pyramids in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Formed through the natural phenomena of erosion, the Sand Pyramids are spire-shaped formations that resemble a landscape straight out of a science fiction novel. They are created as the softer material around the pyramids is washed away by rain, leaving only the harder stone spires.Wikimedia Commons
Red Beach in China

Located in Panjin, this beach is covered with a type of seaweed called Suaeda salsa, which turns bright red in autumn. It's a vibrant and unusual sight, differing from the typical sandy beach, and also serves as a nature reserve for hundreds of species of birds and other wildlife.Image
Uyuni Salt Flat in Bolivia

The world’s largest salt flat, it was formed as a result of transformations between several prehistoric lakes. It's covered by a few meters of salt crust, which is exceptionally flat. The flatness and the bright white of the salt make it a surreal landscape, and when covered with a thin layer of water, it becomes the largest natural mirror on Earth.Image

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More from @CultureExploreX

Mar 12
Rome, 1600s. The Catholic Church is under attack.

Protestants are smashing Christian art across Europe.

Then, a movement emerges—bold, theatrical— that fights back.

Here's how Baroque art saved Christian art forever... 🧵👇 Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore - Rome  One of four papal basilicas in Rome, located in Piazza dell'Esquilino, on top of the hill of the same name, on top of Cispio, between Rione Monti and Esquiline. It is the only basilica in Rome that still retains the original structure of the Basilica, despite later additions...  Credit: Kabubi on pinterest pin/511791945174879103/
Protestant Reformers rejected sacred images.

Rationalists were dismissing the divine.

The Church knew beauty was power. If it could overwhelm the senses, it could capture souls.

And then comes the Baroque: grandeur, movement, drama.
A visual argument that faith wasn’t just rational—it was something you felt.

No more distant, static figures. No more rigid compositions.

Baroque artists made heaven invade earth.

Ceilings dissolved into divine visions. Borghese Gallery, Rome! Credit: Evelyn M
Read 21 tweets
Mar 11
Some ruled empires. Some changed laws. Others sparked movements that still shape our world.

Here are 20 of the most influential women in history—whose impact still defines our lives today. 🧵👇 Queen Eleanor by Frederick Sandys, 1858 in National Museum Cardiff
1. Mary, Mother of Jesus (1st century BC–1st century AD)

Her role in Christianity has influenced billions for over 2,000 years.

Revered in Christianity and Islam, her presence in religious and cultural history is unmatched. Madonna of the Book by Sandro Botticelli in Milan in the Poldi Pezzoli Museum.
2. Khadijah bint Khuwaylid (555–620 AD)

She wasn’t just the first wife of the Prophet Muhammad—she was Islam’s first believer.

A powerful merchant, she used her wealth and influence to protect the early Muslim community.

Without her, Islam may never have survived its earliest days.A fictive medal of Khadijah seen in Promptuarii iconum insigniorum - 1553  By Published by Guillaume Rouillé (1518?-1589) - "Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum", Public Domain
Read 22 tweets
Mar 10
One-woman defied emperors, outwitted popes, and shaped the modern world as we know it.

Without her, society, education, and medicine would look completely different.

Here’s how Empress Theodora built the legal foundations that still protect millions today. 🧵👇 Théodora (1887), by Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant, Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
Theodora wasn’t born into power. She was born into poverty.

Her father was a bear trainer. When he died, she and her sisters were left destitute. In Constantinople, that meant one thing—survival by any means necessary.

But Theodora was more than just a survivor. She was a strategist.Sarah Bernhardt in Sardou's Théodora (1884)
She became an actress, a profession that, at the time, was seen as scandalous—many actresses were forced into sex work.

But Theodora didn’t just survive in this world. She used it as a training ground—learning politics, persuasion, and power.

Then, she met Justinian. Image
Read 13 tweets
Mar 9
What happens when Power and Genius clash?

Michelangelo never wanted to paint the Sistine Chapel—but when he defied Pope Julius II, he set off a battle of wills that would push him to the edge of madness. 🧵 The interior of the Sistine Chapel showing the ceiling in relation to the other frescoes. Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam is near the top of the photo.  Photo By Antoine Taveneaux -  CC BY-SA 3.0
Michelangelo was a sculptor at the peak of his career.

When Pope Julius II commanded him to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling, he refused—he wasn’t a painter.

Imagine being forced to create a masterpiece you never wanted to make.

What would you have done? David by Michelangelo at the Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence, Italy
Michelangelo fled Rome, hoping the Pope would forget.

Julius II, known as the “Warrior Pope,” didn’t just fight battles on the battlefield—he fought them in art, politics, and power.

He sent threats. If Michelangelo refused, his career was over.

The artist remained in Florence until the Florentine government pressed him to return to the pope.Painting of Julius II Ordering Bramante, Michelangelo, and Raphael to Build the Vatican and Saint Peter's by Horace Vernet at the Louvre Museum
Read 15 tweets
Mar 8
Jaw-Dropping Drone Shots That Will Change How You See the World 🧵👇

1. Mount Tibidabo, Spain

A sacred mountain that watches over Barcelona, seen like never before. This is a famous Church in Barcelona Mount Tibidabo Story by Alison Campbell/msn tripideas: Constative
2. The Red Train, Switzerland

Winding through snow-covered mountains, this iconic train looks like something from a dream. Famous Red Train in Switzerland Credit: Photo by sebastianmzh
3. A Volcano from Above

A fiery heart of the Earth, captured in all its explosive glory. Doesn't it look like Sauron from Lord of the Rings?  This photo, "Skull Smoking" was taken by Daniel Viñé Garcia for the Siena Drone Photo Awards 2023 when visiting Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland.
Read 21 tweets
Mar 7
We once built cathedrals that touched the sky.

Now, our skylines are ruled by glass towers built by banks and bureaucrats.

But this isn’t just about architecture—we're losing purpose in life.

Here's why. and how to fix it? 🧵👇 Top: Duomo del Firenze in Florence, Italy Bottom: Residences at St. Regis in Chicago (built in 2021)
Chartres Cathedral took nearly a century to build. Its stained glass transformed sunlight into a divine spectacle.

Its builders were anonymous. They worked for something greater than themselves.

Today, we throw up steel-and-glass boxes in months. No soul. No purpose. Just profit.South transept rose window, c. 1221–1230 in Chatres Cathedral
Michelangelo’s David wasn’t just a statue—it was Florence’s pride, a symbol of defiance against Rome.

The Renaissance fused faith and humanism, creating works that still inspire awe.

Today? We get 'public art' that looks like twisted scrap metal.

Which of these four images moves you? Be honest. You’re probably picking top left or bottom right.Top left: Deatil of David statue (face) by Michelangelo  Top right: Antony Gormley, Iron: Man, 2005, in Victoria Square, Birmingham Wikimedia Creative Commons  Bottom left:Joan Miró, Woman and Bird, 1982, Barcelona, Spain Wikimedia Creative Commons  Bottom right: Detail of David statue (hand) by Michelangelo
Read 18 tweets

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