#851 Marianas Trench

deepseachallenge.com 

Ever since I was young I've been fascinated with the Marianas trench. The diagram above helps to show why I always found it so amazing -- we always thing about the highest point, Everest, but we rarely think about how deep the earth goes inwards, and the fact that the earth goes further inwards than it does outwards is really quite incredible. At almost 11km deep (5960 fathoms) at 'Challenger Deep' at its southern end, it is further into the earth than we can go outward although both extremes suffer from too much pressure -- altitude sickness, oxygen deprivation, atmospheric pressure, etc. I just wish it wasn't so inaccessible! 

And even though there are areas of the Arctic ocean floor that go closer to the earth's core (because Earth is not a perfect sphere and the Marianas is at its widest point in the tropics), it is a phenomenal place.

Cool facts:

• It is 1 to 4 degrees C at the bottom.
• Xenophyophores are a microbial bacteria life form found deep in the trench.
• The Marianas Islands were claimed by Spain in 1668.
• The trench was first 'sounded' in the 1870s.
• In 1995, an unmanned remote controlled Japanese vehicle completed the deepest dive on record.
• Four manned descents have been made, the first in 1960, and the most recent by director James Cameron in 2012.
• Sole, flounder and shrimp have been observed at the bottom.
• It has been proposed as a place for nuclear waste disposal, in hopes that the tectonic movements will eventually push the waste under the earth and into the earth's mantle. Thank goodness it's prohibited by international law!

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariana_Trench

#948 Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia

A place that I've always wanted to visit, but prohibitively expensive and quite inaccessible: Kamchatka Peninsula. People tell stories of only being able to visit the remote volcanoes by helicopter, and that the number of active volcanoes is unmatched anywhere in the world, but these are just rumors of a place so remote and unvisited that people will say anything about it. Unfortunately, I haven't yet had the pleasure to visit, so I can't dispute any rumors yet, but I wanted to share this amazing place with everyone, so that you can add it to your bucket list, too!

You may have seen this incredible photo of a lava flow cave inside a glacier in email forwards and circling the internet. What a place!

From telegraph.co.uk where they advertise Kamchatka as being an option for a 'Blackberry-free break'!

The Kamchatka peninsula would have a similar temperature range to southern Alaska, and with only around 300,000 people in an area similar to that of Japan, it is easy to see why it is off the beaten path despite being an UNESCO World Heritage site. The Eastern side catches the storms and remains covered in snow even in summer, but in winter it is girded with ice and even has oceanic ice bracketing the ports.

Part of the Pacific's Ring of Fire caused by the tectonic plates' collision, in addition to its many volcanoes there is the 10,000 meter Kuril-Kamchatka Trench just off the eastern coast. Of the 160 volcanoes, 29 of them active, and 19 included in UNESCO's list.

I want to visit this spectacular landscape and see the amazing semi-arctic wildlife and landscape.

Note: Photos are not mine -- many are from Wikipedia.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamchatka_Peninsula

#971 Uluru (Ayer's Rock), Australia

New 7 Wonders website (nature.new7wonders.com)

The amazing sandstone formation in the center of Australia, Uluru (Ayer's Rock) is an amazing geological feature, important cultural icon, sacred Aboriginal site, and a spectacular natural area. Located in the middle of the outback wilderness, 335km from the nearest town, Alice Springs, the site includes springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. It's so wonderful when the biggest symbol for a country is something natural and impressive!

Uluru from above -- from Wikipedia.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uluru

#979 Preacher's Rock, Norway

Known as Preacher's Rock, or Preikestolen, this phenomenal rock sits 600m high above the Lysefjorden. Originating in the last ice age when the glacier that formed the fjord touched the edge of the rock and broke off large chunks. Ice formed cracks in places that remain. After a walk of around 3km, tourists emerge on the flat rock surface, daring to go as near to the edge as they can! What a beautiful spot.

I have not visited this beautiful place -- these photos are courtesy of my father, Brian Marquand. 

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preikestolen