Geography Of The World
The Largest Lakes In The Pacific Northwest
The largest lakes in the Pacific Northwest, ranked by surface area: giant Columbia River reservoirs and deep natural lakes across BC, Washington, and Oregon.
How Deep The Mariana Trench Is Compared To Mount Everest
The Mariana Trench’s Challenger Deep is about 36,000 feet deep, so drop Mount Everest in and its summit would still sit over a mile underwater.
One Of The Deepest Octopus Ever Filmed
NOAA filmed a pale, finless octopus nicknamed Casper 14,075 feet down off Hawaii in 2016, the deepest sighting of its kind. It still has no scientific name.
Why Some Towns Have A Hot And A Cold Water Tower
Hot and cold water towers in Pratt, Kansas, and towns like Canton and St. Clair began as local jokes. The water inside stays the same temperature either way.
What Happens When A Dam Uses Its Spillway For The First Time
Hoover Dam's first spillway run in 1941 gouged a cavity 45 feet deep. Six US reservoirs show what a first spill can expose, including a new gorge in Texas.
The US Mountain Trails With The Most Rattlesnake Encounters
From Phoenix to the Shawangunks, these busy mountain trails run straight through rattlesnake den country, where hikers and snakes end up on the same ledges.
How Much Of The World's Water Is In The Oceans?
About 96.5% of Earth's water sits in the oceans. Freshwater makes up only about 2.5%, and most of that is frozen in ice and glaciers or stored underground.
How Many Sailors It Takes To Run A Great Lakes Freighter
Even the 1,013-foot Paul R. Tregurtha sails with just 23 aboard. Why a Great Lakes freighter’s crew barely grows with its hull, and how the jobs divide.
The Rivers Where Salmon Grow Largest
Meet the seven North American rivers where salmon grow largest, from the 97-pound Kenai king to record coho, Atlantic, and pink salmon.
How Big The Mississippi Watershed Is Compared To India
The Mississippi River watershed covers nearly 1.2 million square miles, almost exactly the size of India, draining 41% of the US into one giant funnel.
The Fastest Tidal Current In American Waters
Discover the powerful tidal currents of Washington's Deception Pass, where water exceeds eight knots amid dramatic cliffs and coastal scenery.
The Driest Mountain In The United States
White Mountain Peak in eastern California rises to 14,246 feet, yet the Sierra Nevada rain shadow leaves its high slopes with relatively little precipitation.
Why Parts Of The Rio Grande Are Drying Up
Only about 5% of its natural flow remains in parts of West Texas. See what is really draining the Rio Grande, and what it would take to bring it back.
What Happens If Lake Powell Hits Dead Pool Before Lake Mead
Lake Mead is eight feet closer to dead pool than Lake Powell. It barely matters, because Powell’s outflow is Mead’s inflow and only one order takes the system down.
The Most Snake Infested Rivers In Oregon
Oregon's Columbia, Rogue, Deschutes, and Snake rivers support garter snakes, kingsnakes, rubber boas, and western rattlesnakes along their banks and canyons.
Where Alligators And Water Moccasins Overlap
The cottonmouth range effectively contains the alligator range. Where the two meet, who eats whom, and the twelve months when it reverses.
What Lies At The Bottom Of Lake Mead
As Lake Mead sinks toward record lows in Nevada, its exposed floor is giving up a sunken B-29 bomber, a drowned Mormon town, and bodies in barrels.
Why The Columbia River Has No Delta
The Columbia pours more water into the Pacific than any river in the Americas, yet builds no delta at its mouth. Here’s where all that sand actually ends up.
How Fast A Great Lakes Freighter Can Go
Most Great Lakes freighters top out near 18 mph. Here’s how river speed limits, current, and ice decide how fast a laker really moves.
The Largest Spring-Fed Rivers In America
Groundwater feeds America’s largest spring-fed rivers, sustaining clear, cold flow year-round across Oregon, California, the Ozarks, and Florida
How Big The Great Lakes Are Compared To The United Kingdom
The Great Lakes are 0.66 percent larger than the United Kingdom. Lake Superior beats Scotland, Erie beats Wales, and poured over the UK the water reaches Big Ben.
The US Rivers Where Piranhas Have Been Caught
The US Rivers Where Piranhas Have Been Caught include the Mississippi and a North Platte creek, yet these aquarium pets have never formed a wild population.
What Lies At The Bottom Of Lake Powell
Beneath Lake Powell lies drowned Glen Canyon: a sunken gold dredge, the lost town of Hite, and Indigenous sites resurfacing as the water drops.
The American Mountains With The Most Timber Rattlesnakes
Timber rattlesnakes den on five mountains in New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania, including Overlook Mountain in the Catskills and Hawk Mountain.
Why Arizona Loses Its Colorado River Water Before California Does
Arizona is taking a 512,000 acre-foot cut and California is taking none. The reason is a condition Congress attached to the Central Arizona Project in 1968.
The Mountains That Make Their Own Weather
Mountains such as Mount Rainier and Mount Denali reveal how towering peaks create their own clouds, fierce winds, and sudden storms.
The US Reservoirs Holding The Least Water Right Now
After a record-hot spring and a thin snowpack, some of the biggest US reservoirs sit near 5% full. See the 15 emptiest, plus Lake Mead’s new all-time low.
How Much A Great Lakes Freighter Weighs Fully Loaded
A loaded Great Lakes freighter can top 90,000 tons. How ship, ore, fuel, and ballast add up, and why a few inches of water can leave tons of cargo ashore.
8 Snake Infested State Parks In The Great Lakes
The Great Lakes have two rattlesnake species across eight states, and Michigan logs about sixteen bites a year. The eight parks with the most snakes, and why infested is the wrong word.
The Deepest A Fish Has Ever Been Caught In A US Lake
Lake Superior's siscowet lake trout survive at the very bottom of the lake, where researchers are tracking a growing number of emaciated zombie fish.
Which State Uses The Most Water
Which State Uses The Most Water? California leads by a wide margin, while Texas, Idaho, and Florida round out the top four for very different reasons.
The American Mountains With Old-Growth Forest
Old-growth forest takes hundreds of years to grow, yet can be cut down in an instant. Here are the American mountains where you can still find those forests.
The Highest Mountain In America You Can Drive To The Top Of
Colorado's Mount Blue Sky is the highest US mountain you can drive up, via a byway that tops out at 14,130 feet. Here is the road, the rename, and what to see
Where San Diego Would Get Water If The Colorado Failed
If the Colorado River stopped delivering, San Diego wouldn’t go dry overnight. Here’s where the region’s water would come from and how long it could last.
What Happens To Phoenix If Lake Mead Hits Dead Pool
If Lake Mead hits dead pool, Phoenix loses its Colorado River water, but the taps won’t run dry. Why the Salt and Verde rivers and banked groundwater save the city.
The American Mountains With The Most Wolves
Wolves live in Alaska's ranges, the Northern Rockies, Colorado, the Cascades, and the Sierra Nevada, and recent state counts show recovery remains uneven.
The Most Snake Infested Rivers In Texas
Texas rivers where snakes are most at home, from the Brazos and Trinity to the Sabine, Neches and Guadalupe, plus the rare Concho water snake.
How Far Up The Mississippi Alligators Have Been Found
TWRA filmed a seven-foot alligator in West Tennessee and says they arrived on their own. How far up the Mississippi alligators have been found, and where the pets start.
How Many Islands Are In The Great Lakes
The Great Lakes hold about 35,000 islands, most of them in Lake Huron, from Manitoulin, the largest freshwater-lake island, to Isle Royale and the Apostles.
The Rivers Where Muskie Grow Largest
Muskie rivers in New York, West Virginia, and Virginia have produced huge fish, including a verified 51-pound catch from the Little Kanawha River in 2022.