time travel weird facts

28 Fascinating Facts About Time

By kerry wolfe | may 2, 2022.

Did you know that a day on Earth used to be around six hours shorter than it is today? Or that Julius Caesar once implemented a 445-day-long year? Learn those fascinating facts about time and more in this list, adapted from an episode of The List Show on YouTube. 

1. Every person on Earth is living in the past.

This may sound like the plot to some sci-fi, time-travel thriller, but it’s actually a fact of human biology and the trickiness of time. Our brains don’t perceive events until about 80 milliseconds until after they’ve happened. This fine line between the present and the past is part of the reason why some physicists argue that there’s no such thing as “now” and that the present moment is no more than an illusion. 

2. Throughout history, different cultures around the world have experienced time in different ways.

In the Western world, we tend to think of time as linear and flowing from left to right . But this isn’t the case for everyone. Language affects how people conceptualize time, particularly the spatial metaphors they use to describe and map it. 

Those who read languages that flow from right to left, such as Arabic and Hebrew, generally view time as flowing in the same direction. The Aymara , who live in the Andes Mountains in South America, consider the future to be behind them, while the past is ahead. In their view, because the future is unknown, it’s behind you, where you can’t see it. Some Indigenous Australian cultures, which rely heavily on direction terms like north, south, east, and west in their languages, visualize the passage of time as moving from east to west. If they’re facing north, for example, the past would be to their right, or east, whereas the future would be to their left, which would be west.

3. Individual people can experience time differently, too.

You’ve probably noticed how time seems to speed up when you’re racing against a deadline or having fun, and how it tends to drag when you’re bored. This is because when you’re focused on something, like a big work project or a party, your brain pays less attention to how time passes . But when you’re bored, or your brain is less stimulated, you become more aware of the passing of time, making it feel slower. One study proposed that dopamine —the neurotransmitter and hormone that helps us feel happy—may be an additional culprit. It showed that increased dopamine production, which happens when you’re enjoying something , may slow down your body’s internal clock, making time feel like it’s flying by.

4. Science has a number of different ways of defining time.

To cover just a couple : There’s astronomical time, which is measured in relation to how long it takes Earth to rotate on its axis. In astronomical time, a second is 1/60th of a minute . And then there’s atomic time, which dictates the numbers that you’ll see on a clock. According to atomic time, one second equals 9,192,631,770 oscillations of a cesium-133 atom. Measuring the vibration of an atom—which, in simple terms, is the gist of what oscillation is —is the most accurate way to track time.

5. We can thank Albert Einstein for a lot of our current understanding of the physics of time.

Rather than viewing time as a set order, he proved that it’s actually relative. For example, according to Einstein’s theory of special relativity , there’s an inverse relationship between your speed and the speed of time. The faster you move, the slower time moves.

This is why someone blasting through space will age slower than the people still hanging out on Earth: Astronaut Scott Kelly was born several minutes after his twin brother, Mark, but after Scott spent 340 days living on the International Space Station, he returned to Earth around an extra 5 milliseconds younger than his “big” brother. Had Scott been traveling at a speed close to the speed of light, that age difference would have become much more pronounced.

6. Einstein’s theory also states that gravity can warp time.

If you’ve seen the 2014 movie Interstellar , this concept may seem familiar . The closer you are to a massive body—which, in the case of Interstellar , is a giant black hole—the slower time would pass for you. 

7. Gravity’s effect on time isn’t limited to intergalactic travel.

Here on Earth, gravity can vary for a number of reasons, including your altitude, since you’re changing your distance from the center of the Earth. That means if you put a bunch of synchronized atomic clocks at various altitudes , eventually those clocks would fall out of sync. A clock at the top of Mount Everest and one at sea level would, over the entire 4.5 billion year history of the planet, have diverged by about a day and a half.

8. Gravity is also the reason why our days are getting longer.

Over a billion years ago, a day on Earth lasted around 18 hours . Our days are longer now because the moon’s gravity is causing Earth’s spin to slow down. In Earth’s earlier days, the moon wasn’t as far away, which caused Earth to spin much faster than it currently does. 

Longer days also mean shorter years—kind of. The time it takes the Earth to orbit the sun hasn’t changed, but the amount of days within a year has. Back when the dinosaurs ruled 70 million years ago , days were only around 23.5 hours long, and a year was made up of 372 of those slightly shorter days. 

9. There are two ways to think of the length of a day on Earth.

Though you probably learned that one day on Earth is 24 hours, it actually takes the planet 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4.0916 seconds to rotate on its axis. This is the difference between a solar day and a sidereal day—a solar day is 24 hours, whereas a sidereal day is roughly four minutes shorter. We measure solar time based on the sun’s position in the sky; a sidereal day is measured based on the location of the “fixed” stars. In other words, a sidereal day is the time it takes for a distant star or constellation to appear on the same meridian .

10. Because astronomical time and atomic time don’t always line up, every so often, we get a leap second.

Earth’s spin speed can be a bit unpredictable. Atmospheric winds, Northern Hemisphere winters with heavy snow, and other big weather systems can affect how fast the planet rotates. In order to keep the difference between astronomical time and atomic time to less than .9 seconds, the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service will occasionally announce the need for a leap second . 

Most people won’t notice a leap second, but they can be a huge pain for tech companies . Because leap seconds are added irregularly, developers have no way of working them into their codes, which has caused websites like LinkedIn and Reddit to crash in the past. A bug caused by 2012’s leap second created so much chaos on Qantas’s servers, more than 400 flights wound up being delayed.

11. The length of a year on Earth can also get a bit complicated.

The original Roman calendar was a bit of a mess, so much so that in 46 BCE Julius Caesar mandated a 445-day-long year to help bring the calendar back in sync with the seasons.

12. At the same time, Caesar asked the astronomer Sosigenes to help reform the calendar.

Most years were set at 365 days, but to make up for the fact that the earth's revolution around the sun doesn't take exactly 365 days, leap years were implemented . Every four years the month of February was given an extra day to make up for what is a sort of rounding error in the calendar.

13. But Sosigenes made a bit of a miscalculation, so the calendar continued to be a little off.

He thought a year lasted 365.25 days. It’s actually around 365 days, five hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds, equivalent to about 365.242 days. This tiny error had some pretty big consequences: By 1577, the Julian calendar was off by 10 days, meaning key Christian holidays were being celebrated on incorrect dates. 

Pope Gregory XIII took issue with this and established a commission to get the calendar back on track. In 1582, the Gregorian calendar was created. Rather than having an extra day every four years without exception, years that are divisible by 100—like 1700 or 1900—skip leap year. Unless the year is also divisible by 400, like the year 2000, in which case the Leap Year is back on!  Even this system isn’t perfect, though: It has an error of one day in 3236 years.

14. We can thank the railroad industry for standardizing our time zones.

Until the 19th century, towns and villages synchronized their clocks to the local solar noon. This created thousands of local times that all varied and made scheduling transportation a major headache. Train schedules in different cities had to list dozens of arrival and departure times for each train to account for all the mini time zones. On November 18, 1883, railroad companies in the United States and Canada began using a system very similar to the standardized time zones we still use today. In the UK, the railroad companies began using a standard London-based time in 1840.

15. After an engineer named Sandford Fleming missed a train in 1876, he set out to change the way time worked.

Fleming originally proposed a concept he called “Cosmic Time,” in which the world would run off an imaginary clock located at the planet’s center, essentially a line from the center of the planet to the sun. He then suggested splitting the world into 24 time zones labeled with a letter of the alphabet, with each zone spanning 15 degrees of longitude. His original plan to create a standard “Cosmic Time” was rejected, but it did lay the groundwork for a similar standardization, so-called Universal Time . And nations present at the 1884 International Meridian Conference laid the groundwork for dividing the world into 24 time zones, with the Prime Meridian, also known as Longitude 0°, running through Greenwich, England. 

16. Even with the advent of standardized time, people still struggled to keep their clocks in sync.

One London family used this to their advantage, and made a living by selling people the time. An astronomer named John Belville would set his pocket watch to the time at the Royal Observatory Greenwich. He would then travel around the city and visit his network of subscribers, who paid to set their own clocks by Belville’s pocket watch. After Belville died in 1856, his wife, and then later their daughter Ruth, carried on the tradition. Ruth continued to sell the time until World War II. By then she was in her eighties, and a couple of factors led to her timely retirement: Improved technology had made her role less important, and the war was making treks around London too dangerous.

17. Time zones can still be a bit complicated.

Big countries like Canada and the United States have multiple time zones, whereas China, another large country, only has one . China adopted the Beijing Standard Time to foster unity, but the effect can feel a bit uncanny—two cities in the country can be at roughly the same latitude, but experience sunrise hours apart, according to their clocks. In some parts of China, for example, the sun doesn’t rise until nearly 10 a.m. 

18. Though a lot of people believe daylight saving time was adopted to keep farmers happy, that’s a myth.

The first person to seriously advocate for daylight saving time was an entomologist who wanted more sunlit hours to look for insects after work in the summer. He proposed his idea to a scientific society in New Zealand in 1895. 

19. Daylight saving time wasn’t officially implemented until 1916.

Germany became the first country to adopt it in an effort to conserve coal during World War I. The United States didn’t follow suit until 1918 .

20. Daylight saving time ended on a national level after the war, but individual states and municipalities kept it going until World War II.

At the end of World War I, the entire nation went on what was effectively a year-round daylight saving time. After World War II, the entire nation was again picking and choosing daylight saving time. It’s been reported that in Iowa, back in 1964, there were 23 different combinations of dates that communities turned on and off daylight saving time. In 1966, the government officially mandated a standardized daylight saving time for the entire United States, though individual states can opt out.

Until 2007, daylight saving time ended in October. It’s been reported that the candy industry lobbied to wait until after Halloween to change the clocks back an hour. 

21. Daylight saving time does more than make people lose an hour of sleep.

In fact, it can have some pretty concerning health effects. Studies have linked daylight saving time with an uptick in heart attacks, car crashes, and mining injuries. The extra hour of daylight is good for koalas, though: Researchers found that koala-car collisions went down by up to 11 percent during daylight saving time.

22. People have been tracking time for thousands of years.

In 2013, archaeologists found what’s thought to be the world's oldest lunar calendar while excavating a field in Scotland. The calendar, which is made of a series of 12 pits that mimic the moon’s phases, dates back to around 8000 BCE. 

23. Sundials read differently depending on the hemisphere you’re in.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the sun casts a shadow that moves from north, to east, to south, to west. In the Southern Hemisphere, the shadow moves in the opposite direction. Our concept of “ clockwise ” is based on the way sundials in the Northern Hemisphere told time.

24. An innovative clock was built in China in 1090.

A man named Su Song created a water-powered clock tower that measured time and tracked the movements of the planets and stars in the night sky. Su Song built a giant water wheel within the clock tower. Buckets attached to the wheel would fill with water and then tip once full, causing the wheel to rotate, demarcating time.

25. The Maya had multiple calendars to measure time.

The most familiar is the Long Count Calendar. These calendars measured around 5125 years, beginning around August 3114 BCE. The Long Count calendar’s cycle came to an end around December 21, 2012, sparking a craze of Armageddon conspiracy theories.

26. You’ll find the most accurate clock at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colorado.

The clock keeps time by measuring the vibration of a single aluminum ion , and should remain accurate for 33 billion years. The clock sitting on your bedside table isn't quite as precise.

27. New clocks are set at 10:10 for a reason.

If you’ve bought a new clock or watch recently, you may have noticed that the default setting was 10:10, give or take a few minutes. There are various theories behind this particular choice of time, but really, it all comes down to aesthetics. Setting the time to around 10:10 allows the hands of an analog clock to be displayed in a neat, symmetrical way that doesn’t obscure any logos in the center of the clock’s face. Clocks were once set to 8:20, and occasionally still are, but the hands’ downward angles can make it look like the timepieces are frowning.

28. Traveling back in time is possible—theoretically, at least.

According to Einstein’s theory, you could travel back in time by moving faster than the speed of light, as long as you could somehow have infinite mass. Since that probably won’t work, you could create “ wormholes ” between two points in space-time. (This would also be tough, since humanity still hasn’t invented the technology to actually build a wormhole.) Or you could try bending space-time by plucking some “cosmic strings.” Two of these theoretical strings, which are thin streams of pure energy that are moving in opposite directions at very near the speed of light, could theoretically warp space-time enough to create a closed time-like curve—also known as a time machine. 

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Interesting Facts About Time, The Fourth Dimension, And Time Travel

November 29, 2012 James Miller Time Travel 0

Time is perhaps the greatest mystery of all and is deeply wrapped up in our conscious experience of things. Since antiquity, time has naturally attracted the interest of philosophers and scientists determined to understand and explain its true nature. At the heart of the question is whether time is an actual reality of the physical world or simply an artificial construct of the human mind .

The pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Parmenides, for example, saw time as merely an illusion, while his contemporary Heraclitus believed the flow of time to be real and the very essence of reality itself. For Newton time was absolute and moved at a consistent pace everywhere throughout the universe, while with Einstein time became more flexible and relative in scope. Nevertheless, the concept of time continues to be one of nature’s greatest mysteries and no one has been able to fully explain what it is really.

4-Dimensional Space-Time

In the 17th Century, René Descartes (1596-1650) envisioned there to be three dimensions of space, with a totally separate dimension of time that together specify an object’s position in physical space. Simply stated, three dimensions are used to specify an object’s location/movement in space (forward-backward, left-right and up-down), while a fourth dimension locates its position in time. This approach was adopted by Isaac Newton (1643-1727), the founder of classical mechanics, and classical physicists who saw time as an absolute, universal quantity completely independent from space. As such, early scientists used time to delineate a universal system of coordinates through 3-dimensional space.

In 1905, Albert Einstein then published his Special Theory of Relativity which was instrumental in introducing the concept of four-dimensional space-time. According to Einstein, time, space, and motion all act upon each other, and as an object’s speed increases, its time slows down in order to preserve the cosmic speed limit of light. This new concept merged space and time into space-time and helped introduced a new framework for the whole of physics.

We Are 3-Dimensional Creatures

Being three-dimensional creatures (possessing length, width, and height), humans are unable to see the fourth dimension as our physical world is constructed within these three physical dimensions. We might feel or intuit time’s presence, but we can never actually detect it with our three-dimensional senses because it extends beyond our universe. Humans only perceive the fourth dimension of time as memories lodged at variable intervals, the result of which is our apparent perception of time moving forward in a straight line.

Nevertheless, time exists as a dimension and objects cross it in a similar way as they do the others, although three-dimensional humans are only able to move in one direction forward through time. If we could see an object’s fourth-dimensional space-time (or world-line) it would resemble a spaghetti-like line stretching from the past to the future showing the spatial location of the object at every instant in time.

Space and Time are Inseparable

Space And Time are simultaneous phenomena (like mass and energy), and together form the fabric of the universe known as space-time. A demonstration of four-dimensional space-time’s inseparability is the fact that, as astronomers often remind us, we cannot look into space without looking back into time. We see the Moon as it was 1.2 seconds ago and the Sun as it was 8 minutes ago.

Also, in accordance with Einstein’s general theory of relativity, a massive object in space distorts the fabric of both the space and time around it. In other words, gravity is actually the result of mass stretching its surrounding space-time. For example, our Sun’s mass bends the space around it so that the Earth moves in a straight line but also circles within the Sun’s curvature in space. The Sun’s effect on time is to slow it down, so time runs slower for those objects close to the massive stellar object.

Interestingly, gravity also has an infinite range such that no matter how far apart two masses are in space they will always experience some gravitational pull toward each other. Theoretical physicists have tried to explain this phenomenon in terms of gravitons, S-Theory, and M-Theory, but even today a successful quantum theory of gravity has yet to be found.

How Time Changes at Relativistic Speeds

A property of light is that it always travels at the same constant speed in a vacuum of 186,000 miles a second (700 million mph) and you can’t go any faster.  Let us now take a look at the effect special relativity and traveling at high speeds have on the concept of time. According to the mathematical formula:

Speed = Distance ÷ Time

As we now know, the Speed of light (c) is fixed/absolute and represents the inviolable cosmic speed limit. As you travel at relativistic speeds or those speeds in which the relativistic effect becomes significant, then the distance and time values in the equation become flexible and are forced to change relative to one another. What actually happens is that time and distance are ‘relative’ to one another, and as you travel close to the speed of light, distances become shortened while time is lengthened. This is explained in Einstein’s theory of special relativity.

The following table shows the extent time (one hour) slows down relative to what percentage of the speed of light an object is traveling. As you can see, you don’t need to travel at light speed for time dilation to occur, but you won’t notice the effects until you go extremely fast. Bear in mind, also, that the fastest man-made object ever built, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe , has only managed to achieve a top speed of 430,000 mph (692017.92 km/h or 0.06412% of light speed.

• 0 % of  c: 60.00 mins
• 10 % of  c: 59.52 mins
• 20 % of  c: 58.70 mins
• 30 % of  c: 57.20 mins
• 40 % of  c: 55.00 mins
• 50 % of  c: 52.10 mins
• 60 % of  c: 48.10 mins
• 70 % of  c: 42.85 mins
• 80 % of  c: 36.00 mins
• 90 % of  c: 26.18 mins
• 92 % of  c: 23.52 mins
• 95 % of  c: 18.71 mins
• 99 % of  c: 8.53 mins
• 99.9 % of  c: 2.78 mins
• 99.997 % of  c: 1.17 mins
• 100 % of  c: zero mins

Roughly speaking, a person traveling at 99% the speed of light would experience timed slowed by roughly a factor of 7.  If they were to travel to a star 7 light years away at 99% speed of light, it would thus take them 1 year to reach their destination, but to an observer on Earth, it would have seemed like 7 years have passed. However, if that person attained 99.9999% of the speed of light, only 1 year would pass onboard for roughly every 70 years back on Earth. Meanwhile, a speed of 0.9999999 % of c would equate to 2,236 years of time elapsing, a speed of 0.9999999999 of c would see 70,710 years pass on Earth, rising at 0.999999999999999 of c to a staggering 22,369,621 years.

Traveling to the Stars and Time Dilation

As the table above indicates, traveling to the stars at high percentages of the speed of light would allow travelers to cover vast distances but experience very little time. The astronomical distances between the stars subsequently become no obstacle at all to traverse and a trip to another star system would feel near instantaneous. The following examples of the time it would take space crews traveling at near-light-speed to reach various destinations will help illustrate this point:

• Alpha Centauri : The near-light-speed craft traveling to Alpha Centauri , our nearest extrasolar sun located 4.3 light years away, would take just 4.3 thousandths of a second to complete the journey.
• Milky Way : A space crew would experience 3.2 seconds of time while crossing the 300,000 light years distance to the center of our galaxy.
• Andromeda Galaxy : Located 2.2 million light-years away, the journey, as far as the crew are concerned, would last 3.5 minutes.
• Virgo Cluster : Located 40 million light-years away, the crew would experience a one-and-a-half-hour journey.
• Edge of Universe : An estimated 17 billion light years away, the edge of our universe could be reached within 19 days of crew time.

Speed of Light and Immortality

Furthermore, if one day people were actually able to attain light-speed travel, then any journey undertaken at said speed would subsequently result in passengers experiencing no time at all. A photon, which is the basic unit that makes up all light, for instance, experiences no time whatsoever between its emission and its absorption.

In other words, despite a photon crossing billions of light years of space, the proper time it experiences between any two points on its path is zero and is reduced to just one instant. This idea is encapsulated in an observation made by sci-fi author ray Cummings in his 1919 short story The Girl in the Golden Atom, who noted: “ Time . . . is what keeps everything from happening at once”.

Scientists believe photons have zero mass and so cannot decay. Some theories, however, suggest photons might have a minute rest mass and so can eventually decay into lighter elementary particles. According to one study, a photon’s lifetime within its own rest frame amounts to just three years. Nevertheless, photons are still capable of surviving for an estimated billion billion years (10 18 ) because of the time dilatation they experience traveling at the speed of light. Considering the universe is an estimated 13.8 billion years old, it’s fair to say that a photon, for all intents and purposes, lives forever.

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Time travel: Is it possible?

Science says time travel is possible, but probably not in the way you're thinking.

Albert Einstein's theory

• General relativity and GPS
• Wormhole travel
• Alternate theories

Science fiction

Is time travel possible? Short answer: Yes, and you're doing it right now — hurtling into the future at the impressive rate of one second per second. 

You're pretty much always moving through time at the same speed, whether you're watching paint dry or wishing you had more hours to visit with a friend from out of town. 

But this isn't the kind of time travel that's captivated countless science fiction writers, or spurred a genre so extensive that Wikipedia lists over 400 titles in the category "Movies about Time Travel." In franchises like " Doctor Who ," " Star Trek ," and "Back to the Future" characters climb into some wild vehicle to blast into the past or spin into the future. Once the characters have traveled through time, they grapple with what happens if you change the past or present based on information from the future (which is where time travel stories intersect with the idea of parallel universes or alternate timelines). 

Related: The best sci-fi time machines ever

Although many people are fascinated by the idea of changing the past or seeing the future before it's due, no person has ever demonstrated the kind of back-and-forth time travel seen in science fiction or proposed a method of sending a person through significant periods of time that wouldn't destroy them on the way. And, as physicist Stephen Hawking pointed out in his book " Black Holes and Baby Universes" (Bantam, 1994), "The best evidence we have that time travel is not possible, and never will be, is that we have not been invaded by hordes of tourists from the future."

Science does support some amount of time-bending, though. For example, physicist Albert Einstein 's theory of special relativity proposes that time is an illusion that moves relative to an observer. An observer traveling near the speed of light will experience time, with all its aftereffects (boredom, aging, etc.) much more slowly than an observer at rest. That's why astronaut Scott Kelly aged ever so slightly less over the course of a year in orbit than his twin brother who stayed here on Earth. 

Related: Controversially, physicist argues that time is real

There are other scientific theories about time travel, including some weird physics that arise around wormholes , black holes and string theory . For the most part, though, time travel remains the domain of an ever-growing array of science fiction books, movies, television shows, comics, video games and more. 

Einstein developed his theory of special relativity in 1905. Along with his later expansion, the theory of general relativity , it has become one of the foundational tenets of modern physics. Special relativity describes the relationship between space and time for objects moving at constant speeds in a straight line. 

The short version of the theory is deceptively simple. First, all things are measured in relation to something else — that is to say, there is no "absolute" frame of reference. Second, the speed of light is constant. It stays the same no matter what, and no matter where it's measured from. And third, nothing can go faster than the speed of light.

From those simple tenets unfolds actual, real-life time travel. An observer traveling at high velocity will experience time at a slower rate than an observer who isn't speeding through space. 

While we don't accelerate humans to near-light-speed, we do send them swinging around the planet at 17,500 mph (28,160 km/h) aboard the International Space Station . Astronaut Scott Kelly was born after his twin brother, and fellow astronaut, Mark Kelly . Scott Kelly spent 520 days in orbit, while Mark logged 54 days in space. The difference in the speed at which they experienced time over the course of their lifetimes has actually widened the age gap between the two men.

"So, where[as] I used to be just 6 minutes older, now I am 6 minutes and 5 milliseconds older," Mark Kelly said in a panel discussion on July 12, 2020, Space.com previously reported . "Now I've got that over his head."

General relativity and GPS time travel

The difference that low earth orbit makes in an astronaut's life span may be negligible — better suited for jokes among siblings than actual life extension or visiting the distant future — but the dilation in time between people on Earth and GPS satellites flying through space does make a difference. 

Read more: Can we stop time?

The Global Positioning System , or GPS, helps us know exactly where we are by communicating with a network of a few dozen satellites positioned in a high Earth orbit. The satellites circle the planet from 12,500 miles (20,100 kilometers) away, moving at 8,700 mph (14,000 km/h). 

According to special relativity, the faster an object moves relative to another object, the slower that first object experiences time. For GPS satellites with atomic clocks, this effect cuts 7 microseconds, or 7 millionths of a second, off each day, according to the American Physical Society publication Physics Central .  

Read more: Could Star Trek's faster-than-light warp drive actually work?

Then, according to general relativity, clocks closer to the center of a large gravitational mass like Earth tick more slowly than those farther away. So, because the GPS satellites are much farther from the center of Earth compared to clocks on the surface, Physics Central added, that adds another 45 microseconds onto the GPS satellite clocks each day. Combined with the negative 7 microseconds from the special relativity calculation, the net result is an added 38 microseconds. 

This means that in order to maintain the accuracy needed to pinpoint your car or phone — or, since the system is run by the U.S. Department of Defense, a military drone — engineers must account for an extra 38 microseconds in each satellite's day. The atomic clocks onboard don’t tick over to the next day until they have run 38 microseconds longer than comparable clocks on Earth.

Given those numbers, it would take more than seven years for the atomic clock in a GPS satellite to un-sync itself from an Earth clock by more than a blink of an eye. (We did the math: If you estimate a blink to last at least 100,000 microseconds, as the Harvard Database of Useful Biological Numbers does, it would take thousands of days for those 38 microsecond shifts to add up.) 

This kind of time travel may seem as negligible as the Kelly brothers' age gap, but given the hyper-accuracy of modern GPS technology, it actually does matter. If it can communicate with the satellites whizzing overhead, your phone can nail down your location in space and time with incredible accuracy. 

Can wormholes take us back in time?

General relativity might also provide scenarios that could allow travelers to go back in time, according to NASA . But the physical reality of those time-travel methods is no piece of cake. 

Wormholes are theoretical "tunnels" through the fabric of space-time that could connect different moments or locations in reality to others. Also known as Einstein-Rosen bridges or white holes, as opposed to black holes, speculation about wormholes abounds. But despite taking up a lot of space (or space-time) in science fiction, no wormholes of any kind have been identified in real life. 

Related: Best time travel movies

"The whole thing is very hypothetical at this point," Stephen Hsu, a professor of theoretical physics at the University of Oregon, told Space.com sister site Live Science . "No one thinks we're going to find a wormhole anytime soon."

Primordial wormholes are predicted to be just 10^-34 inches (10^-33 centimeters) at the tunnel's "mouth". Previously, they were expected to be too unstable for anything to be able to travel through them. However, a study claims that this is not the case, Live Science reported . 

The theory, which suggests that wormholes could work as viable space-time shortcuts, was described by physicist Pascal Koiran. As part of the study, Koiran used the Eddington-Finkelstein metric, as opposed to the Schwarzschild metric which has been used in the majority of previous analyses.

In the past, the path of a particle could not be traced through a hypothetical wormhole. However, using the Eddington-Finkelstein metric, the physicist was able to achieve just that.

Koiran's paper was described in October 2021, in the preprint database arXiv , before being published in the Journal of Modern Physics D.

Alternate time travel theories

While Einstein's theories appear to make time travel difficult, some researchers have proposed other solutions that could allow jumps back and forth in time. These alternate theories share one major flaw: As far as scientists can tell, there's no way a person could survive the kind of gravitational pulling and pushing that each solution requires.

Infinite cylinder theory

Astronomer Frank Tipler proposed a mechanism (sometimes known as a Tipler Cylinder ) where one could take matter that is 10 times the sun's mass, then roll it into a very long, but very dense cylinder. The Anderson Institute , a time travel research organization, described the cylinder as "a black hole that has passed through a spaghetti factory."

After spinning this black hole spaghetti a few billion revolutions per minute, a spaceship nearby — following a very precise spiral around the cylinder — could travel backward in time on a "closed, time-like curve," according to the Anderson Institute. 

The major problem is that in order for the Tipler Cylinder to become reality, the cylinder would need to be infinitely long or be made of some unknown kind of matter. At least for the foreseeable future, endless interstellar pasta is beyond our reach.

Time donuts

Theoretical physicist Amos Ori at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel, proposed a model for a time machine made out of curved space-time — a donut-shaped vacuum surrounded by a sphere of normal matter.

"The machine is space-time itself," Ori told Live Science . "If we were to create an area with a warp like this in space that would enable time lines to close on themselves, it might enable future generations to return to visit our time."

Amos Ori is a theoretical physicist at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel. His research interests and publications span the fields of general relativity, black holes, gravitational waves and closed time lines.

There are a few caveats to Ori's time machine. First, visitors to the past wouldn't be able to travel to times earlier than the invention and construction of the time donut. Second, and more importantly, the invention and construction of this machine would depend on our ability to manipulate gravitational fields at will — a feat that may be theoretically possible but is certainly beyond our immediate reach.

Time travel has long occupied a significant place in fiction. Since as early as the "Mahabharata," an ancient Sanskrit epic poem compiled around 400 B.C., humans have dreamed of warping time, Lisa Yaszek, a professor of science fiction studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, told Live Science .  

Every work of time-travel fiction creates its own version of space-time, glossing over one or more scientific hurdles and paradoxes to achieve its plot requirements. 

Some make a nod to research and physics, like " Interstellar ," a 2014 film directed by Christopher Nolan. In the movie, a character played by Matthew McConaughey spends a few hours on a planet orbiting a supermassive black hole, but because of time dilation, observers on Earth experience those hours as a matter of decades. 

Others take a more whimsical approach, like the "Doctor Who" television series. The series features the Doctor, an extraterrestrial "Time Lord" who travels in a spaceship resembling a blue British police box. "People assume," the Doctor explained in the show, "that time is a strict progression from cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint, it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff." 

Long-standing franchises like the "Star Trek" movies and television series, as well as comic universes like DC and Marvel Comics, revisit the idea of time travel over and over. 

Related: Marvel movies in order: chronological & release order

Here is an incomplete (and deeply subjective) list of some influential or notable works of time travel fiction:

Books about time travel:

• Rip Van Winkle (Cornelius S. Van Winkle, 1819) by Washington Irving
• A Christmas Carol (Chapman & Hall, 1843) by Charles Dickens
• The Time Machine (William Heinemann, 1895) by H. G. Wells
• A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (Charles L. Webster and Co., 1889) by Mark Twain
• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Pan Books, 1980) by Douglas Adams
• A Tale of Time City (Methuen, 1987) by Diana Wynn Jones
• The Outlander series (Delacorte Press, 1991-present) by Diana Gabaldon
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Bloomsbury/Scholastic, 1999) by J. K. Rowling
• Thief of Time (Doubleday, 2001) by Terry Pratchett
• The Time Traveler's Wife (MacAdam/Cage, 2003) by Audrey Niffenegger
• All You Need is Kill (Shueisha, 2004) by Hiroshi Sakurazaka

Movies about time travel:

• Planet of the Apes (1968)
• Superman (1978)
• Time Bandits (1981)
• The Terminator (1984)
• Back to the Future series (1985, 1989, 1990)
• Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
• Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
• Groundhog Day (1993)
• Galaxy Quest (1999)
• The Butterfly Effect (2004)
• 13 Going on 30 (2004)
• The Lake House (2006)
• Meet the Robinsons (2007)
• Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)
• Midnight in Paris (2011)
• Looper (2012)
• X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
• Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
• Interstellar (2014)
• Doctor Strange (2016)
• A Wrinkle in Time (2018)
• The Last Sharknado: It's About Time (2018)
• Avengers: Endgame (2019)
• Tenet (2020)
• Palm Springs (2020)
• Zach Snyder's Justice League (2021)
• The Tomorrow War (2021)

Television about time travel:

• Doctor Who (1963-present)
• The Twilight Zone (1959-1964) (multiple episodes)
• Star Trek (multiple series, multiple episodes)
• Samurai Jack (2001-2004)
• Lost (2004-2010)
• Phil of the Future (2004-2006)
• Steins;Gate (2011)
• Outlander (2014-2023)
• Loki (2021-present)

Games about time travel:

• Chrono Trigger (1995)
• TimeSplitters (2000-2005)
• Kingdom Hearts (2002-2019)
• Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (2003)
• God of War II (2007)
• Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack In Time (2009)
• Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time (2013)
• Dishonored 2 (2016)
• Titanfall 2 (2016)
• Outer Wilds (2019)

Additional resources

Explore physicist Peter Millington's thoughts about Stephen Hawking's time travel theories at The Conversation . Check out a kid-friendly explanation of real-world time travel from NASA's Space Place . For an overview of time travel in fiction and the collective consciousness, read " Time Travel: A History " (Pantheon, 2016) by James Gleik. 

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

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Ailsa is a staff writer for How It Works magazine, where she writes science, technology, space, history and environment features. Based in the U.K., she graduated from the University of Stirling with a BA (Hons) journalism degree. Previously, Ailsa has written for Cardiff Times magazine, Psychology Now and numerous science bookazines. 

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Is Time Travel Possible?

We all travel in time! We travel one year in time between birthdays, for example. And we are all traveling in time at approximately the same speed: 1 second per second.

We typically experience time at one second per second. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA's space telescopes also give us a way to look back in time. Telescopes help us see stars and galaxies that are very far away . It takes a long time for the light from faraway galaxies to reach us. So, when we look into the sky with a telescope, we are seeing what those stars and galaxies looked like a very long time ago.

However, when we think of the phrase "time travel," we are usually thinking of traveling faster than 1 second per second. That kind of time travel sounds like something you'd only see in movies or science fiction books. Could it be real? Science says yes!

This image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows galaxies that are very far away as they existed a very long time ago. Credit: NASA, ESA and R. Thompson (Univ. Arizona)

How do we know that time travel is possible?

More than 100 years ago, a famous scientist named Albert Einstein came up with an idea about how time works. He called it relativity. This theory says that time and space are linked together. Einstein also said our universe has a speed limit: nothing can travel faster than the speed of light (186,000 miles per second).

Einstein's theory of relativity says that space and time are linked together. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

What does this mean for time travel? Well, according to this theory, the faster you travel, the slower you experience time. Scientists have done some experiments to show that this is true.

For example, there was an experiment that used two clocks set to the exact same time. One clock stayed on Earth, while the other flew in an airplane (going in the same direction Earth rotates).

After the airplane flew around the world, scientists compared the two clocks. The clock on the fast-moving airplane was slightly behind the clock on the ground. So, the clock on the airplane was traveling slightly slower in time than 1 second per second.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Can we use time travel in everyday life?

We can't use a time machine to travel hundreds of years into the past or future. That kind of time travel only happens in books and movies. But the math of time travel does affect the things we use every day.

For example, we use GPS satellites to help us figure out how to get to new places. (Check out our video about how GPS satellites work .) NASA scientists also use a high-accuracy version of GPS to keep track of where satellites are in space. But did you know that GPS relies on time-travel calculations to help you get around town?

GPS satellites orbit around Earth very quickly at about 8,700 miles (14,000 kilometers) per hour. This slows down GPS satellite clocks by a small fraction of a second (similar to the airplane example above).

GPS satellites orbit around Earth at about 8,700 miles (14,000 kilometers) per hour. Credit: GPS.gov

However, the satellites are also orbiting Earth about 12,550 miles (20,200 km) above the surface. This actually speeds up GPS satellite clocks by a slighter larger fraction of a second.

Here's how: Einstein's theory also says that gravity curves space and time, causing the passage of time to slow down. High up where the satellites orbit, Earth's gravity is much weaker. This causes the clocks on GPS satellites to run faster than clocks on the ground.

The combined result is that the clocks on GPS satellites experience time at a rate slightly faster than 1 second per second. Luckily, scientists can use math to correct these differences in time.

If scientists didn't correct the GPS clocks, there would be big problems. GPS satellites wouldn't be able to correctly calculate their position or yours. The errors would add up to a few miles each day, which is a big deal. GPS maps might think your home is nowhere near where it actually is!

In Summary:

Yes, time travel is indeed a real thing. But it's not quite what you've probably seen in the movies. Under certain conditions, it is possible to experience time passing at a different rate than 1 second per second. And there are important reasons why we need to understand this real-world form of time travel.

If you liked this, you may like:

A beginner's guide to time travel

Learn exactly how Einstein's theory of relativity works, and discover how there's nothing in science that says time travel is impossible.

Everyone can travel in time . You do it whether you want to or not, at a steady rate of one second per second. You may think there's no similarity to traveling in one of the three spatial dimensions at, say, one foot per second. But according to Einstein 's theory of relativity , we live in a four-dimensional continuum — space-time — in which space and time are interchangeable.

Einstein found that the faster you move through space, the slower you move through time — you age more slowly, in other words. One of the key ideas in relativity is that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light — about 186,000 miles per second (300,000 kilometers per second), or one light-year per year). But you can get very close to it. If a spaceship were to fly at 99% of the speed of light, you'd see it travel a light-year of distance in just over a year of time. 

That's obvious enough, but now comes the weird part. For astronauts onboard that spaceship, the journey would take a mere seven weeks. It's a consequence of relativity called time dilation , and in effect, it means the astronauts have jumped about 10 months into the future. 

Traveling at high speed isn't the only way to produce time dilation. Einstein showed that gravitational fields produce a similar effect — even the relatively weak field here on the surface of Earth . We don't notice it, because we spend all our lives here, but more than 12,400 miles (20,000 kilometers) higher up gravity is measurably weaker— and time passes more quickly, by about 45 microseconds per day. That's more significant than you might think, because it's the altitude at which GPS satellites orbit Earth, and their clocks need to be precisely synchronized with ground-based ones for the system to work properly. 

The satellites have to compensate for time dilation effects due both to their higher altitude and their faster speed. So whenever you use the GPS feature on your smartphone or your car's satnav, there's a tiny element of time travel involved. You and the satellites are traveling into the future at very slightly different rates.

But for more dramatic effects, we need to look at much stronger gravitational fields, such as those around black holes , which can distort space-time so much that it folds back on itself. The result is a so-called wormhole, a concept that's familiar from sci-fi movies, but actually originates in Einstein's theory of relativity. In effect, a wormhole is a shortcut from one point in space-time to another. You enter one black hole, and emerge from another one somewhere else. Unfortunately, it's not as practical a means of transport as Hollywood makes it look. That's because the black hole's gravity would tear you to pieces as you approached it, but it really is possible in theory. And because we're talking about space-time, not just space, the wormhole's exit could be at an earlier time than its entrance; that means you would end up in the past rather than the future.

Trajectories in space-time that loop back into the past are given the technical name "closed timelike curves." If you search through serious academic journals, you'll find plenty of references to them — far more than you'll find to "time travel." But in effect, that's exactly what closed timelike curves are all about — time travel

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There's another way to produce a closed timelike curve that doesn't involve anything quite so exotic as a black hole or wormhole: You just need a simple rotating cylinder made of super-dense material. This so-called Tipler cylinder is the closest that real-world physics can get to an actual, genuine time machine. But it will likely never be built in the real world, so like a wormhole, it's more of an academic curiosity than a viable engineering design.

Yet as far-fetched as these things are in practical terms, there's no fundamental scientific reason — that we currently know of — that says they are impossible. That's a thought-provoking situation, because as the physicist Michio Kaku is fond of saying, "Everything not forbidden is compulsory" (borrowed from T.H. White's novel, "The Once And Future King"). He doesn't mean time travel has to happen everywhere all the time, but Kaku is suggesting that the universe is so vast it ought to happen somewhere at least occasionally. Maybe some super-advanced civilization in another galaxy knows how to build a working time machine, or perhaps closed timelike curves can even occur naturally under certain rare conditions.

This raises problems of a different kind — not in science or engineering, but in basic logic. If time travel is allowed by the laws of physics, then it's possible to envision a whole range of paradoxical scenarios . Some of these appear so illogical that it's difficult to imagine that they could ever occur. But if they can't, what's stopping them? 

Thoughts like these prompted Stephen Hawking , who was always skeptical about the idea of time travel into the past, to come up with his "chronology protection conjecture" — the notion that some as-yet-unknown law of physics prevents closed timelike curves from happening. But that conjecture is only an educated guess, and until it is supported by hard evidence, we can come to only one conclusion: Time travel is possible.

A party for time travelers 

Hawking was skeptical about the feasibility of time travel into the past, not because he had disproved it, but because he was bothered by the logical paradoxes it created. In his chronology protection conjecture, he surmised that physicists would eventually discover a flaw in the theory of closed timelike curves that made them impossible. 

In 2009, he came up with an amusing way to test this conjecture. Hawking held a champagne party (shown in his Discovery Channel program), but he only advertised it after it had happened. His reasoning was that, if time machines eventually become practical, someone in the future might read about the party and travel back to attend it. But no one did — Hawking sat through the whole evening on his own. This doesn't prove time travel is impossible, but it does suggest that it never becomes a commonplace occurrence here on Earth.

The arrow of time 

One of the distinctive things about time is that it has a direction — from past to future. A cup of hot coffee left at room temperature always cools down; it never heats up. Your cellphone loses battery charge when you use it; it never gains charge. These are examples of entropy , essentially a measure of the amount of "useless" as opposed to "useful" energy. The entropy of a closed system always increases, and it's the key factor determining the arrow of time.

It turns out that entropy is the only thing that makes a distinction between past and future. In other branches of physics, like relativity or quantum theory, time doesn't have a preferred direction. No one knows where time's arrow comes from. It may be that it only applies to large, complex systems, in which case subatomic particles may not experience the arrow of time.

Time travel paradox 

If it's possible to travel back into the past — even theoretically — it raises a number of brain-twisting paradoxes — such as the grandfather paradox — that even scientists and philosophers find extremely perplexing.

Killing Hitler

A time traveler might decide to go back and kill him in his infancy. If they succeeded, future history books wouldn't even mention Hitler — so what motivation would the time traveler have for going back in time and killing him?

Killing your grandfather

Instead of killing a young Hitler, you might, by accident, kill one of your own ancestors when they were very young. But then you would never be born, so you couldn't travel back in time to kill them, so you would be born after all, and so on … 

A closed loop

Suppose the plans for a time machine suddenly appear from thin air on your desk. You spend a few days building it, then use it to send the plans back to your earlier self. But where did those plans originate? Nowhere — they are just looping round and round in time.

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Andrew May holds a Ph.D. in astrophysics from Manchester University, U.K. For 30 years, he worked in the academic, government and private sectors, before becoming a science writer where he has written for Fortean Times, How It Works, All About Space, BBC Science Focus, among others. He has also written a selection of books including Cosmic Impact and Astrobiology: The Search for Life Elsewhere in the Universe, published by Icon Books.

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Time Travel Probably Isn't Possible—Why Do We Wish It Were?

Time travel exerts an irresistible pull on our scientific and storytelling imagination.

Since H.G. Wells imagined that time was a fourth dimension —and Einstein confirmed it—the idea of time travel has captivated us. More than 50 scientific papers are published on time travel each year, and storytellers continually explore it—from Stephen King’s JFK assassination novel 11/22/63 to the steamy Outlander television series to Woody Allen’s comedy Midnight in Paris . What if we could travel back in time, we wonder, and change history? Assassinate Hitler or marry that high school sweetheart who dumped us? What if we could see what the future has in store?

These are some of the ideas that bestselling author James Gleick explores in his thought-provoking new book, Time Travel: A History. Speaking from his home in New York City, he recalls how Stephen Hawking once sent out invitations to a party that had already taken place ; why the Chinese government has branded time travel as “incorrect” and “frivolous” ; and how the idea of time travel is, ultimately, about our desire to defeat death.

Let’s cut right to the chase: What is time?

Oh, no, you didn’t! [ Laughs. ] In A.D. 400, St. Augustine said—and many people have said the same thing since, either quoting him consciously or unconsciously—“What, then, is time? If no one asks me, I know. If I wish to explain it to one that asks, I know not.” I think that is actually not a quip, but quite profound.

The best way to understand time is to recognize that we actually are very sophisticated about it. Over the past century-plus, we’ve learned a great deal. The physicist John Archibald Wheeler said, “Time is nature’s way to keep everything from happening all at once.” If you look it up in a dictionary, you get stuff like, “The general term for the experience of duration.” But that’s just completely punting because what is duration ?

I try to steer away from aphorisms and dictionary definitions, just to say two things. First, that we have a lot of contradictory ways of talking about time. We think of time as something we waste, spend, or save, as if it’s a quantity. We also think of time as a medium we are passing through every day, a river carrying us along. All of these notions are aspects of a complicated subject that has no bumper sticker answer.

When does the idea of time travel first appear in the West? And how did it impact popular culture?

I assumed, as a person who always read sci-fi a lot when I was a kid, that time travel is an obvious idea we’re born knowing and fantasizing about. And that it must always have been part of human culture, that there must be time travel Greek myths and Chinese legends. But there aren’t! Time travel turns out to be a very new idea that essentially starts with H.G. Wells’s 1895 novel, The Time Machine . Before that nobody thought of putting the words time and travel together. The closest you can come before that is people falling asleep, like Rip Van Winkle, or fantasies like Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol .

For Hungry Minds

The beginning of my book is an attempt to answer the question, “Why? Why not before? Why suddenly at the end of the 19 th century was it possible— necessary— for people to dream up this crazy fantasy?” Even though it’s H.G. Wells who does it, people pick up his ball very quickly and run with it. You find it in American science fiction that started appearing in pulp magazines in the 1920s and 1930s, or in the great new modernist literature of Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time , James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf.

All these writers were suddenly making time their explicit subject, twisting time in new ways, inventing new narrative techniques to deal with time, to explore the vagaries of memory or the way our consciousness changes over time.

In 1991, Stephen Hawking wrote a paper called “Chronology Protection Conjecture , ” in which he asked: If time travel is possible, why are we not inundated with tourists from the future? He has a point, doesn’t he?

Yes! He even scheduled a party and sent out an invitation inviting time travelers to come to a party that had taken place in the past. Then he observed that none of them had shown up. [Laughs.] Hawking is one of these physicists who love playing with the idea of time travel. It’s irresistible because it’s so much fun! When he talks about the paradoxes of time travel it’s because he’s reading the same science fiction stories as the rest of us.

The paradoxes started appearing in magazines aimed mostly at young people in the 1920s. Somebody wrote in and said, “Time travel is a weird idea, because what if you go back in time and you kill your grandfather? Then your grandfather never meets your grandmother and you’re never born.” It’s an impossible loop.

Hawking, like other physicists, decided, “Time is my business. What if we take this seriously? Can we express this in physical terms?” I don’t think he succeeded but what he proposed was that the reason these paradoxes can’t happen is because the universe takes care of itself. It can’t happen because it didn’t happen. That’s the simple way of saying what the chronology protection conjecture is.

How have the Internet and other new technologies changed our perception and experience of time?

We are just beginning to see what the Internet is doing to our perception of time. We are living more and more in this networked world in which everything travels at light speed. We are multitasking and experiencing new forms of simultaneity, so the Internet appears to us as a kind of hall of mirrors. It feels as though we’re embedded in an ever expanding present.

Our sense of the past changes because in some ways the past becomes more vivid than ever. We’re looking at the past on our video screens and it’s just as vivid if the movie is about something that happened 20 years ago, as if it is a live stream. We can’t always tell the difference. On the other hand, the past that’s more distant—and isn’t available in video form—starts to seem more remote and fuzzier. Maybe we are forgetting how to visualize the past from reading histories. We’re entering a new period of time confusion, in which we suddenly find ourselves in what looks like an unending present.

In 2011, the Chinese government issued an extraordinary denunciation of the idea of time travel. What was their beef?

They thought it was corrupting and decadent. It’s a reminder that time travel is neither a simple nor innocent idea. It’s very powerful. It enables us to imagine alternative universes, and this is another line that science fiction writers have explored. What if someone was able to go back in time and kill Hitler?

Time travel is also a powerful way of allowing us to imagine what the future might bring. A lot of futurists nowadays tend to be dystopian. Time travel gives us ways of exploring how the worst tendencies of our current societies could grow even worse. That’s what George Orwell did in 1984 . I imagine the Chinese government doesn’t particularly want the equivalent of 1984 to be published in Beijing. [ Laughs. ]

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More than 50 scientific papers a year are now published on the idea of time travel. why are scientists drawn to the subject.

Scientists live in the same science fictional universe as all the rest of us. Time travel is a sexy and romantic idea that appeals to the physicist as much as it appeals to every teenager. I don’t think scientists are ever going to solve the problem of time travel for us but they still love to talk about wormholes and dark matter.

There’s a fascinating coincidence in the early history that when H.G. Wells needed to set the stage for his time machine hurtling into the future, he decided not to just jump right into his story but set the scene with a framing device—his time traveler lecturing a group of friends on the science of time—in order to justify the possibility of a time machine. His lecture introduces the idea that time is nothing more than a fourth dimension, that traveling through time is analogous to traveling through space. Since we have machines that can take us into any of the three special dimensions, including balloons and elevators, why shouldn’t we have a machine able to travel through the fourth dimension?

A decade later, Einstein burst onto the scene with his theory of relativity in which time is a fourth dimension , just like space. Soon after that, Hermann Minkowski pronounced that, henceforth, we were not going to talk about space and time as separate quantities but as a union of the two, spacetime , a four-dimensional continuum in which the future already exists and the past still exists.

I’m not claiming that Einstein read H.G. Wells 10 years before. But there was something in the air that both scientists and imaginative writers were empowered to visualize time in a new way. Today, that’s the way we visualize it. We’re comfortable talking about time as a fourth dimension.

You quote Ursula K. Le Guin , who writes, “Story is our only boat for sailing on the river of time.” Talk about storytelling and its relationship to time.

One of the things that has happened, along with our heightened awareness of time and its possibilities, is that people who invent narratives have learned very clever new techniques. Literal time travel is only one of them. You don’t actually need to send your hero into the future or into the past to write a story that plays with time in clever new ways. Narrative is also how everybody, not just writers, constructs a vision of our own relationship with time. We imagine the future. We remember the past. When we do that, we’re making up stories.

Psychologists are learning something that great storytellers have known for some time, which is that memory is not like computer retrieval. It’s an active process. Every time we remember something we are remembering it a little bit differently. We’re retelling the story to ourselves.

If time travel is impossible, why do we continue to be so fascinated with the idea?

One of the reasons is we want to go back and undo our mistakes. When you ask yourself, “If I had a time machine, what would I do?” sometimes the answer is, “I would go back to this particular day and do that thing over.” I think one of the great time travel movies is Groundhog Day , the Bill Murray movie where he wakes up every morning and has to live the same day over and over again. He gradually realizes that perhaps fate is telling him he needs to do it over, right. Regret is the time traveler’s energy bar. But that’s not the only motivation for time travel. We also have curiosity about the future and interest in our parents and our children. A lot of time travel fiction is a way of asking questions about what our parents were like, or what our children will be like.

At some point during the four years I worked on this book, I also realized that, in one way or another, every time travel story is about death. Death is either explicitly there in the foreground or lurking in the background because time is a bastard, right? Time is brutal. What does time do to us? It kills us. Time travel is our way of flirting with immortality. It’s the closest we’re going to come to it.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Simon Worrall curates Book Talk . Follow him on Twitter or at simonworrallauthor.com .

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Time Travel Facts

Physics of time travel.

Table of Contents

Time travel nears with new trillion-dollar ‘dual-use’ government technology. Visionary new closed timeline curves theory offers a peek into our past.

The idea of going back in time first captivated the popular imagination when H.G. Wells published his book , ‘The Time Machine’ in 1895. But today, this is no longer Star Trek pseudo-science but credible theorization incorporating standard laws of physics. That’s according to Texan, Joseph E. Olson in his article, ‘ Time Travel Tremor ,’ featured in Canada Free Press (June 7, 2010).

How is Time Travel Possible?

Joe insists time travel is infinitely more possible as theorists number-crunch two loose ends from the equations handed down to us by Albert Einstein and Godel’s solution to the ‘Field Equations’ in 1949. It seems even Einstein, himself, admitted the time travel door may be wide open to us yet.

Olson explains, “To the general public the take-home message is this: all that is necessary to complete the Einstein Theory of curved time-space is the charge and the rotation of the cosmological dust.”

The former Houston engineer explains that the two unknowns from that fateful 1949 equation were the spin of the cosmic dust and the net charge of the universal background radiation.

Olson enthuses, “To solve these equations we needed some empirical data. We needed un-disturbed cosmic dust, best collected on the moon, and advanced space-based telescopes to measure the rotation speed and the galactic radio wave radiation.”

The real-world data has painstakingly been put together at great expense as a result of the trillion-dollar space programs of rival Cold War superpowers, the United States and the former Soviet Union. Additional tweaking may now be ongoing here on Earth at the $6 billion Hadron Space Collider in Switzerland.

Top Scientists Seriously Study Time Travel

A long-time outspoken critic of the man-made theory of climate change , this insightful Texan is not shy of controversy. In pitching in with an incredible new angle to humanity’s big dream Olson expects to be labeled by some a ‘conspiracy nut.’ No less an icon of mainstream science, Stephen Hawking, a modern-day Sir Isaac Newton, has waded in to affirm that time travel is feasible in his documentary series on the ‘Discovery Channel.’

British science guru, Hawking admits he kept quiet until now for fear of “being labeled a crank.” Olson has no such fears and the Texan is blasting out on this with both barrels suggesting the public ridicule and the secrecy of successive U.S. governments simply adds fuel to his fire.

Indeed, with trillions of taxpayer dollars accumulated in related research projects with no apparent return on the investment, public speculation readily links projects such as the Hadron particle Collider with the once fanciful musings of H.G. Wells.

Dual Use Technologies

To channel vast amounts of government resources into what would otherwise be a giant cosmological white elephant, Olson identifies the need for policymakers to often couch their time travel research within the context of military defense; what he calls the incorporation of additional ‘dual use’ technologies.

An example of ‘dual use’ technical innovation was the Apollo Moon mission landings, which were seen not just as international kudos for the U.S., but a giant leap towards winning the superpowers’ arms race with the former Soviet Union. Thus the Hadron particle collider may be cloaked in another plausible cover while this hunt for the Holy Grail of science becomes ever more tantalizing.

Olson says, after decades of relentless acquisition of data, we are now about there. The great ‘Theory equation’ could finally be calculated and new technologies developed and refined to implement this new closed timeline curves theory with an actual machine that may cross the time-space curve into our history.

Russian Mathematicians Affirm Time Travel Possible

Olson expects those protective of government secrets will be quick to call him a crank but he’s not concerned. He has plenty of well-credentialed big-hitters supporting his ideas. For example, as reported in the UK’s ‘Independent’ newspaper (February 8, 2008) two Russian mathematicians, Irina Aref’eva and Igor Volovich, have spoken out in support of such a new theory.

The Russians envision the Large Hadron Collider at Cern as the most likely testbed for mankind’s first peek into the past. They suggested 2008 was the most credible “year zero” for time travel because they calculate it was the ideal location for plausible tiny “wormholes” in space that could allow some form of time travel.

Where future developments will lead we can only guess, because as Olson says, whoever seeks to exploit this technology will be guarding it very jealously and will be loathe to want to share it.

References:

• Connor, S., ‘The Big Question: Is time travel possible, and is there any chance that it will ever take place?’ Science Editor, The Independent ( February 8, 2008)
• Godel, K., An example of a new type of cosmological solutions of Einstein’s field equations of gravitation, (1949); Oxford University Press.
• Olson, J., ‘Time Travel Tremor,’ Canada Free Press (June 7, 2010)
• Overbye, D., ‘Large Hadron Collider,’ New York Times , (June 8, 2010)
• Matyszczyk, C. ‘Hawking: Time Travel Will Happen,’ (May 2, 2010); Cnet News

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Exploring the Reality of Time Travel: Science Fact vs. Science Fiction

By Adi Foord, University of Maryland, Baltimore County November 16, 2023

Time travel, a longstanding fascination in science fiction, remains a complex and unresolved concept in science. The second law of thermodynamics suggests time can only move forward, while Einstein’s theory of relativity shows time’s relativity to speed. Theoretical ideas like wormholes offer potential methods, but practical challenges and paradoxes, such as the “grandfather paradox,” complicate the feasibility of actual time travel.

Will it ever be possible for time travel to occur?

Have you ever dreamed of traveling through time, like characters do in science fiction movies? For centuries, the concept of time travel has captivated people’s imaginations. Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time, just like you move between different places. In movies, you might have seen characters using special machines, magical devices or even hopping into a futuristic car to travel backward or forward in time.

But is this just a fun idea for movies, or could it really happen?

The Science Behind Time Travel

The question of whether time is reversible remains one of the biggest unresolved questions in science. If the universe follows the laws of thermodynamics , it may not be possible. The second law of thermodynamics states that things in the universe can either remain the same or become more disordered over time.

It’s a bit like saying you can’t unscramble eggs once they’ve been cooked. According to this law, the universe can never go back exactly to how it was before. Time can only go forward, like a one-way street.

Time Is Relative

However, physicist Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity suggests that time passes at different rates for different people. Someone speeding along on a spaceship moving close to the speed of light – 671 million miles per hour! – will experience time slower than a person on Earth.

People have yet to build spaceships that can move at speeds anywhere near as fast as light, but astronauts who visit the International Space Station orbit around the Earth at speeds close to 17,500 mph. Astronaut Scott Kelly has spent 520 days at the International Space Station, and as a result has aged a little more slowly than his twin brother – and fellow astronaut – Mark Kelly. Scott used to be 6 minutes younger than his twin brother. Now, because Scott was traveling so much faster than Mark and for so many days, he is 6 minutes and 5 milliseconds younger .

Theoretical Possibilities and Challenges

Some scientists are exploring other ideas that could theoretically allow time travel. One concept involves wormholes, or hypothetical tunnels in space that could create shortcuts for journeys across the universe. If someone could build a wormhole and then figure out a way to move one end at close to the speed of light – like the hypothetical spaceship mentioned above – the moving end would age more slowly than the stationary end. Someone who entered the moving end and exited the wormhole through the stationary end would come out in their past.

However, wormholes remain theoretical: Scientists have yet to spot one. It also looks like it would be incredibly challenging to send humans through a wormhole space tunnel.

Paradoxes and Failed Dinner Parties

There are also paradoxes associated with time travel. The famous “ grandfather paradox ” is a hypothetical problem that could arise if someone traveled back in time and accidentally prevented their grandparents from meeting. This would create a paradox where you were never born, which raises the question: How could you have traveled back in time in the first place? It’s a mind-boggling puzzle that adds to the mystery of time travel.

Famously, physicist Stephen Hawking tested the possibility of time travel by throwing a dinner party where invitations noting the date, time, and coordinates were not sent out until after it had happened. His hope was that his invitation would be read by someone living in the future, who had capabilities to travel back in time. But no one showed up.

As he pointed out : “The best evidence we have that time travel is not possible, and never will be, is that we have not been invaded by hordes of tourists from the future.”

Artist’s rendering of the James Webb Space Telescope. Credit: Northrop Grumman

Telescopes Are Time Machines

Interestingly, astrophysicists armed with powerful telescopes possess a unique form of time travel . As they peer into the vast expanse of the cosmos, they gaze into the past universe. Light from all galaxies and stars takes time to travel, and these beams of light carry information from the distant past. When astrophysicists observe a star or a galaxy through a telescope, they are not seeing it as it is in the present, but as it existed when the light began its journey to Earth millions to billions of years ago.

NASA’s newest space telescope , the James Webb Space Telescope , is peering at galaxies that were formed at the very beginning of the Big Bang , about 13.7 billion years ago.

While we aren’t likely to have time machines like the ones in movies anytime soon, scientists are actively researching and exploring new ideas. But for now, we’ll have to enjoy the idea of time travel in our favorite books, movies, and dreams.

Written by Adi Foord, Assistant Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

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8 comments on "exploring the reality of time travel: science fact vs. science fiction".

Until the problem of the second law of thermodynamics(entropy) is solved, the concept of time travel will remain the subject of science fiction. Since this is a basic law of our universe, there is no conceivable way that we know of to do this. The great thing about our knowledge of the universe is that it continues to grow and with that our view of what is possible continues to change. After all, at one time it was believed we could never leave earth!

The 7 planets are soul pollen in the space @ life has been the world has been prepared @ The pollen of the universe is hidden @ Around the axis of the galaxy, the universe is hidden@@ The pollen of the galaxies is a hidden cluster Itis made that we thought about what wisdom is in God’s work and how it is arranged in the form of words.The verse that is made is as follows @@ John, you are in time @ worlds, planets around the axis of the branches of galaxies @@ 8 Prophets, divine prophets, God-aware witnesses @ God’s words of revelation, they are aware @@ 48 What the words of revelation that every prophet has about @ sometimes Sometimes the message of God has become a verbal cliché in the head @@ 62 The message of God was given to every prophet @ The message was made around the power of God @@ 46 The truth of the religions of the cradle of time is said in the world @ Prophets always came for justice in time @@ 62 A warrior became brave in time @ Delaver Ghahrmani Boud Taarani@@ 43 Omar Noah never died, who knows!@ Imransan Is there an unseen world, immortality!?@@ 49 Men’s rights in the sign @ Human rights, the observance of world justice @@ 40 We have God’s love @ A love that is not patched, separation!!!: @@ 39 Take one word from the end of the first and second stanzas to the bottom of these eight verbal verses, and this sentence is made @@ God-aware, the world is born, you know the sign of God @ Agah,the beginning of time, the world, eternity, the world of separation @@ The meaning of this sentence is That God, who before us humans lived on the earth, formed the earth’s crusts with full knowledge, and we humans know the sign of God, which is on the earth, on the continents and countries, and some names have been shown by God for our knowledge since the end of time.In a later video, if I have a lifetime left, I will explain exactly about these poems, God willing @@ The word of the Prophet 17 is the 17th and Muhammad (PBUH) said that the Bedouin Arabs should pray 17 rakats so that theyperform ablution and be clean and not kill and loot.From the caravans, these were all God’s will, and he is good everywhere, in every nation, God does not like evildoers, sinners, and oppressors.Muhammad (PBUH) was God’s last messenger to the Arab people, he was God’s best prophet, and the third verse is because they do not accept Muhammad (PBUH).Some Iranians who were in contact with me, that’s why in the third verse of this surah, he said that his message was given to every prophet, the message is based on divine power, and the word truth, the first two letters of which istruth, is truth, and truth is the 43rd and forty-third word, and the word is time.It is exactly 46, and this song of the Prophets was revealed at the age of 46 ببخشید اگر قبلآ مطالبی فرستادم که به مذاهب مذاهم ارتباط داد شاید به درد شما نمیخورد من در کامنت های بعدی سعی میکنم از نجوم و حیات زمین سخن بگویم این چند بیت را به خارجی انگلیسی که تبدیل کردم معنی آن حیرت انگیز تعغیر کرد گفتم برای شما بفرستم و بداند که این کلام من نبوده کلام خداوند بوده شما نظرتان در مورد خداوند چیست من میگویم خداوند که پدر ومادر انسان بودند قادر به ساختن ما بودند اما آیا آنها قادر به ساختن ستاره ها هم بودند

Your comment has validity to God. But it surely has no place here, it is only fare if the hole comment were in english and has less of a convincing push in a belief a person either believes or not.

It’s too bad physics can’t come to a complete consensus about time, I would like to add some thought about discoveries it has been proven that time travels in only one direction forward, the experiment dealt with light thru glass and how it reacts in the middle and what change happens after light exits the other side, a simple explanation of this experiment. Brings me to theorize and start that time existed before the big bang and is outside of our universes influence, when time is acted on by gravity the ( Form ) of time is changed until the influence no longer has effect, this could go hand in hand with light photons the photon has a influence in the Form that time has. This can not be a observed difference unless we were to see beyond the speed of light. We do agree that physics changes at a subatomic state and also does some strange changing once the speed of light has been exceeded.

The experiment I referred to was posted on IFL in October 2023 headlined ( Solution to complex light problem shows that time can only go Forward ).

One of the problem with travel time is the one people keep forever. And, that is that the earth is always move through space. Matter of fact, the earth is not in the same place that it was 50 years ago. So you will have to move through space as well as time.

Ironically, the only science fiction that seems to handle this is the original story “The Time Machine”.

Time travel is happening now. It has been done since the 1950s. The method satisfies all the requirements. Traveler can’t change the past, but only observe. You can’t go farther back than when the machine was first invented (1950s). There’s one more limitation, you can only observe what the machine was directed. The time machine, the common video camera, and video tape recorder. Now it’s the camera, and file capture computer. Yes, viewing a video tape is effectively going back in time. It’s more than the video, it’s the sound too. There are working versions of smell, and touch which can be recorded too. If you record, and replicate all the senses, you have effectively complete time travel. The most primitive form is the picture. This technology has been around for thousands of years, and is manually intensive. Later many pictures were strung together to make a film. Using a camera to record film was the first example of complete visual time travel (back to when the film was made). Later sound was added, and we have the movies. A way of going back in time that included sight, and sound. Now we have video systems (YouTub) that can play back past events selected by you. Yes, video systems are virtual time travel machines we have now.

How Stellar Cannibalism Illuminates Cosmic Evolution

جزایر فیلیپین دایناسوری که توسط انسان خلق شده در بیش ده ها میلیون سال و بخاطر ریخته شدن دوهزار متر خاک غرق شده بخاطر بالا آمدن آب اقیانوس اما جزایر فیلیپین شبیه دایناسوریست

The address of the above comment on the site about a thief who was trained by a dinosaur bird who was trained by humans tens of millions of years ago and who arrested murderers and robbers.The police were arrested by big birds.don’t the scientists of the world think about this?They were buried in the bed of important cities, they were buried with all the tools and machines, the traces of humans tens of millions of years ago, they had a civilization and a history of hundreds of thousands of years, they built a base underthe earth, from the meteorites that explode from the planets when they hit the sun, and they knew that several thousand meters of soil is poured on the surface of the seas and islands, and they knew that the shapes they made of the islands in thecountry of Papua may go under the ocean, of course, the Philippine islands.The picture is of a baby dinosaur that went under the ocean, but the northern island of Australia, which is Papua, is quite clear.It is a big dinosaur whose tail is towards the east and its mouth is open towards the west.There is the Philippines, but it was more difficult to take the soil to the Philippine islands to create a dinosaur than the island of Papua, that is why the height of the soil in the Philippines is lower, and when the meteorites fell a few kilometerson the surface of the ocean, the image created by humans under the ocean in the shape of a dinosaur is hidden in the American continent The picture is of a bird in the shape of a dinosaur that is flying, and this bird was made to flyby the Indians of the tribe, that bird was talking to people, but its spirit might have heard something from the police because a thief while in the bird’s mouth He was handcuffed by the police and the weapon, which is a machine gun, is fromthe east of the American continent on the coast

The country of Florida is a machine gun.When you continue to New York City, you will reach the mouth of the dinosaur, where a thief is trapped in the mouth of a bird, and the little finger of the police handcuffed the thief’s hand, and a small colt is in the hand ofthe thief, who the police caught in the mouth of the dinosaur.put in the mouth of the bird dinosaur, you can clearly see that the thief fell on the ground and was shot in the head, and it is clear that his forehead was pierced, the bird’s mouth is open in flight, the head of the birdis from the east of the American continent, and a fish is placed in the bird’s mouth in the water of the ocean.The stretched glove of the police, which is in the form of a fist, with a handcuff attached to the left hand of the thief who fell on the ground in the sea and the mouth of the bird, the head of the thief and the killer, is located towards the southwest and west coast of America.All these images were created from the American continent and islands by Humans were created, but they didn’t have enough fuel and time to create more accurate images and meteorites ruined the beauty of the images, but it is clear that all these changes were createdby humans, but you have to consider that two thousand meters of soil from meteorites are fish.And they buried the whales under the beaches, and after a very long time, the bodies of the whales turned into oil under the two thousand meters of soil on the beaches, and on the other hand, the presence of two thousand meters of soil onthe surface of the seas and droughts could not make the created images disappear.

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Time Travel: From Ancient Mythology to Modern Science

• Read Later  

Time travel and time machines have been a topic of science fiction and countless movies for many decades. In fact, it appears that the possibility to travel in time, either into the future or into the past, has appealed to the imagination of mankind for centuries. While many may think it is absurd to believe that we could travel backwards or forwards in time, some of the world’s most brilliant scientists have investigated whether it could one day be made a reality.

Research into Time Travel

Albert Einstein for example, concluded in his later years that the past, present, and future all exist simultaneously, and most are familiar with his well-known concept of relativity. That is, that time is relative and not absolute as Newton claimed. With the proper technology, such as a very fast spaceship, one person is able to experience several days while another person simultaneously experiences only a few hours or minutes. Yet the wisdom of Einstein's convictions had very little impact on cosmology or science in general.

• Passing Through the Gates of Time: The Mind, Time Travel, and St Augustine
• Chronicles from the Future: A True Story Kept Hidden by the Masons now Revealed

The majority of physicists have been slow to give up the ordinary assumptions we make about time. However, if time travel really was possible, one can hardly contemplate what this may mean for humanity. Whoever had the power to move through time, would have the power to modify history. While this may sound attractive, it would be impossible to know the consequences of any alteration of past events, and how this would affect the future.

Illustration from the Menologion of Basil II of the Seven Sleepers, a medieval legend about a group of youths who hid in a cave to escape persecution and emerged over 300 years later. ( Public domain )

Time Travel in Ancient Mythology

If we look at ancient texts, we can find a number of references to time travel. In Hindu mythology, there is the story of King Raivata Kakudmi who travels to meet the creator Brahma . Even if this trip didn’t last long, when Kakudmi returned back to Earth, 108 yugas had passed on Earth, and it is thought that each yuga represents about 4 million years. The explanation Brahma gave to Kakudmi is that time runs differently in different planes of existence.

Similarly, we have references in the Quran about the cave of Al-Kahf. The story refers to a group of young Christian people, who in 250 AD tried to escape persecution and retreated, under God’s guidance, to a cave where God put them to sleep. They woke up 309 years later. This story coincides with the Christian story of the  seven sleepers , with a few differences.

Another story comes from the Japanese legend of Urashima Taro, an individual who was said to visit the underwater palace of the Dragon God Ryujin. He stayed there for three days, but when he returned to the surface, 300 years had passed. In the Buddhist text , Pali Canon, it is written that in the heaven of the thirty Devas (the place of the Gods), time passes at a different pace where one hundred Earth years count as a single day for them. There are many more references to time travel to be found within ancient mythology.

Urashima Taro returning from the Dragon King's Palace, only to find that 300 years had passed. ( Public domain )

Scientific Research into Time Travel

Probably the most well-known story of accidental time travel is the Philadelphia experiment which allegedly took place in 1943 with the purpose of cloaking a ship and making it invisible to enemy radar . However, it was said that the experiment went terribly wrong – the ship not only vanished completely from Philadelphia but it was teleported to Norfolk and went back in time for 10 seconds.

When the ship appeared again some crew members were physically fused to bulkheads, others developed mental disorders , a few disappeared completely, and some reported travelling into the future and back. Allegedly, Nikola Tesla, who was the director of Engineering and Research at Radio Company of America at the time, was involved in the experiment by making all the necessary calculations and drawings and also providing the generators.

Have you heard about the Chronovisor? Supposedly invented in the 60's, it was a machine that could catch electromagnetic information remaining in the æther and visualize it, so you could literally watch history. pic.twitter.com/D24QsvxYEU — N'Golo 69%… (@NgoloTesla) June 22, 2020

In 1960, we have another interesting case report of scientist Pellegrino Ernetti, who claimed that he developed the Chronivisor, a machine that would enable someone to see in the past. His theory was that anything that happens leaves an energy mark that can never be destroyed (something like the mystical Akashic Records). Ernetti allegedly developed this machine that could detect, magnify and convert this energy into an image – something like a TV showing what happened in the past.

Scientists have long been curious as to the possibility of time travel. ( drawlab19 / Adobe Stock)

Controversial Experiments Related to Time Travel

In the 1980s, there are reports of another controversial time travel experiment, the  Montauk project , which again allegedly experimented with time travel among other things. Whether the Philadelphia and Montauk experiments actually took place is still under debate. However, it is common sense to assume that the military would definitely be interested in the possibility of time travel and would engage in extensive research on the subject.

In 2004, Marlin Pohlman, a scientist, engineer, and member of Mensa with a Bachelor, MBA and PhD, applied for a patent for a method of gravity distortion and time displacement. In 2013 Wasfi Alshdaifat filed another patent for a space compression and time dilation machine that could be used for time travel.

• Iranian Scientist Builds Machine That Can Predict the Future
• Chronovisor: The Time Machine That Captured The Crucifixion of Jesus

According to PHYS.ORG , the physicist Professor Ronald Lawrence Mallett of the University of Connecticut was working in 2006 on the concept of time travel , based on Einstein’s theory of relativity. At the time, Mallett was absolutely convinced that time travelling was possible. He predicted that human time travel will be possible in our century. Particle physicist  Brian Cox , quoted in a 2013 article published in HuffPost , agreed that time travel is possible but only in one direction.

We also have the mysterious story of Ali Razeqi, managing director of the Iranian Centre for Strategic Inventions, who The Daily Mail reported had claimed to have developed a device that could see anywhere from 3 to 5 years in the future . His initial story disappeared from the internet a few hours after it was published.

In theory, time travel is possible, even if it is difficult to comprehend. Has the research cited above brought us closer towards making time travel a reality? If so, we can only hope that the technology does not get into the wrong hands.

Top image: Is time travel possible? Source: rolffimages / Adobe Stock

By John Black

Arnold, L. 23 July 2013. “The Time Machine Chronicles: Where Nuts and Pencil-necks Collide” in Mysterious Universe.

Ozaki, Y. T. No date. “The Story of Urashima Taro, The Fisher Lad” in Japanese Fairy Tales . Available at: https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/72/japanese-fairy-tales/4881/the-story-of-urashima-taro-the-fisher-lad/

Zyga, L. 4 April 2006. “Professor predicts human time travel this century” in PHYS.ORG . Available at: https://phys.org/news/2006-04-professor-human-century.html

In fact the more I think of it you don't need clunky machines. That would speak to the paradox theory. I often go back to sorcery as means of technology. Think of time travel or time more like a spell that you have to break in order to travel.

Deonte N. Ferino

The concept of time is like a cipher or puzzle. All the terminology reads like some sort of anagram. For instance all of its integrals add up to 666 60 secs 60 mins 24hr. Also the terms allude to bondage. Ti me, C Lock & "Watch" wouldn't be surprised if the inventors of the terms were adepts in the concept of time travel. There's lots more...have fun.

RATHER THAN DEBATING SENSELESSLY FOR DECADES ON THE SAME ISSUE OF WHETHER ALIENS EXIST OR NOT? WHY NOT SIMPLY QUESTION YOURSELF WHO YOU ARE IN SPACE? THE SIMPLE ANSWER TO THE MOST COMPLEX AND COMPLICATED QUESTION IS---- YOU ARE AN ALIEN....WE ARE ALL ALIENS TO SOMEONE WHO CALL THEMSELVES AS HUMAN....JUS LIKE WE DO

'Aliens' are really time travellers from the very distant future. They can't return to the past physically, in flesh and blood, but they can do so as sort of holographs, travelling fasted than the speed of light. The people of the very distant future may have actually dispensed with their flesh and blood bodies by that time, or they may have simply evolved into skinny people with huge heads and eyes. Either way, they cannot intefere with the past. It's physically impossible for them. Two things are for certain - there are aliens, but no aliens have a human form - which as that of an ape, after all.

What about the theory that states a paradox cannot exist? If you could go back in time and kill yourself or your parents then you never existed to be able to go back in time.

Dr John (Ioannis) Syrigos initially began writing on Ancient Origins under the pen name John Black. He is both a co-owner and co-founder of Ancient Origins.

John is a computer & electrical engineer with a PhD in Artificial Intelligence, a... Read More

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Facts and Figures

When we talk about time travel facts and figures, we talk about theories that great minds have shared with us over the last decades. Experiments and theories have been put into practice revealing all sorts of interesting data.

In physics, for example, we have had different opinions about the possibility of time travel and whether or not it is (or could be) possible.

Newton and Einstein

Isaac Newton (1643-1726) believed that time is absolute, a straight line at a constant speed.  This is what the English great physician and all the world believed until 1905.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) had a different opinion, however. He believed that time was relative. He proved that the faster we travel through space, the slower we travel through time.

Another theory of time travel was moving through the rings of the massive black holes would enable us to travel in different times and space. Black holes are known as wormholes through space.

So easy yet so simple. So why are we not able to do it?

Stephen Hawking said that “Time travel is possible but is not practical” His opinion is that these journeys are not practical due to the vast amount of energy required to do it.

But is there another solution?

After all these theories, we still don’t know for sure if time travel is possible or not. Different discoveries proved that is not impossible, however.

Some good examples are the time travelers that have been seen in some old photos in Charley Chaplin movies. For example in his 1928 “The Circus” a woman is seen walking around in the background with what clearly appears to be a mobile phone.

Experiments

  The very intelligent inventor Tesla was far ahead of his time and came up with the idea that time and space could be influenced by using highly charged magnetic fields.

His discoveries lead years later to the Philadelphia Experimen t and the Montauk time travel Project.

Tesla documented that time and space could be interfered with. In his experiment with an electromagnetic charge, he claimed that he could see the immediate past, present and future.

Another time travel experiment is the Project Pegasus as challenged by Andrew Basiago back in 2004. He claims that back in the late 1960s to early 1970s he had participated in various experiments which sent him through space and time. All this took place when he was just 7 years old.

The Philadelphia Experiment

  The well-known Philadelphia Experiment that inspired a great movie named after it was actually two experiments.

The first experiment took place in 1943 and with the use of electromagnetic fields made the USS Eldridge, a navy destroyer, disappear or become invisible.

The second experiment, later in the same year, had the purpose of teleportation involving the small-scale time travel of the USS Eldridge. The ship was sent a few seconds into the past.

These are a few of the experiments humans have been involved in while attempting to travel in time, especially for military purposes.

Of course, I can go on and list many other events. All I wanted to do here though was a touch on a handful of facts and figures and for you to know that I will be covering each experiment and theory in a lot more detail as I expand this website.

I hope you enjoyed this information and I look forward to you passing by again for more of the information that is coming.

Of course, if you have any questions or you would like to add something I would love to hear from you.

SO .. do you believe time travel is possible?

==>For More Facts Figures and Theories – Click Here<==

Just leave a comment below and I will get back to you

Continue your Time Travel Experience Below. Click Your Choice

21 Comments

Hello Cristina, wow nice blog you have here. Very interesting. It really took my attention completely.

Time travel I believe is possible as there are some photos that contains some evidence of time travel, like the woman who is talking to a mobile phone when mobile phone was not yet existent.

Lately, the government of the USA approved the theory of Einstein that space can be bent which proves his theory of relativity which will serve as another back up that teleportation and time travel is possible.

hello there 🙂 if you will read my next post you will that it is really possible :))) thank you 🙂 and i hope you will enjoy the next articles.

Cristina, I am a fan of science fiction and find your site fantastic. I will follow you so keep up the good work. My belief is that there are many more habitable and inhabited worlds out there. Time travel, “worm holes”, “black holes”,and our knowledge of them may even happen in my lifetime. How else will we be able to travel light years away. My grandfather, born in the late 1800’s told me we would never go to the moon.

:)really? Did He tell you this?I think same, I think we will be able to see this happening:)thank you for your comment:)

Hey Christina,

Great post, i find it very interesting! Hmmm although I don’t think it’s ever possible to travel back in time.. BUT if I could i would like too, I mean who doesn’t? I have made so many mistakes in the past, and if i could went back in time and change all of that, how great can that be! Haha maybe if one day someone found out a way to travel in time, you can write a post about it and tell the world? 🙂

for sure i will 🙂 hahaha :))) But for you to know … you are not alowed to fix your mistakes. You will make a paradox 🙂

This is a great site Cristina! I believe that time travel, like anything else we put our efforts into, will one day be possible, if it isn’t already. It would help if we refrain from ruining the world we have to live in now. Ideas require brains, which need oxygen! Further, I feel that we will find the answers to our wild, big questions once we unlock the mysteries of what we call the mundane. Regarding the comment before me though, I have heard before the admonition against creating a paradox. This is a very interesting thing. Just my opinion, please don’t hate me, but what use would there be in time travel if no actions were performed. For that matter, I’m not sure we would have a choice, unless the time travel was merely a visual experience, a sort of hallucination. Why? You go to any country in this world, and you will need to eat. You eating in the past or future would create a paradox, not to mention you being there. That’s just the simple stuff. I could go on and on. I just don’t see that time travel can happen without paradox arising. Would that really be so bad? I dunno! Sometimes I think there is room for paradox within “reality”. Perhaps paradox is the building block of all reality, and our focal points determine what that reality means to us. Anyway, I love it! Thanks Cristina.

I think you are right but scientists don t think the same 🙂 OK in my opinion it is just to see how were the things to learn from our mistakes or to find pout truth but if you make a paradox, maybe you don t exist anymore in the present . Did you think about this?

Wow Christina

Very nice post, I’m not sure if we can make time travel possible, but for sure I would love to go back few years and change few things that I did in the past, I believe that everyone will love to do the same.

I will be following your next posts 🙂 Thank you Christina

Thank you for the reading:)))

The concept of time is really interesting. In essence, when we look back at the moon we are looking back into time. It’s amazing really. Movies like Interstellar do a good job of explaining the science behind it. Especially now that gravity has been proven to exert influence over our environment in a number of ways, from the way we think, to our body shape. Great post!

🙂 thanks 🙂 of course ,the gravity is playing a major role 🙂 .thanks for reading and I am sure all the sf movies are inspired from reallity

I would really have to see this with my own eyes to believe it to be possible. I don’t know, for me it just doesn’t seem possible…time travel. I mean what happens to our body, the cellular system, and all that? Maybe I am just skeptical. You did a really great job on your post with a lot of good and solid information. Gives us something to think about for sure. Thank you!

welcome and i really try my best to bring as much as possible information 🙂 thanks for reading

This was a very interesting article to read. It kept my attention the whole time. Project Pegasus seems really interesting and if you have wrote about that please give me a link to it. The Philadelphia Experiment is another one that seems super interesting and if you’ve wrote about that id also love a link to it.

Hi Christina, Time travel is a fascinating subject however why do most concentrate on travelling into the future rather than back in time.

I wish I could go back and start all over again. I’ve have one heck of a ride to where I am now like most people I suppose yet if I could change it all I certainly would.

Here’s a thing: If it were possible on going back in time, would it be possible to change anything or are we all destined to lead ourselves up our own independent path? Mind boggling!

When you think about it we are looking back in time every time we look at the stars for example due to the speed of light.

I’ll be visiting you site again, it gets you thinking. Thanks, Simon.

Thanks for reading and..yes me too i prefer the past. I would love to time travel in the 80s:) Actually is more possible to travel in the future 🙂 As you say, looking to light of the stars you travel many years in the past. Those stars can be already dead:)

if we lead our own path? I recommend you to see the series Genius with Stephen Hawkins and will answer you to this question 🙂 Actually we take our path , we make our choices but from a limited number of alternatives. Every time you make a choice you create a new time line . This explain the existence of multiple universes.

Thanks again for reading and I am here if you have any other question 🙂

I’ve been watching tons of videos about time travel resently, I’m glad I came across this site!

I am glad that you found it interesting and I am sure you can read many things about time travel that you will enjoy:) If there is something you want to know more about let me know:) have a nice day:) Cristina

Time travel is and interesting subject. It can be both simple and easy at the same time. I enjoyed how you compared Newton and Einstein philosophies. For example, Newton believed time was absolute were Einstein believed timed was relative.

My question to you would be do you think time travel would be possible with all our advances in technology?

Hello there, i don’t know if in a scientific way or through natural portals but i think has been done in the past many times and is possible. But this is only my opinion. Maybe i am wrong ,who knows.As you say time travel can be both simple and complicated. can be very complicated, through cosmic strings, black holes and very simple, just a natural energy portal on our earth.  

Do what do you think, in your opinion can be possible or not? Who was right, Einstein or Newton?

Have a good day and than you for visiting my site. stay close for updates.

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6 Mind-blowing facts about time travel

Time Travel has been one of the most fascinating topics since HG Wells published his book ‘The Time Machine.’

The concept existed even before that but it was during that time the topic went into a heated debate related to the possibility of it.

Let’s have a look at some of the time travel facts:

1. Time Is The Fourth Dimension

Simply stated, the first three dimensions are used to specify an object’s location/movement in space (forward-backwards, left-right and up-down), while the fourth dimension locates its position in time.

All four dimensions are used to specify completely the location or dynamism of an object in space. Collectively the four dimensions are inseparably interlinked and known as space-time.

2. A Time Traveller to the Past Cannot Change History

According to people who claim to have taken retrocognitive time trips, you may see people and buildings from past times. You may be aware that the weather has suddenly changed.

You may see many things that no longer exist in the present. But you will not be able to touch or pick up any objects you see. And the people you see in the past will not speak or even see you. They exist in their time, you exist in yours–and the two never seem to interact.

This is quite a different picture from the one presented in the movie  Back to the Future  and its sequels. Not only does Marty interact with everyone he meets in the past, but he also interferes with history to the extent that his brother and sister become “erased” from the future.

In real-time travel, no such possibility exists.

3. Retrocognitive Time Travel Is Difficult to Prove

Unfortunately, the biggest problem with retrocognitive time travel is that people can’t prove that they actually traveled to the past.

For example, Mr. Dawson had only his own testimony to prove that he had seen a store from his childhood.

After all, he hadn’t walked into the store and picked up a few items to bring back to the present as proof that the trip took place.

4. Three Dimensional Creatures

Being three-dimensional creatures (possessing length, width, and height), humans are unable to see the fourth dimension as our physical world is constructed within these three physical dimensions.

We might feel or intuit time’s presence, but we can never actually detect it with our three-dimensional senses because it extends beyond our universe.

Humans only perceive the fourth dimension time as memories lodged at variable intervals, the result of which is our apparent perception of time moving forward in a straight line.

However, time still exists as a dimension, and objects can cross it in a similar way as they do the others, although three-dimensional like humans can only move in one direction forward through time.

If we could see an object’s fourth-dimensional space-time (or world-line) it may resemble a spaghetti-like line stretching from the past to the future showing the spatial location of the object at every instant in time.

5. Time And The Speed Of Light

A property of light is that it always travels at the same constant speed in a vacuum of 186,000 miles a second (700 million mph) and you can’t go any faster.

The reason for this is that mass increases with speed all the way to infinity and so an infinite amount of energy would then be needed to travel beyond the speed of light.

6.   Time Travel to the Future Is Called Precognition

Travel to the future is called  precognition,  or “knowledge of future events before they happen.” You can travel to the future to gain a glimpse of what will happen to you, usually, or to someone you know.

You won’t find yourself beaming aboard the Starship  Enterprise,  though, or even the space shuttle  Endeavor .

Neither will you find yourself in some future city trying to find or avoid a “terminator.”

Also, Check 7 More Interesting facts about time travel

Sangam Adhikari

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Universe is everything!

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Time Travel

If you ask anyone about time travel, you will get fascinating answers, as it’s a fascinating subject. Time travel back into the past or forward into the future is the stuff of science fiction and always has been. There are many TV show’s and movies dedicated to time travel, as it’s so interesting to try and understand the possibilities. One great movie to check out is called ‘back to the future’

So time travel naturally all starts with time. We know that time exists as we created it, as we know that things have been happening since well, the dawn of time!! Ever since the universe was created by the big bang , time has been happening, and everything that has come before us up to this very present day is because of time. So we travel in time every day, and that means that time travel is real and is something that exists when you look at it like that, as we are always travelling in time.

The big question is? Can we travel back through time to events that have already happened, or can we travel forward through time to events that have not happened yet? That has always been the great wonder. The answer is, we do not know, and there has been no evidence ever to prove travelling back or forward in time.

One of the greatest and most famous physicists Stephen Hawking who is a master on the subject believes that it’s almost impossible to travel back in time. It makes sense when you think about it. It’s in the past and it has already happened. How could you go back? So we can park time travel back in time. It’s likely to never happen.

Time travel into the future though. That’s different! That just may be possible. And here’s why.

Hawking’s theory is that if we discover how to travel really fast, up to even half the speed of light in a specially made train around the world for a period of time, of about 100 years into the future, or about a week in real time for the passengers on board, the passengers after a week of really fast travel would end up 100 years into the future from when the train first took off. It’s possible in theory and It would be fascinating one day to see, however this is also only a theory.

It is a good theory though when you think about it as time on board the train would slow down so much even though the train is going so fast. It may just happen one day when technology allows us to move so fast in time.

Q&A Corner

Q. What is time travel?

Q. Who is Stephen Hawking? 

Q. Is it possible In theory to travel back in time? 

Q. Is it possible in theory to travel forward in forward?

Q. Name the famous movie in the article that is all about time travel?

Download questions about time travel here: time travel  (answers are on this page)

For further reading and more information on time travel visit www.easyscienceforkids.com/time travel

Train ride to the future

5 thoughts on “Time Travel”

One day in the future I will oneday try to make this possible!

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24 Unusual Travel Facts You May Not Know

Did you know that Finland has nearly 180,000 islands ? That Indonesia has 127 active volcanoes? Or that Normandy’s beaches still have broken down shrapnel from World War II? With so many countries in the world, there come a host of interesting travel facts.

Whether you want to learn more about your next travel destination  or impress people at your next dinner party, here are 24 interesting travel facts that are sure to entertain you:

Natural Wonders

1. Canada has the most lakes in the world. With over 3 million lakes, 9% of the country is actually fresh water.

2. Haiti has been so badly deforested that there are practically no trees left. You can see that most clearly when you compare it with the neighbouring country, the Dominican Republic.

3. Suriname is almost entirely covered in jungles (over 91% of its land), and most people live along the coast.

4. 99% of Libya is covered in desert, making it one of the most arid places in the world.

5. At Thingvellir in Iceland, you can see two tectonic plates (the North American and Eurasian) meeting above the surface of the earth. You can even go diving between them.

6. The unspoilt forests of Siberia in Russia account for almost 25% of the world’s forests and are responsible for producing most of the world’s oxygen.

Amazing Animals

7. The island of Okunoshima in Japan is inhabited entirely by bunnies .

8. The Falkland Islands in the UK have 350 sheep for every person. Only about 3,000 people live here, and, naturally, wool is their major export.

9. Exumas Island in the Bahamas is home to swimming pigs .

10. The Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg is famously home to numerous cats . They even have a press secretary dedicated to them.

11. Almost 3% of the ice in Antarctica is made up of penguin urine.

12. Japan has “ turtle tunnels ” running under railway tracks to save them from being run over by trains.

Human Creations

13. India is the most diverse country in the world in almost every way – culturally, economically, geographically, racially, linguistically, ethnically, and religiously.

14. Zalipie is a village in Poland where all the buildings are decorated with painted flowers.

15. The people of Papa New Guinea speak over 820 languages, the most in any nation. Together they comprise 12% of the total world languages.

16. Ethiopia follows a traditional calendar based on the Coptic Orthodox Church that is seven years behind the rest of the world. This is because they never changed the proposed year of Jesus’ birth with the rest of the Christian world.

17. The small town of Caldari di Ortona in Italy has a free wine fountain that offers locally made wine and is open to anyone.

18. Vatican City’s famous Swiss Guard wear uniforms inspired by renaissance paintings by Michelangelo, Raphael, and Jacopo Coppi.

Peculiar Countries

19. Monaco is smaller than New You City’s Central Park, covering just 0.8 square miles. It is also the smallest permanently inhabited nation in the world.

20. With an average height of 1.8m above sea level, the Maldives is the lowest nation on earth.

21. Singapore is the largest country in the world without any farms or agriculture-based economy.

22. About ⅓ of the world’s airports are located in the USA, and at any given time there are over 61,000 people up in the air.

23. France covers 12 time zones, more than any other country. The United States comes second with 11, and Russia third with 9.

24. Conversely, the whole of China operates on Beijing time despite covering 5 whole time zones.

Are there any other travel facts you know of? If so, be sure to share them in the comments below.

Amazing article !!! I really love to travel . And i am really fond of reading meaningful article regarding travel. thank you so much for sharing this ..

Great, so informative

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Unveiling the wonders of culture and tradition!

Are you ready to embark on a journey filled with adventure, culture, tradition, and exciting attractions? Let your explorer's spirit soar and make unforgettable memories as you explore the beauty of our diverse world.

25 surprising travel facts that’ll make you see the world in a whole new light

Apr 2, 2020 • 8 min read

Travel: we sort of know all about it, right? Wrong. Scratch beneath the surface and it turns out we know nothing of this world. Do you know how long the world’s shortest commercial flight lasts, for example? (clue: shorter than the time it takes to boil an egg.) How about which country has no rivers? Or what unconventional pizza topping is popular in Sweden ?

With international travel currently off the table, why not use this time to swat up on surprising travel trivia, offering a few precious minutes of sweet relief from the constant news cycle and providing some fun facts to fill awkward pauses during video calls with friends and family; trust us, nothing plugs a silence better than a stat about how many steps from the nearest trash bin you are in Disneyland at all times.

Without further ado, here’s 25 travel facts that are certain to shock and surprise.

Trains, planes and automobiles...

1. The world’s longest commercial flight took around 30 hours.

The so-called ‘Double Sunrise’ service by Qantas, which ran from Australia to Sri Lanka from 1943-45, often lasted over 30 hours, with passengers seeing the sunrise twice. Today the longest commercial flight is the Singapore Airlines Singapore to New York route, with an average journey time of 17 hours and 50 minutes.

2. The shortest commercial flight takes less than two minutes.

Incredibly, the shortest commercial flight, operating between the neighbouring islands of Westray and Papa Westray in Scotland ’s Orkney islands , takes around one and a half minutes. With the fastest recorded flight taking less than 50 seconds.

3. Japanese railways hand out ‘certificates’ for delays of more than five minutes.

Japanese trains, reputedly the most punctual in the world, issue passengers with a ‘delay certificate’ if a train is running more than five minutes behind schedule. The documents can be shown to bosses or teachers to explain a passenger’s lateness. Delay certificates are also issued on some trains in Germany and in Paris .

4. The most expensive airport to city taxi ride costs around £190.

Any budget traveller worth their salt attempts to avoid airport taxis at all costs, but anyone keeping an eye on their finances should certainly avoid jumping in a cab from Tokyo ’s Narita Airport. According to a study by Moneycorp (a currency exchange company), the ride is the most expensive airport-to-city transfer in the world, costing an average of £191/$235 one way.

5. India’s trains transport roughly 23 million passengers each day.

That’s the entire population of Australia . Additionally, if laid out in a single line, the tracks from India’s railway network could circle the world one and a half times.

Things you didn’t know about countries…

6. Saudi Arabia has no rivers.

The country in the Arabian peninsula has no permanent rivers. It is one of the 17 countries in the world without a single river flowing through it.

7. In Ethiopia the current year is 2013.

Ethiopia maintains its own calendar, which, due to a difference in the perceived date of the Annunciation (the proclamation of the birth of Christ), is seven to eight years behind the Gregorian calendar (which is used as standard across most of the world). In Ethiopia the new year also begins on either August 29 or August 30.

8. It is the same time at both ends of China.

Despite spanning five geographical time zones, China only has one set time, which is observed throughout the country. China Standard Time is UTC+8.

9. The UK has the world’s longest country name.

The UK ’s official title of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland makes it the longest recognised country name in the world.

10. Alaska is both the westernmost and easternmost state in the USA.

Alaska ’s Aleutian Islands are actually located west of the 180th Meridian (the line that divides the eastern and western hemisphere), making it the only US state to be partly located in the eastern hemisphere.

Foodie facts...

11. The most ordered meal on Deliveroo, a leading takeout app, in 2019 was a Hawaiian dish of raw fish. 

Of all the restaurants served by the app, which operates in over 200 cities around the world, the most ordered meal was the Poké Signature Super Protéiné – a Hawaiian dish with raw fish as the core ingredient – from restaurant Pokawa in the city of Paris . Less exotic, a humble cheeseburger from the London branch of chain restaurant Five Guys was the second most ordered dish on the app.

12. Russia only classified beer as an alcoholic drink in 2011

Remarkably before then any drink with less than 10% alcohol was considered a ‘foodstuff’.

13. Pilots and co-pilots do not eat the same meal before a flight.

As part of standard convention, pilots and co-pilots do not eat the same food before a flight in case of food poisoning (or worse). If one of the pilots is incapacitated (unable to leave the bathroom) then the other pilot can take over.

14. Banana is a popular pizza topping in Sweden.

Often paired with curry powder believe it or not.

15. Instant noodles topped a Japanese poll of the country’s greatest inventions of the 20th century.

In the poll, conducted in the year 2000 by Fuji Research Institute, respondents placed instant noodles at the top of the list, followed by karaoke in second place. Incidentally karaoke translates from Japanese into English as ‘empty orchestra’.

Lesser-known aspects of famous landmarks...

16. Despite what people say, the Great Wall of China is not visible from space.

Even from low Earth orbit the structure requires magnification to be seen by the human eye.

17. The Eiffel Tower was initially greatly disliked by the Parisian art community upon opening.

The iconic tower was labelled as ‘monstrous’ and ‘ridiculous’ after it was unveiled to the world. It’s even claimed that contemporary writer Guy de Maupassant disliked the structure so much that he ate lunch in the tower every day because it was the only place in Paris where the landmark was not visible. 

18. The scenic Great Ocean Road, that sweeps along the coast of Victoria, Australia, is actually a war memorial.

Built by soldiers and dedicated to those who lost their lives in WWI, the road serves as the largest war memorial in the world.

19. Sudan has more ancient pyramids than Egypt.

Sources vary, but Sudan is claimed to be home to around 250 pyramid structures, that were built by the rulers of the ancient Kushite kingdoms between 2500BC to 300AD. Egypt is thought to have just over 100 pyramids. 

20. The minarets of the Taj Mahal lean outwards slightly.

This was done deliberately to ensure that if the structure collapsed the minarets would fall away from the central tomb, and not destroy it. It’s also true that a team of 20,000 artisans and craftsmen built the iconic structure, but the popular story about them all being amputated by Shah Jahan, the ruler who commissioned it, upon completion (so they’d never build anything as beautiful), is most likely a myth.

Everything else...

21. There are currently 320,000 people learning ‘Klingon’ (the fictional language featured in television show Star Trek ) on language app Duolingo.

English is the most popular language on the app, with 34 million people undertaking lessons since the beginning of 2020. 

22. On the island of Yap, a state of Micronesia, rocks are used as currency.

Each rock’s worth is based on its size and its history (where it came from). Though US dollars have now started to be used for everyday purchases on the island, rocks are still used for ceremonial transactions (during weddings, for example). Yap also uses turmeric, shells and cloth as official currency.

23. If it was as densely populated as New York City, the entire world's population could fit into the US state of Texas.

We wouldn’t have all that much room, but, with the rest of the planet uninhabited, there’d be plenty of places to go to escape the crowds.

24. You’re never more than 30 steps away from a trash can in Disneyland.

The story goes that Walt Disney used to observe visitors in the park and see how many steps they took before littering, as a result a litter bin is never more than 30 steps away in any Disney park. Another of Walt’s lesser-known Disneyland additions was the creation of a secret bar hidden inside the – then otherwise 'dry' – park, which he used to entertain personal guests and sponsors. The speakeasy-style venue, located behind a large door in the New Orleans Square section of the park, now runs as a private members club with an annual membership fee of $10,000. 

25. You don't need to wait an hour after eating before you can swim safely.

Despite what your mother always told you, there is no medical data that suggests you can’t swim on a full stomach. It can, however, feel uncomfortable, and potentially lead to a feeling of nausea, so it’s best to take a short pause after polishing off your sandwich before you go crashing into the surf.

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Time Travel Bee

20 Weird Facts About Iceland That Will Amaze You! 33

Weird facts about Iceland:

1. the only country with no mosquitoes.

Mosquitoes can breed in a variety of environments such as hot and humid climates as well as cold climatic conditions. They are even known to breed in Antarctica, which is the coldest place on earth, but not in Iceland. Why? Iceland is cold and windy, has tough oceanic climate and that keeps mosquitoes at bay. Moreover, there is a theory that chemical composition of the country’s water and soil is unbearable for mosquitoes. Well, if you are tired of constant buzzzing sound around, you may consider moving to Iceland. Anyone interested?

2. There are no surnames or family names in Iceland

Icelanders use the traditional Nordic naming system, which includes a last name that is comprised from their father’s (or mother’s) first name with the addition of -dóttir (-daughter) or -son. Besides, the Icelandic language remains unchanged from ancient Norse. That means 1,000-year-old texts are still easily read.

3. 60% of the Icelandic population lives in Reykjavík

Reykjavik is the northernmost city of any sovereign state in the world. The biggest city in Iceland you can easily walk interesting spots in the center in half an hour. Reykjavik means Smoky Bay and was the first permanent settlement in Iceland in 874. The city has many heated sidewalks due to geothermal energy flowing from the volcanoes. Pipes with hot water that run underneath, help to melt the snow and ice away. This becomes very helpful during long winter months.

4. Iceland is perfect for hitch-hiking and solo female travelers

Solo female travelers may be looking for destinations, which are safe and hitch-hikers friendly. Iceland should be surely on their bucket list! Iceland is quite expensive country to travel in so why not traveling for free? Hitch-hiking there is easy as long as you have any cars on the road. Mind that Iceland is not highly populated country, traveling around Golden Circle is easy, although going into small, countryside road can make you stuck forever. Camp sites in Iceland are pretty much near every touristic attraction and it’s much cheaper option than guest houses. Besides, traveling there I quickly realized how easy it is to get a ride and that everyone speaks English! Communication makes traveling so much easier! Iceland is one of the safest countries in the world, there is almost no crime. Woman traveling or even hitch-hiking alone shouldn’t be worried.

5. Icelandic people believe in elves and trolls

Trolls, however, live up in the mountains. When you get lost and fog surrounds you suddenly, you may hear voice of singing woman (if you are a boy) or cry of a baby (if you are a girl). Both means that troll is getting a trap for you. I was asking many people if they believe in elves and trolls and most were saying that in reality no, BUT in fact, they were raised with all those fairly tales and legends from Vikings and somewhere deep inside they believe in them. Especially when they are alone just them, and the nature.

One woman told me, that she knows that they don’t really exist BUT when she drives a car and there is no other human or car, when she sees a big stone she feels better thinking that Elf is there. Another said, that she doesn’t believe BUT when we went to hike, up in the mountains, above the clouds she got so scared about the troll, so we had to return. I happened to be on the Elves festival, where many tales were read and all children and adults were listening with interest. That was a weird and spectacular festival.

6. Beer remained illegal in Iceland until 1989

7. Iceland has the most clean water in the world

You can drink pretty much from every tap or stream. Surprisingly, cold water is more rare than hot, because of the volcanoes sleeping under the ground. What’s more, Iceland’s soil is not spoiled by industry, there is no air pollution and in general climate is one of the purest you can get in our planet.

8. It’s a myth that Iceland doesn’t have trees

I was told that Vikings cut them all for boats, timber and firewood and because of the hard climate circumstances it is not easy for new trees to grow. Currently Iceland has many campaigns to encourage people to plant trees, government makes  new parks with species, which can survive cold and grow fast. Moreover, development in the agriculture shows, that thanks to increasing number of green houses and resistant genres of vegetables brought from Siberia, in the following years country will be getting more and more independent and gradually decline need for import.

9. Babies in Iceland are routinely left outside to nap

It is not uncommon to see a pram outside a coffee shop, parents grabbing a cup while the baby sleeps in freezing temperature. Or to see one outside of a home as many Icelandic babies nap outside at least once a day, no matter the season. If you are walking around downtown Reykjavik, don’t be alarmed when you see baby strollers with a sleeping baby outside a cafe. It is completely normal to leave a baby sleeping outside, and the moms are never far either watching over their sleeping child from the window or with a baby monitor. Some fresh air is good for us!

10. The world’s highest renewable energy

How can someone don’t love this country! OK it is cold, f*cking cold, but staying at home with the heater on for the whole year, because it is free and natural, pure water, which also healed my skin from allergy.

11. There is no Mc Donald’s!

McDonald’s closed in Iceland due to the collapse of the Icelandic krona in 2009. Citing prohibitive costs of importing foreign food products as required by the company, Jon Gardar Ogmundsson, who owned one of three McDonald’s restaurants in the country, said he was forced to shut his doors. By the way, very interesting fact is that one hostel decided to keep last fries and burger sold by McDonald’s in Reykjavik.

The idea was to keep it as an exhibition and throw away when it gets rotten. The problem is, that the food doesn’t get rotten… It was kept in the hostel, which had even set up a live stream – of the burger under glass – to allow fans to watch it rots and decay. After some time, they decided to give it to the museum as a part of permanent exhibition, since food seem to be eternal.  Know what shit you eat huh…

12. Consumption of Coca–Cola per capita is higher than in any other country

In contrast, not having McDonald’s doesn’t mean that Icelanders leading healthy lifestyle. They consume enormous amounts of Coke! It was quite a surprise for me. I thought nation which has one of the most pure nature in the world must also eat healthy. I was totally wrong…

13. Iceland doesn’t have standing army

Navy or air force doesn’t exist! Iceland doesn’t even have American army base! What’s more, the Icelandic police don’t carry guns. Crime in Iceland is very low and violent is practically nonexistent.

14. Rotten shark or raw puffin heart for dinner?

Traditional food is made using the only preservation methods available when people had to store up for the winter in the days before refrigerators. Delicacies there include some quite indelicate cuts of meat, including boiled sheep’s head (on the bone or pressed), ram’s testicles pickled in whey, and loin bags. Raw puffin heart (Icelandic bird) is considered a delicacy as well.  Hákarl, or rotten shark, is a national dish of Iceland. Moreover,  Icelandic people love eating ice cream even though temperatures are well below zero. Among dairy products, a big favorite with visitors is skyr (curds), especially served with fresh bilberries in late summer.

Would you eat his heart?

15. Hot dogs are Iceland’s most popular food

You can get hot dog pretty much everywhere,  including gas stations, roadside stops, and restaurants. In Rejkjavik I was recommended to try “the best hot dog” in the world! As you can see, Iceland is very good in being “the best” in something… Hot dog bar was a simple booth, very small in size, serving ordinary hot dogs. Not bad though, however I didn’t find something particular in the taste. I hope nobody from Iceland wants to kill me now for admitting that…

Supposedly, the best hot dog in the world

16. Country is struggling in a war with a flower

17. Penis museum

Penis Museum in Rejkavik contains a collection of penises from over 200 different mammals, including one from a man. From the weird facts about Iceland this one is just the cherry on the top. Visitors to the museum will encounter fifty six specimens belonging to seventeen different kinds of whale, one specimen taken from a rogue polar bear, thirty-six specimens belonging to seven different kinds of seal and walrus, and one hundred and fifteen specimens originating from twenty different kinds of land mammal: all in all, a total of two hundred and nine specimens belonging to forty six different kinds of mammal, including specimens from Homo Sapiens.

18. The youngest country in the world

Iceland only began to rise from the North Atlantic seabed about 25 million years ago, the product of volcanic eruptions that are still going on today. It is still taking shape before peoples eyes: the newest land is Surtsey, an island which rose from the sea during an underwater eruption off the south coast in 1963.

19. One of the most seismic danger on the earth

Unfortunately, is based on very dangerous contact of tectonic plates. On the other hand, it’s activity of the volcanoes makes this place so unique. Seeing steaming hot river or smoky holes in the ground, exploding gazers, makes you realize what an enormous power is sleeping under your feet, and can wake up any moment. Eruption of the volcano can be predicted in 100% just half an hour before. But not only this time is left for evacuation. From the moment of the explosion, all ash and rocks exploding high up can take even 1h to start falling to the ground, because it is thrown in the air so strong and so high.

Eruption of the famous volcano few years ego, Eyjafjallajökull which stopped most of the European airports, didn’t make any visible effect in Iceland. Because all the ashes were so tiny and light it didn’t fall down back to Iceland but went with the Western wind straight to Europe mainland. Nowadays citizens are worry about Hekla volcano, which has its eruption every 9383 years and didn’t have since 3939 years. Volcano is very strong and eruption can happen at any time.

20. Home for artists

Iceland, just over 300,000 people has more writers, more books published and more books read, per head, than anywhere else in the world. According to a research, one in 10 people will publish a book, isn’t it amazing? Icelanders have unique sensitivity to arts and music.

The Bee is a nature lover and tea addict. Loves the idea of slow life and responsible traveling, constantly trying to improve to bee more eco-friendly. Appreciates old cultures and traditions, loves to immerse with locals, listen to ethnic music as well as taste regional food and drinks. Her favorite spots while traveling are family houses and street markets.

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33 thoughts on “ 20 Weird Facts About Iceland That Will Amaze You! ”

Większości faktów nie znałam jednak najbardziej zaskoczyły mnie te nazwiska. No i komary 🙂

Really interesting post. Everythink were new for me. Now I look at Islandia in different way – not only as a cold place at the end of the world. Thanks for knowledge! ☺️

You are welcom Paulina, thanks for visiting 😉

Niesamowite i zaskakujące fakty.

Ależ dużo ciekawostek!! 🙂 Na razie tylko czytam i czytam, ale w końcu spakujemy plecak i sami zobaczymy tą piękną krainę 💙

Dobrze znać te “fakty i fakciki”, szczególnie że to miejsce znajduje się na mojej podróżniczej liście must have. No i brak komarów! Teraz to już w ogóle biegnę szukać tanie bilety lotnicze 😀 Pozdrawiam

Bardzo się cieszę, że artykuł zainspirował 🙂

Punktem 1 i 11 mnie kupili, Islandio, nadchodzę! 🙂

Bardzo ciekawe i nieznane mi wczesniej fakty. 🙂 Chcialabym kiedys poleciec na Islandie 🙂

Bardzo ciekawe i nieznane mi wczesniej fakty. Chcialabym kiedys poleciec na Islandie 🙂

super! już od jakiegoś czasu po naszej głowie chodzi Islandia i coraz bardziej się przymierzamy do podróży do tego niesamowitego kraju.. :))

I się parę razy zaskoczyłam! Informacją o nazwiskach i McDonaldzie. Fajny wpis, dużo się dowiedziałam ciekawych, nowych rzeczy.

Bardzo mnie to cieszy 🙂 Pszczoła poleca się na przyszłość 😉

Fascinating:) I didn’t know most of the facts. To tell the truth, I am most of a sun-and-warmth loving person, but maybe someday I will travel to Iceland too:)

Same as me – I hate cold, however, Iceland nature is so overwhelming, so I had to go there and see with my own eyes

Islandia to miejsce, ktore musze odwiedzic. Za rarytasy lolalnej kuchni podziekuje 🙂 Zakochalam sie w Twojej bluzce w paski!

Haha zatem polecam szmateksy 😉

Such a beautiful country! Although I hate hot dogs so it’s bad that they are the best in the world! And maybe it’s worth to try..? 😉

Well I am not fast food fan either, I tried this best hot dog and cannot understand why they say it is the best.

Well I am not fast food fan either, I tried this hot dog and cannot understand why they say it is the best.

Ten brak komarów to coś, co oczywiście oprócz wspaniałych krajobrazów, jest chyba jednym z większych atutów Islandii. W szczególności, że terenów podmokłych czy w ogóle związanych z wodą u nich nie brakuje 😉

Niesamowite miejsce i jaka oryginalna kultura warta poznania.

Bardzo ciekawy wpis, o większości faktów nie miałam pojęcia! 🙂 trochę paradoks z zamknięciem McDonalda a spożywaniem takich ilości Coli. Ale dobra wiadomość, że nie ma komarów 🙂

Dla mnie największe plusy Islandii to mała gęstość zaludnienia i brak komarów. Namawiam żonę na wyjazd do Islandii, może brak komarów też ją przekona 🙂

Myślę, że najbardziej przekonają żonę zdjęcia przepięknych krajobrazów, ogromne wodospady i gorące źródła.

Bardzo ciekawy i dobrze przygotowany tekst :). Większość wiedziałam, ale ten fakt o komarach jest fantastyczny! Poprawiłabym informację o tym, że Reykjavík da się przejść w pół godziny. To trochę przesada :). No i na Islandii mieszka więcej osób niż 300 000. Poza tym jest super!

Mimo braku wojska toczy wojnę z…kwiatkiem 🙂 Świetnie się czytało. Absolutne must read przed wyjazdem na Islandię.

Bardzo ciekawy wpis, prawie żadnego ze wspomnianych faktów nie znałam! Islandia wygląda na przepiękny kraj, chciałabym kiedyś się tam wybrać 🙂

GOrąco, a raczej zimno polecam Islandię. To kraj o wspaniałej czystej przyrodzie i te ciekawostki tylko dodają unikalności.

The only country with no mosquitoes is enough to make me go!

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141 Fun, Weird, & Interesting Facts – 2024

May 17, 2024

Trivia games or not – knowing random, weird, fun, and interesting facts is a great way to entertain, educate or simply shock people. Additionally, they can be quite useful for teachers looking to engage a class at the start of the school day or a specific, relevant lesson. There are a plethora of strange facts out there that can transform your perspective about the world.

From science to pop culture, it’s virtually impossible to calculate how much of this unexpected knowledge exists. Some of these facts are purely fascinating, some are jarring. You might even use them for speech topics or debate ideas . But all demonstrate how much there is to know and how we’ve only scratched the surface.

Check out 141 weird fun facts below:

Weird Animal Facts

1) scotland chose the unicorn to be its national animal., 2) giraffes are more prone to be struck by lightning than humans..

Each year, there are about 0.003 lightning deaths per thousand giraffes. This means that it is 30 times the rate at which lightning strikes humans.

3) In Switzerland, owning just one guinea pig is not allowed.

It is considered animal abuse if you only own one guinea pig in Switzerland because the animals are such social creatures.

4) The heart of a shrimp is in its head.

Because of their open circulatory system, there are no arteries in shrimp, and so their organs are floating around in their blood. They also have other vital organs such as their ventral nerve cord and stomach because the head is safer than their tail.

5) Tigers have striped skin, not just fur.

This weird animal fact just might surprise you. It’s not only the tiger’s fur that is striped.

6) The bumblebee bat is the world’ s smallest mammal.

According to the Guinness Book of World Records , the bumblebee bat weighs 0.05 to 0.07 ounces.

7) Sloths can hold their breath longer than dolphins.

Another one for weird animal facts: Every 10 minutes dolphins need to come up for air, but sloths can hold their breath for 40 minutes.

Fun, Weird, & Interesting Facts (Continued)

8) The smaller the animal is, the slower they can process time.

How animals perceive time can depend on how quickly the brain processes new information. Animals like mice or lizards will experience time differently than horses or dogs.

9) Once a chicken lived without its head for 18 months.

Perhaps you’ve already heard of Mike the Chicken. Well if you haven’t, you’ll be surprised to find out in the 1940s, Mike survived because his jugular vein and brainstem were still functioning. But don’t expect this for every chicken. It’s a weird animal fact, but a rare one.

10) The world’s oldest dog lived to be 29.5 years old.

The Australian cattle dog named Bluey lived to be 29.5 years old when the average age for dogs is from 10-15 years. This weird animal fact should resonate with dog lovers around the world.

11) The oldest cat in the world lived to be 38 years and three days old.

Creme Puff lived a sweet, long life. On average, cats tend to live around 15 years.

12) Octopuses don’t have tentacles. Their eight limbs are considered as arms.

13) Ants do not have lungs.

14) The Tyrannosaurus rex most likely had feathers.

The ancestors of the T-rex were recorded as having feathers, which means that this carried onto future generations.

15) Snails have teeth.

They can have anywhere from 1,000 – 12,000 teeth.

16) A horse can have more than one horsepower.

The highest amount of power a horse can produce amounts to 24 horsepower.

17) Starfish do not have bodies.

The fascinating, weird fun fact here about starfish is that their bodies are their heads.

18) Cat urine glows under a black light .

Due to containing phosphorus, cat urine glows brighter under an ultraviolet light.

19) The heartbeat of a blue whale can be detected from 2 miles away.

The blue whale’s heart also weighs 400 pounds.

20) An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain.

21) Pigs cannot look up at the sky.

It’s all due to the anatomy of their neck muscles and spine.

22) Dolphins name each other.

Dolphins use unique whistles to distinguish each other in a pod.

23) The blue whale’s tongue can weigh as much as a young elephant.

Another weird fun fact about these mammals is that an adult elephant can even fit on the tongue of a blue whale.

24) Dogs tilt their heads to pinpoint the words you’re saying.

They do this to spot familiar words

25) There’s a specific ant species that lives in New York City.

Scientists have named them ManhattAnts .

26) Contrary to popular belief, flamingos are not born pink.

They’re born with gray or white feathers and develop pink feathers from eating shrimp and algae.

27) Another weird fact about flamingos: flamingos don’t bend their knees.

What you’re seeing is their ankles being bent.

28) Each dog has a different nose print.

This is similar to our fingerprint.

29) Ants are so strong that they can carry 50 times their weight.

Weird History Facts

30) in 1905, an 11-year-old boy invented ice pops..

11-year-old Frank Epperson left out a wooden stirrer in a cup of water and soda pop overnight. When he discovered it was frozen the next morning, he also discovered the very first ice pop.

31) Argentina is where the world’s first animated feature film was created.

Before Disney’s Snow White was made in 1937, Argentina was home to the first full-length animated feature film called El Apóstol . It was a political satire consisting of 58,000 drawings and running for 70 minutes.

32) The first airplane flight happened on December 17, 1903.

In Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Wilbur and Orville Wright flew the airplane four short times.

33) Chainsaws began to be used for woodchopping at the start of the 20th century. But before then, chainsaws were used for childbirth to speed up the widening of the pubic cartilage.

34) In the 1840s, children were taught to say “ prunes” instead of “cheese.”

This was in order to have their mouths closed. Just another weird history fact in the world of photography.

35) In the Olympics, competitive art was once an official sport. Between 1912 and 1952, artists won medals in architecture, music, painting and sculpture.

36) The Hollywood sign used to say Hollywoodland.

37) Which American president had a pet hyena? President Theodore Roosevelt.

38) Back in the day, ketchup used to be sold as medicine.

39) When dinosaurs were alive, there were active volcanoes on the moon.

40) The first commercial passenger flight lasted 23 minutes.

41) Before Americans had toilet paper, they used corn husks.

This weird history fact proves to be uncomfortable as well.

42) The Statue of Liberty was once functioning as a lighthouse.

In 1886, the famous statue was a working lighthouse for years. You could see its light from 24 miles away.

43) On May 27, 2005 at 10:07 p.m. Big Ben’s clock stopped.

It was a hot summer day in London, and the heat is presumed to be what caused the famous clock to stop.

44) Queen Elizabeth II was a trained mechanic.

When she was a teenager, Queen Elizabeth II joined the Labor Exchange’s British employment agency. There, she learned about repairing tires, trucks and engines.

45) In 1969, Salvador Dalí created the Chupa Chups logo.

46) In 1524, the last letter to be added to the English alphabet was the letter “J.” Before it became a letter, the letter “i” was used for both “i” and “j.”

47) The set used on the television show iCarly was also used for Saved by the Bell .

48) The Eiffel Tower was originally supposed to be for the city of Barcelona.

But they rejected the famous tower at the time because they considered it too ugly.

49) A 15-year-old Irish girl was the first person processed at Ellis Island.

In 1892, Annie Moore was the first passenger to arrive at Ellis Island when it opened. She came with her two younger brothers on the SS Nevada.

50) John Quincy Adams once had a pet alligator.

The alligator was gifted to him from a French general, and it lived in one of the bathrooms at the White House.

51) The script for the movie “ The Terminator” was sold for $1.

52) Penicillin’s first name was “mold juice.”

Weird Facts About the Human Body

53) compared to all other human parts, human teeth do not have the power to heal themselves..

Since teeth are coated in enamel and not made of live tissue, they cannot heal on their own like other parts of the body.

54) Identical twins do not have the same fingerprints.

Contrary to popular belief, identical twins can’t have the same fingerprints because of development factors in the womb. The rate their fingers grew, their position in the womb, and the length of their umbilical cord all play a factor.

55) The human brain is eating itself.

Phagocytosis is where cells consume smaller cells or molecules to ultimately remove them from the system. This is not a harmful process but a necessary one in order to preserve gray matter in the brain.

56) The circulatory system is more than 60,000 miles long.

Veins, arteries and capillaries. One weird fact about the human body is that a child’s circulatory system stretches out to 60,000 miles long. By the time they’re adults, it stretches out to 100,000 miles of blood vessels.

57) We are more creative in the shower.

Warm water in the shower increases the flow of dopamine and increases creativity.

58) The cornea is the one of two parts of the human body without blood vessels.

Coming in as another weird fact about the human body, the cornea and the cartilage do not have blood vessels.

59) Your nose and ears never stop growing.

60) In 2004, Neil Armstrong’s hair was sold for $3,000.

61) To improve their skin, people used to eat arsenic.

62) Is it possible to hum while holding your nose? No.

63) You can be very pregnant and not know it.

About 1 in 500 people don’t realize that they are pregnant until halfway through their pregnancy.

64) The bacteria on your skin cause the itching on your skin.

Staphylococcus aureus releases a chemical that activates a protein in our nerves and tells our brain that there is an itch.

65) In your body, there are more bacterial cells than human cells.

The average person is made up of around 56 percent bacteria.

66) During the hot summer, our nails grow faster.

This weird fact about the human body is because of the increased blood flow to our fingertips.

67) We sweat when we are anxious in order to inform others.

Our sympathetic nervous system releases hormones like adrenaline when we’re anxious, activating our sweat glands.

68) Humans are the only animals that blush.

69) Humans have tongue prints, just as we have fingerprints.

70) People can only use a small fraction of the earth’ s water.

We can only use about 0.007 percent of it.

71) Our brains burn up to 400-500 calories a day.

72) Dead cells in the human body are eaten by other cells in our body. White blood cells, phagocytes, consume the dead cells. It’s their job.

73) It is impossible for most people to lick their own elbows.

But perhaps you’re not most people.

74) On average, people eat around 70 different insects throughout their entire lives while they sleep.

10 of those insects are probably spiders.

Weird Science and Space Facts

75) out of all the planets, venus is the only one to spin clockwise., 76) in your house, dead skin cells are the main factor in dust..

According to research at Imperial College London, humans shed roughly 200 million skin cells per hour.

77) Avocados are fruits, not vegetables.

This weird food science fact can start a debate, especially when you say the same thing about tomatoes.

78) The rotation of the Earth is changing speed.

The Earth’s rotation is slowing down. On average, every century the length of a day increases by 1.8 seconds.

79) The universe has a color and it’s called ‘cosmic latte.’

Astronomers have discovered that the light emitted from galaxies has a beige hue, which is named ‘cosmic latte.’

80) Water might not actually be wet.

Coming in as another weird science fact, water itself is not really wet. This is the case because of how scientists have defined wetness. It’s in the liquid’s ability to sustain contact with a solid surface. Startling, I know.

81) If all of the world’s entire bacteria were stacked together, it would stretch for 10 billion light-years.

Here’s another weird science fact about it: it could wrap around the Milky Way over 20,000 times.

82) The Sun is not silent.

That Sun above us does make sound through pressure waves. But the weird science fact here is that the wavelength of the sun’s pressure waves is impossible to capture with human hearing.

83) The Solar System consists of a wall – it’s called the “boundary wall.”

84) NASA’s Moon landing mission wasn’t entirely true. When the astronauts landed back on Earth, their quarantine procedure was a performative one.

85) What do Comets smell like? Well, rotten eggs. That’ll happen because of the ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide and more.

86)  The North and South Pole are moving. The North Pole moves at around 34 miles per year.

87) Sound can be in negative decibels.

88) Nutmeg is a hallucinogen.

If you eat large amounts of nutmeg, you can hallucinate because it contains myristicin which is a mind-altering ingredient.

89) Bananas are radioactive.

Because bananas are rich in potassium, they are a little bit radioactive. But don’t worry about this weird science fact. You’re already 280 times more radioactive than a banana.

90) A straight line doesn’t exist.

This weird science fact is because if you zoom into anything, you’ll find curves and inconsistencies.

91) Deaf people can use sign language in their sleep.

92) The earth has so much gold that there is enough to coat the planet.

About 99 percent of gold can be found in the earth’s core.

93) There exists a planet that is mostly made of diamonds.

The planet 55 Cancri e is twice the size of Earth and located 40 light-years away.

94) The moon has moonquakes.

These happen because of tidal stresses occurring between the moon and Earth.

95) A lightning bolt is five times hotter than the sun’ s surface.

96) The moon is shrinking.

But they are shrinking at a glacial pace. Moonquakes could be the root cause of the matter.

97) If the earth doubled in size, then all trees would topple over.

This is a direct result of changes in surface gravity.

98) It’s not Venus that is the closest planet to Earth, but Mercury.

99) Researchers have found that laughter came before language.

100) It is impossible to fold a piece of A-4 paper more than eight times.

101) Lemons float, while limes sink.

This is because limes are denser than lemons.

102) Plants were formed before seeds.

Moss-like plants most likely reproduced with single-celled spores. Then 150 million years later, multicellular seeds finally began to evolve.

103) It’s true. Some fungi will create zombies and control their minds.

Ophiocordyceps, anyone?

104) We can see stars as they were 4,000 years ago.

More Weird Facts

105) australia is wider than the moon..

The diameter of Australia comes in at 2,485 miles, while the moon’s diameter stretches 2,113 miles in diameter.

106) In the summer, the Eiffel Tower gets taller.

As it is made out of iron, due to thermal expansion the Eiffel Tower can rise up to 6 inches taller.

107) More than any other country in the world, Sudan has the most pyramids.

Egypt has 138 pyramids, while Sudan has 255.

108) Parts of Africa are in all four hemispheres .

Africa is such a large continent, covering nearly 12 million miles, that there are parts of the continent spanning all four hemispheres.

109) Despite their different colors, Fruit Loops are all the same flavor .

Sorry to break the news like this, but it’s just one of the many weird fun facts about cereal.

110) Apples you find in the supermarket can be a year old.

It is one of the many weird facts about food at the supermarket! Those supermarket apples might actually be a year old. Farmers often harvest them in the fall, wax them, and store them away.

111) If you wear a tie, it can reduce the blood flow to your brain by 7.5 percent.

Wearing a tie too tight can cause dizziness and headaches, including more pressure on your eyes.

112) The fear of long words is, in fact, a long word: Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia.

American poet Aimee Nezheukumatathil coined the word as we know it today. However, it was the Roman poet Horace who first used the word in the first century to criticize writers using long words.

113) Mount Everest isn’t actually the tallest mountain on Earth.

Hawaii’s twin volcanoes Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa are taller than Mount Everest. 2.6 miles of the volcanoes are submerged underwater, and Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa are 6.34 miles tall.

114) Most of the maps around the world are wrong. Maps that are found and life-size are the most accurate.

115) People can actually die laughing. Intense laughter can cause suffocation or a heart attack.

116) Soccer teams that wear red tend to play better.

The color of clothes affects how others see you and how you feel. Studies have shown that soccer teams played better in red in home matches.

117) A person ’s signature can reveal a lot about their personality.

In men, a larger signature has been associated with social bravado, while in women, a larger signature points to narcissism.

118) Most of the wasabi you eat isn’t really wasabi.

Because actual wasabi can be quite expensive, store-bought wasabi is often made out of horseradish.

119) According to the World Happiness Index, Finland is the happiest country on Earth.

There is also one sauna for every 1.59 people.

120) The pope cannot be an organ donor.

121) The longest concert to have ever happened lasted 453 hours.

122) If martial artists smile before a martial arts tournament, it increases the likelihood of losing.

Doing so can convey weakness or submissiveness.

123) In Japanese, the word “kuchisabishii” describes eating not because you’re hungry but because your mouth is lonely.

124) Which celebrity inspired the creation of Google images? Jennifer Lopez.

Her green dress at the 2000 Grammys led people to search online for photographs of her outfit.

125) British military tanks were designed in a way so that they could make tea.

If the military crew need any hot boiling water, there’s a built-in boiling vessel to make coffee or tea.

126) Walt Disney has won the most Academy Awards.

He’s earned 26 of them, actually.

127) There is a fruit that tastes like chocolate pudding.

Black sapote, native to Central and South America, tastes like chocolate and sweet custard. This is surely a weirdly delicious fact.

128) The actual name of the hashtag is octothorpe.

129) The name of M&Ms comes from their creators.

Businessmen Forrest Mars and Bruce Murrie created the famous candy.

130) Vatican City is the smallest country in the world.

It is so small that it is 120 times smaller than Manhattan.

131) The longest walking distance in the world adds up to 14,000 miles.

You won’t need a vehicle when you walk from Magdan, Russia to Cape Town, South Africa.

132) There are more than 200 Kit Kat flavors in Japan.

There are various flavors for cities, regions and seasons.

133) The shortest commercial flight in the world takes place in Scotland.

From Westray to Papa Westray islands, the journey is 1.7 miles and lasts for 90 seconds by airplane.

134) It takes 90 days for one drop of water to travel the entire Mississippi River.

135) In Japan, there is one vending machine for every 40 people.

136) McDonald’s once had bubblegum-flavored broccoli on the menu.

137) The first oranges were not the color orange.

They were, in fact, green in Southeast Asia.

138) The letter “ Q ” does not appear in any U.S. state’s name.

139) The fear of other people’s opinions is called allodoxaphobia.

140) There is no number before 1,000 that has the letter “A.”

141) Each year, Hawaii gets 3 feet closer to Alaska.

Weird fun facts: You never know when you might need them

While going through the list above, you might have thought of some people who wouldn’t believe what you just read. These weird facts can often pose as great argumentative essay topics as well, but they’re a great way to get us thinking. Although this was a list of 151 weird facts, there’s still so much around us, both near and far, that has yet to be discovered and understood.

Other articles that you may find to be of interest include:

• 60 Senior Project Ideas
• 101 Topics for the Science Fair 
• 100 Creative Writing Prompts
• 124 Icebreaker Questions 
• Teacher Tools

Joanna Hong

With a BA from Pitzer College and an MA from University College London, Joanna has worked in London, Berlin, and Los Angeles covering many cultural and political issues with organizations such as Byline Media, NK News, and Free Turkey Media. A freelancer for The New York Times, her work has also appeared in Newsweek, Dazed and Confused Magazine, and The Guardian, among others. In addition, Joanna was the recipient of the 2021 PEN America Emerging Voices Fellowship in Fiction and is currently completing her first novel.

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50 Travel Fun Facts Every Travel Enthusiast Should Know

Are you an avid traveler? Do you have a passion for exploring new destinations and uncovering the hidden secrets of the world? If so, then this post is perfect for you! We’re about to share some incredible fun facts that will both surprise and inspire any travel enthusiast. From natural phenomena to historic sites, we’ll take a look at surprises from all over the globe – things that even those with years of travel experience may not know about. Take your knowledge up a notch with 50 fascinating Fun Facts every Travel Enthusiast should know!

The Great Barrier Reef in Australia

The Great Barrier Reef in Australia is an awe-inspiring wonder of our natural world. This magnificent coral reef system is the largest of its kind on Earth, spanning over 1400 miles along the northeast coast of Australia. The Great Barrier Reef is home to a vast array of marine life, making it the perfect spot for snorkeling, diving, and exploring all the incredible underwater treasures. Did you know that the Great Barrier Reef even has its airport on Hamilton Island? Imagine flying in and immediately being transported to a world filled with shimmering turquoise waters and rainbow-hued creatures. As a fun fact, the Great Barrier Reef is so massive it can be seen from outer space – how incredible is that? If you're looking for an unforgettable travel destination, the Great Barrier Reef should be at the top of your list.

Origin of "jet lag" term

Did you know that the term "jet lag" was only invented in 1966? Horace Sutton, a journalist from the Los Angeles Times, originally coined the phrase to describe the overwhelming feelings of fatigue and disorientation that come with rapidly traveling across multiple time zones. While it can be a highly disorienting experience, the fun fact behind jet lag is that it's only a temporary feeling, and it's a small price to pay for the incredible experience of discovering new cultures and places across the world. With this knowledge in mind, let's take on those jet-lagged feelings with excitement and anticipation for all the adventures that await us.

The world's busiest airport

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is not just any airport. It's the king of airports, the busy bee buzzing with energy and life. As the world's busiest airport by passenger traffic, it carries millions of travelers each year to destinations across the globe. Whether you're an Atlanta local, or just passing through, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is a sight to behold. Here's a fun travel fact for you: did you know that in 2019, the airport served a staggering 110.5 million passengers? That's enough to make your head spin - and your heart race with wanderlust. As you stroll through the bustling terminal, take a moment to appreciate the excitement of travel and the possibilities it holds. The world is your oyster - and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the perfect launching point for your next adventure.

The world's shortest commercial flight

Have you ever heard of the shortest commercial flight in the world? It's a travel fun fact that might just blow your mind! The flight operates between Westray and Papa Westray, two beautiful and remote islands in Scotland's Orkney archipelago. With just a 1.7-mile air distance separating them, the flight takes an astonishingly short amount of time to complete - a mere 47 seconds , to be exact! But don't let the brevity of this flight fool you - it's a magnificent experience from start to finish, offering stunning views of the islands and their surrounding waters. Next time you're in Scotland, don't miss the chance to take this inspiring flight!

The longest non-stop commercial flight

If you're a travel enthusiast looking for an exhilarating experience, then you'll be thrilled to learn about the longest non-stop commercial flight currently operated by Singapore Airlines between Singapore and Newark, USA. Covering a distance of 15,344 km, this flight takes a whopping 18 hours and 45 minutes to complete, making it a true marvel of modern aviation. As you soar across the shores of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, you'll get to witness breathtaking views and marvel at the sheer scale of our planet. This travel fun fact is certainly not for the faint-hearted, but for those seeking the ultimate adventure, it's an experience of a lifetime. So, pack your bags and get ready for an unforgettable journey.

The first scheduled passenger airline service

Travel enthusiasts, did you know that the first scheduled passenger airline service took place on January 1, 1914? That's right, it was a historic day for aviation when the world's first-ever daily scheduled flight took off from St. Petersburg to Tampa, Florida, USA. The brief 23 minutes journey covering a distance of 21 miles (34 kilometers) was a milestone in the history of transportation, marking a new era of convenience and accessibility. This fun fact of aviation history inspires us to appreciate the progress humans have made over the years in our quest for exploration and innovation.

The highest commercially navigable lake

Lake Titicaca is a place that makes you feel like you're on top of the world - quite literally. highest commercially navigable lake in the world, it's a destination that's sure to inspire. Travel to the Lake and you'll discover a natural wonder that's rich in history, culture, and fun facts that will leave an indelible impression on you. Picture yourself floating on a crystal clear lake, surrounded by stunning views of the Andes mountains, while learning about the ancient Inca civilization that once flourished on its shores. It's an experience that's truly unforgettable and one that's worth adding to your travel bucket list. So pack your bags and make your way to Lake Titicaca - the journey of a lifetime awaits!

The origin "all-inclusive resort" concept

The concept of all-inclusive resorts may seem like a modern-day invention designed to cater to the jet-setting needs of travelers, but did you know that the idea originated in the Caribbean over 70 years ago? It's true! The first all-inclusive resort opened its doors in 1950 in Jamaica, marking a new era of vacationing that has since become synonymous with fun, relaxation, and indulgence. Since then, all-inclusive resorts have grown in popularity, providing travelers with an easy way to escape the stresses of daily life and immerse themselves in exotic destinations without worrying about the small details. So next time you're looking for a travel fun fact to impress your friends and colleagues, remember that the Caribbean is the birthplace of all-inclusive resorts – a little piece of history that has changed the way we travel forever!

The origin of the "luggage carousel"

Imagine a world without luggage carousels! Thanks to engineer John Michael Lyons, we don't have to. In 1958, he invented the very first luggage carousel, a feat that has revolutionized the way we travel. This fun fact is not only a testament to Lyons' ingenuity and foresight but also a reminder of the power of invention. Just think of all the memories, experiences, and adventures each suitcase on that carousel represents. How inspiring to think that one person's idea could have such a profound impact on the way we explore the world. So next time you're waiting for your luggage, take a moment to marvel at the genius of the luggage carousel, and all the possibilities it allows.

The world's largest cruise ship

Embarking on a journey is always an exciting experience, but setting sail on the world's largest cruise ship is a whole new level of adventure. Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas has made waves in the cruise industry boasting an astounding capacity of over 6,600 passengers and a crew of around 2,200. This floating city-like vessel has everything from an ice skating rink to a zip line, and even a central park complete with real trees! If you're looking for a travel fun fact to impress your friends with, look no further than the Symphony of the Seas. Set sail on the ultimate cruise ship, and immerse yourself in luxury and endless entertainment.

The world's first hotel made entirely of ice and snow

The Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi , Sweden, is more than just a place to rest your head for the night – it's an architectural masterpiece. This unique hotel is the world's first made entirely of ice and snow, offering visitors an adventurous and unforgettable overnight experience. Each year, local builders use ice from the nearby Torne River to create this stunning work of art, which is open for guests from December to April. This travel fun fact is sure to inspire any wanderlust-prone individual to add Jukkasjärvi to their must-visit list. Imagine waking up in your cozy ice room, cuddled in layers of blankets, and gazing at the magnificent ice sculptures surrounding you. A trip to the Icehotel makes for a one-of-a-kind travel experience that will stay with you and inspire many great adventures to come.

The world's largest travel guidebook 

In the early 1970s, a young couple, Tony and Maureen Wheeler, embarked on a journey that would change the world of travel forever. They set off on an overland trip from London to Australia, and along the way, they documented their experiences, which later became the foundation for their travel guidebook publishing company, Lonely Planet . Since its inception in 1972, Lonely Planet has become the world's largest travel guidebook publisher, inspiring travelers to explore new destinations with its vast range of books and online resources. With over 500 titles in their collection, their remarkable success story is a true travel fun fact that reminds us how a simple passion for adventure and a willingness to share it can create an empire.

First travel insurance

Did you know that the concept of travel insurance has been around for centuries? It dates back to ancient China, where merchants would pay for protection against loss or theft during their journeys. This fascinating travel fun fact highlights the importance of having safeguarding measures in place when embarking on any adventure. It's inspiring to think that even in the past, people recognized the value of protecting themselves and their assets during travel. Today, we continue to benefit from the same principles as we enjoy exploring new horizons with peace of mind. Like the old Chinese merchants, we may not always know what lies ahead, but we can take comfort in knowing that we have the protection we need.

The first successful around-the-world flight 

The year 1933 marked a defining moment in aviation history when Wiley Post, the maverick American aviator, accomplished the impossible – the first around-the-world flight. From the small makeshift airstrip in New York to the distant shores of Berlin, Moscow, and Tokyo, Post journeyed an incredible 15,596 miles in just eight days, 15 hours, and 51 minutes, cementing his place in history as one of the greatest aviation pioneers of all time. This travel fun fact is nothing short of inspiring. It's a testament to the grit, determination, and courage of one man who dared to dream of a world where distance and time were mere concepts. Today, we honor Post and his legacy by pushing ourselves to go above and beyond the limits and aspirations of our predecessors.

The first person to travel around the world in less than 80 days

Imagine traveling around the world in less than 80 days, it sounds like the plot of a thrilling novel, but it was an incredible feat accomplished by American journalist Nellie Bly in 1889. The best-selling novel, "Around the World in Eighty Days," may have been fictional, but Bly's journey was real. The inspiring travel fun fact is that she managed to complete the journey in just 72 days, beating the fictional record set by Jules Verne's protagonist, Phileas Fogg. It was an incredible achievement, especially for a woman in the late 19th century, and her accomplishments paved the way for future female adventurers. Nellie Bly's record-breaking journey remains a historical and inspiring event to many today.

The origin of backpacking as a travel-style concept

The 1960s and 1970s were a revolutionary time in the world of travel. Young people started to explore the world with nothing but a backpack on their shoulders and a sense of adventure in their hearts. This travel style, known as backpacking, quickly gained popularity as more and more people sought to break away from the ordinary and explore the world around them. What's fascinating is that budget limitations didn't deter these travelers from seeking amazing experiences and making unforgettable memories. It's a true testament to the power of wanderlust and the incredible things that can be achieved when you set your mind to it. The concept of backpacking continues to inspire and attract adventurers to this day, proving that travel is so much more than just a vacation - it's a way of life.

The Origin of the Couchsurfing Concept

Are you ready for a fun travel fact that will inspire you to see the world in a new light? Enter Couchsurfing, the amazing hospitality exchange community that connects travelers with locals around the globe. Founded in 2004, Couchsurfing has grown into a global platform that challenges traditional travel norms by offering the opportunity for travelers to stay with friendly locals for free. Through Couchsurfing, travelers can immerse themselves in local cultures and get a unique insider's perspective on their destination. But Couchsurfing is so much more than just a place to stay - it's a community of passionate and open-minded individuals who share a love for adventure and cultural exchange. So pack your bags and join the Couchsurfing community to experience the world in a whole new way!

The Origin of the Gap Years Concept

Imagine the world as your classroom - where learning doesn't just happen in classrooms but expands to adventures that offer diverse experiences and cultures to explore. Enter gap years: a concept that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1960s that's taking the world by storm. Instead of rushing through their studies, students take a break to travel or pursue other experiences that ignite their passions and broaden their horizons. Fun fact - gap years have proven to benefit both personal development and career-building since it allows individuals to gain new, unique perspectives that give them a competitive edge in the job market. It's inspiring to think about the infinite possibilities that await anyone who decides to embark on a gap year adventure. So, are you ready to take the leap and experience all that the world has to offer?

The world's first Postcards

Traveling is a beautiful experience, and sending postcards is used to add to the excitement. Did you know that the concept of postcards originated in Austria in the 1860s? It's an inspiring fun fact to learn that Austria allowed postcards to be sent with a message on one side and an address on the other, becoming the very first country in the world to do so. Postcards became increasingly popular amongst travelers as a way to stay connected with loved ones back home while enjoying their adventures. Austria paved the way for one of the most treasured traditions in the world of travel. Nowadays, postcards may seem a bit outdated, but they continue to inspire and add to the beauty of traveling.

 We would like to take this opportunity to remind you that we have decks of different editions of challenges for you to do during your vacation. As such, this is one of the random challenges that may appear in the Original Edition of the Travel Challenges deck: 

The world's oldest-known travel agency

Did you know that the world's oldest known travel agency is Cox & Kings , established in 1758 in India? What started as a small business arranging transportation for British army officers has now become a global player in the travel industry. It's inspiring to think about how this company has been able to stay relevant for over two centuries, adapting to the changing times and catering to the needs of travelers from all over the world. This travel fun fact reminds us that the desire to explore new places and experience new cultures is something that has been around for centuries and will continue to inspire generations to come.

The origin of the "hotel" concept

Have you ever wondered where the word "hotel" comes from? It turns out that the word is derived from the French word "hôtel," which referred to a townhouse or mansion. It wasn't until later that the meaning of the word shifted to refer to an establishment that provides accommodation. Knowing the origins of this common word is a fun fact to keep in mind as you travel and stay in hotels around the world. It's a reminder of how language can evolve and take on new meanings over time. So next time you're staying in a hotel, take a moment to reflect on the history behind the world and appreciate the journey it has taken to get to where it is today.

The world's first hotel

Nestled in the mountains of Japan lies a hidden gem that has been standing for over a thousand years. The Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan is the world's oldest hotel, dating back to the year 705 AD! Imagine the stories and history that this hotel has witnessed over the centuries. As a traveler, staying at this hotel would be an unforgettable experience, and a fun fact to share with friends and family. It's inspiring to think that a place like this continues to stand strong, welcoming new guests for generations. The Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan is a true testament to the resilience and beauty of Japan's ancient culture.

The first commercial hot air balloon flight

In 1783, a group of spectators in France looked up to witness history being made. The first commercial hot air balloon flight had just taken place, propelling humans into the sky in a way they had never experienced before. The balloon was called "Aerostat Réveillon" and flew for about 5.5 miles (9 kilometers). This monumental achievement was not only a major technological advancement, but it opened up new travel opportunities. Suddenly, people could reach heights and destinations that were once unreachable. This fun fact about the first commercial hot air balloon flight reminds us that innovation and exploration have always been a part of human nature and that we should never stop pushing the boundaries of what we know and what we can achieve.

The first recorded use of the term "sightseeing"

It's amazing to consider that the practice of sightseeing, something that we take for granted today, has been around for centuries. The first recorded use of the term "sightseeing" can be traced back to 1768 in the journal of James Boswell . This remarkable travel fun fact underscores just how long humanity has been fascinated with exploring new places and seeing all that the world has to offer. As we embark on our adventures today, let's take a moment to appreciate the pioneers like Boswell who paved the way for us to experience the excitement and wonder of travel.

The first-ever recorded travel guide

Did you know that the first-ever recorded travel guide was written by a Greek geographer named Pausanias in the 2nd century CE? His work described the most fascinating landmarks and destinations in ancient Greece, helping travelers find their way and experience the beauty of this historic land. It's amazing to consider how far we've come since those ancient times, with travel guides now available for every corner of the globe. And yet, Pausanias' work serves as a testament to the timeless appeal of exploring new places and discovering the wonders that await. Let us be inspired by Pausanias' legacy and continue to seek out adventure, wherever it may take us.

The world's fastest train

The Shanghai Maglev Train is truly the epitome of modern transportation engineering. This maglev train operates in Shanghai, China, and is known to be the fastest train in the world, surpassing even the bullet trains in Japan. The Shanghai Maglev Train operates at incredible speeds of up to 430 km/h and only takes 8 minutes to travel the 30 km distance between Shanghai's Pudong International Airport and the city's financial district. With its sleek, futuristic design and state-of-the-art technology, the Shanghai Maglev Train provides a memorable experience for passengers who are keen on speed and advanced engineering. It's a fun fact to know that you can travel at such an impressive speed using one mode of transportation, inspiring us to think that the future of travel is indeed exciting!

The world's largest airport

The King Fahd International Airport in Dammam is a true testament to the grandeur and vision of the Saudi Arabian government. As the world's largest airport, it spans over 780 square kilometers and can accommodate up to 80 million passengers annually. That's a staggering figure! But, did you know that it also boasts one of the largest dome structures in the world, covering an area of 32,000 square meters? As you travel through the airport, you can't help but feel inspired by the sheer size of the space and the endless opportunities for exploration and adventure that await. It truly is a magnificent feat of engineering and design, and a fun fact to share with fellow travelers.

The first known recorded travel diary

Did you know that the first known recorded travel diary was written by Xu Xiake , a Chinese travel writer, in the 17th century? Xu Xiake's travel diary details his extensive travels throughout China and offers an inspiring glimpse into the beauty and wonder of the country he loved. His writings are a testament to the joy and adventure that can be found in travel and serve as a reminder that even in times of uncertainty and difficulty, the world is full of amazing places waiting to be explored. So the next time you embark upon a journey, remember Xu Xiake's legacy and let his travel fun fact inspire you to discover all that the world has to offer.

The world's largest salt flat

Pack your bags, traveler, because one of the most awe-inspiring sights on Earth awaits you. Welcome to the Salar de Uyuni , the world's largest salt flat located in Bolivia. This natural wonder spans over 4,000 square miles and is comprised of over 10 billion tons of salt. It's impossible not to feel small in front of the vastness of this radiant salt flat. Besides its sheer size, the Salar de Uyuni holds another fun fact: it's so flat that NASA uses it to calibrate satellites. Imagine being able to stand on a piece of ground so level and smooth, you're used to help guide spacecraft through the cosmos! Take in this natural marvel with your own eyes and let the Salar de Uyuni take your breath away.

The ancient city of Petra in Jordan and the rock-cut architecture

Exploring Petra, the ancient city that served as a crucial trading hub, is an experience that will leave you awestruck. The elaborate rock-cut architecture, including the famous Treasury, is a testament to the ingenuity and skill of the people who lived there. Fun fact: Petra was established as early as 312 BCE and is one of the few cities in the world where cars are not allowed, which means you get to explore this incredible architectural wonder on foot. Walking through the narrow canyon and coming face to face with the stunning sandstone structures is an experience you won't soon forget. A visit to Petra is a must for any travel bucket list.

The lowest point on Earth's surface

Imagine swimming in a body of water so dense that you can't even sink. That is the unique experience that awaits you at the Dead Sea in Jordan and Israel, the lowest point on Earth's surface. This natural wonder boasts a high concentration of salt and minerals, making it a popular destination for travelers seeking some R&R. Did you know that people have been visiting the Dead Sea for thousands of years to soak in its healing waters? Whether you're there for a luxurious spa day or just want to float on the surface of the water, the Dead Sea is a travel fun fact that will leave you feeling inspired by all the wonders the world has to offer.

The world's lowest country

Did you know that the Maldives holds the title of being the world's lowest country in terms of average ground level? The stunning archipelago, composed of 26 atolls, is situated in the Indian Ocean and boasts breathtaking beaches, crystal-clear waters, and vibrant coral reefs. With its highest point only 7.8 feet (2.4 meters) above sea level, it's no wonder why this travel fun fact is so intriguing. Despite this remarkable characteristic, the Maldives remains an inviting destination for travelers from all over the world. So pack your bags and get ready to explore this unique paradise!

The world's largest hotel

The First World Hotel in Malaysia is not just any ordinary hotel, as it is the world's largest hotel, boasting over 7,351 rooms! This is more than just a travel fun fact, as the hotel's impressive size and scale are truly inspiring. It almost feels like a mini city within itself and staying here is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Imagine walking through the hotel lobby, surrounded by an endless sea of rooms and a bustling crowd of fellow travelers, all eager to explore the wonders of Malaysia. If that doesn't make you want to pack your bags and book a ticket, I don't know what will!

The city with the most Michelin-starred restaurants

If you're a food lover, then there's no better city to visit than Tokyo. This vibrant metropolis is home to over 230 Michelin-starred restaurants, making it the city with the most Michelin-starred establishments in the world . From sushi to ramen, tempura to teppanyaki, Tokyo has it all. Each restaurant offers its unique take on the cuisine, from the traditional to the cutting edge. So, if you want to satiate your culinary curiosity, hop on a flight to Tokyo, and explore this amazing city's gastronomic delights. After all, experiencing the world's most Michelin-starred restaurants is one of the best fun facts to share with your friends.

The world's largest pilgrimage

For Muslims traveling to Mecca , it is the ultimate spiritual journey. Mecca is the world's largest pilgrimage site, drawing millions of Muslims from all corners of the globe for the Hajj pilgrimage. As visitors approach the city, they're enveloped in the enthusiasm and devotion of fellow Muslims. The city is an incredible display of devotion, piety, and unity, creating an atmosphere that is truly awe-inspiring. In addition to its spiritual significance, Mecca is also a fascinating travel fun fact to share with others. Its incredible size and the sheer number of visitors during the Hajj are a testament to the strength of faith that exists within the Muslim community. The Hajj pilgrimage is a life-changing experience for all who participate, and it's no wonder that so many Muslims from around the world make the journey to Mecca each year.

The world's tallest waterfall

Angel Falls stands tall and mighty, being the world’s highest uninterrupted waterfall. Located in Venezuela, the falls have captivated the hearts of travelers from all over the world, leaving them in awe of its stunning natural beauty. At 979 meters, the falls are higher than the Eiffel Tower and almost three times the size of Niagara Falls. But that's not just it! A fun fact about these falls is that Angel Falls was named after an American aviator, Jimmy Angel, who discovered the falls while flying over the area in the 1930s. This incredible waterfall is a must-see for any travel bucket list, inspiring anyone who lays eyes on its grandeur. 

In addition, I'm taking this opportunity to show you another example of a card that could appear in our Original Edition of Travel Challenges : 

The country with the most UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Italy is a country that boasts of unparalleled cultural and artistic heritage. What’s even more impressive is that Italy is home to the most UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the world, with over fifty-nine sites already inscribed on the list. From the majestic Colosseum and the iconic Piazza del Duomo in Florence to the remarkably preserved ruins of Pompeii and the beautiful city of Venice that's built on water, Italy has something for everyone. Exploring these sites is not only informative but also awe-inspiring, and it's no wonder why Italy is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. The travel fun fact that Italy has the most UNESCO World Heritage Sites is just one of the many reasons to visit this vibrant country and immerse oneself in its rich history and culture.

The city with the most international visitors per year

Bangkok is a bustling city that continuously draws in travelers from all over the world. It holds the title of being the city with the highest number of international visitors per year! This travel fun fact showcases the immense appeal that Bangkok has, from its vibrant street markets and mouth-watering food scene to its jaw-dropping temples and lively nightlife. It's no wonder that people from all walks of life yearn to explore this unique city. Whether you're a foodie, a shopaholic, a history buff, or simply looking for an adventure, Bangkok has something to offer for everyone. So pack your bags and set off to experience the wonders of this mesmerizing city for yourself!

The largest religious monument in the world

As you embark on your journey to the Angkor Wat temple complex in Cambodia, you'll be visiting the largest religious monument in the world. The jaw-dropping scale and intricate detail of the temple complex is inspiring, and a testament to the skills of the Khmer people who built it nearly a thousand years ago. It's hard not to feel awe-inspired by the sheer size of Angkor Wat, which covers over 160 hectares of land. As you explore the intricate carvings and ancient architecture of this stunning complex, you'll be taken on a journey through history and spirituality. Truly, a visit to Angkor Wat is a must-have travel experience for any lover of adventure and culture. And, of course, it's always fun to have a fascinating fact to share with your friends and family!

The Statue of Liberty in New York City was a gift from France

For over a century, the Statue of Liberty has been greeting visitors to New York City's harbor as a symbol of freedom and democracy. Gifted to the United States by France in 1886, the statue stands tall at 305 feet, weighing 225 tons. This beloved icon is not only a popular tourist destination but also a reminder of the ideals that our country was built upon. It's fascinating to think that the statue's creator, Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, initially intended to have it placed at the entrance of the Suez Canal. However, after being turned down by the Egyptian government, he presented the idea to the United States and the rest is history. For a travel fun fact, did you know that the seven spikes on the crown of the statue represent the seven continents and seven seas of the world? A visit to the Statue of Liberty is not only an awe-inspiring experience but also a reminder of the ongoing fight for freedom and democracy for all.

The longest suspension bridge in the world

If you're a traveler looking for an impressive sight to add to your bucket list, the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge in Japan is a marvel to behold. This suspension bridge stretches an incredible 6,532 feet (1,991 meters), making it the longest in the world. But it's not just its size that's impressive - the bridge is also a testament to Japanese engineering and ingenuity. Its construction required incredibly precise design and execution, and the final product is a breathtaking feat of human achievement. Whether you're an engineer or not, visiting the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge is a fun fact to share with friends and family, and a reminder of what can be accomplished when humans put their minds to something truly incredible.

Home of the "Big Five" game animals

The African savanna is the ultimate destination for nature lovers and adventurers alike. Its vast expanse serves as a home to some of the most iconic creatures on the planet, the "Big Five" game animals. Majestic lions roam freely, fiercely protective of their territories and pride. Massive elephants gracefully strut through the lands, trumpeting in triumph. Rhinoceroses dominate the terrain with their sheer size and strength, while elusive leopards silently stalk their prey. Buffalos, on the other hand, move in herds, roaming together and providing a stunning sight to behold. Travelers who dream of being part of this incredible ecosystem need to head over to the African savanna, where these magnificent creatures reign supreme. It's a fun fact that one can never get enough of – the African savanna is truly one of the most breathtaking places in the world.

The birthplace of jazz

New Orleans, the city of soulful jazz, is a place that ignites the senses and transports the soul to a realm of pure musical magic. Known as the birthplace of jazz, this vibrant city boasts a rich and diverse musical heritage that is celebrated year-round. From street musicians to world-famous jazz clubs, music can be heard echoing through the streets day and night. Every spring, the Jazz and Heritage Festival takes center stage and draws music lovers from across the globe to soak up the infectious energy of this city. A travel fun fact to keep in mind - the famous jazz funeral originated in New Orleans, where they celebrate life and honor their loved ones with a musical procession through the streets. It's no wonder New Orleans has earned the title of "the city that care forgot" - once you're there, the joy-filled energy of the music scene will stay with you long after you leave.

The busiest pedestrian crossing in the world

Tokyo, the bustling capital of Japan, is home to the world-famous Shibuya Crossing - known to be the busiest pedestrian crossing on the planet. With over 2,500 people crossing this intersection simultaneously during peak rush hours, it's a sight to behold. But what's even more impressive is the energy and vibrancy that Tokyo exudes. From its delicious food to its innovative technology and unique fashion, the city is a hub of cultural and technological excellence. Tokyo is the perfect destination for anyone looking to experience a bustling and vibrant metropolis. It's more than just a fun fact; it's an inspiring testament to the city's spirit and its people.

The world's largest natural reserve

Imagine standing in the middle of the largest natural reserve in the world, surrounded by pristine glaciers, towering peaks, and a vast expanse of untouched wilderness. Northeast Greenland National Park is a wonderland waiting to be explored, and it boasts some of the most awe-inspiring sights on the planet. Covering an area of over 970,000 square kilometers, this vast reserve is not only home to an incredible variety of species, but it's also a significant travel destination. Did you know that the park is larger than all of California and three times the size of Texas combined? There's no doubt that visitors to this incredible landscape will be awestruck by its sheer size, beauty, and majesty. So pack your bags and prepare to embark on an adventure that you'll never forget - Northeast Greenland National Park is calling!

Greenland is an awe-inspiring destination that sits at the top of the world. It is the largest island in the world and is known for its pristine nature, rugged coastline, and stunning glaciers. Located in the northernmost part of the Atlantic Ocean, it is also one of the least populated places on Earth. Traveling to Greenland is an adventure like no other, starting from the moment you set foot on this majestic island. So pack your bags and get ready to explore one of the most breathtaking places on the planet - Greenland!

Longest world's longest town name

As you embark on your journey through Wales, make sure to take a pit stop in a town that holds the title of the world's longest town name! Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch may be a mouthful to pronounce, but the fun facts are worth the effort! This picturesque town with a population of only 3,000 boasts the Guinness World Record for having the longest place name in the world. Its name translates to "Saint Mary's Church in the hollow of the white hazel near a rapid whirlpool and the Church of St. Tysilio of the red cave". The town has become a popular tourist destination known for its stunning natural beauty, charming picturesque houses, and fascinating history. So indulge in this travel fun fact and add Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch to your bucket list!

World’s shortest geographical place name

Å is not only the shortest geographical place name in the world, but also a unique travel destination that is sure to leave you inspired. Located in the Lofoten Islands of Norway, this small fishing village may be compact in name, but it offers big experiences for visitors seeking adventure. Imagine exploring rugged mountain landscapes while taking in the panoramic views of the surrounding sea. Or, diving into the deep blue waters for an up-close encounter with the Norwegian marine life. Whether you're an adventure-seeker or simply looking for a fun fact to share with friends, Å is a destination that's worth including on your travel itinerary.

Paris syndrome

Paris, known to many as the City of Love, may surprise you with its lesser-known syndrome that can affect certain travelers. Paris Syndrome is a condition where tourists become overwhelmed by the difference between their high expectations of the city and the reality they experience. However, don't let this deter you from experiencing the magic of one of the world's most iconic cities. With so much to see and do, Paris offers something for everyone, from the Eiffel Tower to the Louvre Museum. Plus, did you know that the city is home to the world's first-ever public park, the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont? With such a rich history and beauty, Paris is still very much worth a visit. So go ahead and immerse yourself in all the stunning sights and sounds without worrying about Paris Syndrome, as long as you come prepared to enjoy your trip to the fullest.

24/7 free wine fountain

If you are a wine lover, you might want to pack your bags and head straight to Italy. Located in the small town of Ortona in the Abruzzo region , there is a marvelous 24/7 free wine fountain that will leave you in awe. Yes, you heard it right - a free wine fountain! This is not just any ordinary fountain but it is a wonderful work of art that dispenses red wine for all visitors, day and night. The fountain has become a must-visit for travelers from all over the world, making it a true travel fun fact. So, what are you waiting for? Add this to your bucket list, and indulge yourself in a heavenly wine experience! 

The most linguistically diverse country

Papua New Guinea isn't just another beautiful travel destination - it's home to the world's most diverse linguistic landscape. With over 800 languages spoken across its unique terrain, Papua New Guinea is the ultimate cultural immersive experience. Exploring the country means diving into a world of vibrant new sounds and words, hearing languages heard nowhere else on the planet. From the highlands to the coast, the dialects will change fluidly, each with its own history and local traditions. It's a thrilling opportunity to gain insight into the intricacies and beauty of human communication - all while having the trip of a lifetime.

Drawing from all the amazing places and adventures present around the world, these 50 fun facts about travel bring to light the exciting cultures that take part in traveling. These cool and interesting facts encourage those with a sense of exploration in their soul to get out there and discover everything that our planet has to offer. Variety abounds, and traveling is one of the best ways to deepen your knowledge and understanding of our global community. From peculiar practices to incredible new sights, every trip is a journey full of excitement and discovery. If you're looking for some guidance on where to go next, why not try Sweden? After exploring this unique destination through these fascinating travel facts, get ready for an experience like no other with one of our decks of cards filled with 50 fun ideas ! Don't wait any longer - make 2020 the year you grow your wanderlust!

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• Risk Factors
• Resources to Share
• #SunSafeSelfie
• Real Stories
• What CDC Is Doing About Skin Cancer
• Benefits to Spending Time Outdoors
• Guidelines for School Programs to Prevent Skin Cancer

Sun Safety Facts

What to know.

Most skin cancers are caused by too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. Protection from UV rays is important all year.

Spending time outside is a great way to be physically active, reduce stress, and get vitamin D. You can work and play outside without raising your skin cancer risk by protecting your skin from the sun.

Most skin cancers are caused by too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. UV rays are an invisible kind of radiation that comes from the sun, tanning beds, and sunlamps. UV rays can damage skin cells.

Protection from UV rays is important all year, not just during the summer. UV rays can reach you on cloudy and cool days, and they reflect off of surfaces like water, cement, sand, and snow. In the continental United States, UV rays tend to be strongest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daylight saving time (9 a.m. to 3 p.m. standard time).

The UV Index forecasts the strength of UV rays each day. If the UV index is 3 or higher in your area, protect your skin from too much exposure to the sun.

What You Need to Know about Sun Safety

Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States. Too much sun can cause skin cancer. This video explains how to protect your skin from the sun.

How to protect your skin from the sun

You can reduce your risk of sun damage and skin cancer by staying in the shade under an umbrella, tree, or other shelter. Your best bet to protect your skin is to use sunscreen or wear protective clothing when you're outside—even when you're in the shade.

When possible, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants and skirts, which can provide protection from UV rays. If wearing this type of clothing isn't practical, try to wear a T-shirt or a beach cover-up. Clothes made from tightly woven fabric offer the best protection. A wet T-shirt offers much less UV protection than a dry one, and darker colors may offer more protection than lighter colors. Some clothing is certified under international standards as offering UV protection.

For the most protection, wear a hat that has a brim all the way around that shades your face, your ears, and the back of your neck. A tightly woven fabric, such as canvas, works best to protect your skin from UV rays. Avoid straw hats with holes that let sunlight through. A darker hat may offer more UV protection.

If you wear a baseball cap, you should also protect your ears and the back of your neck by wearing clothing that covers those areas, using sunscreen, or staying in the shade.

Sunglasses protect your eyes from UV rays and reduce the risk of cataracts. They also protect the tender skin around your eyes from sun exposure.

Sunglasses that block both UVA and UVB rays offer the best protection. Most sunglasses sold in the United States, regardless of cost, meet this standard. Wrap-around sunglasses work best because they block UV rays from sneaking in from the side.

Put on broad spectrum sunscreen that filters out both UVA and UVB rays and has an SPF of 15 or higher before you go outside. Don't forget to put a thick layer on all exposed skin. Get help for hard-to-reach places like your back. And remember, sunscreen works best when combined with other options.

Sunscreen is not recommended for babies who are 6 months old or younger. The US Food and Drug Administration recommends keeping infants out of the sun during midday and using protective clothing if they have to be in the sun.

SPF. Sunscreens are assigned a sun protection factor (SPF), which is a number that rates how well they filter out UV rays. Higher numbers indicate more protection. You should use a broad spectrum sunscreen with SPF of 15 or higher.

Reapplication. Sunscreen wears off. Put it on again if you stay out in the sun for more than 2 hours and after swimming, sweating, or toweling off.

Expiration date. Check the sunscreen's expiration date. Sunscreen without an expiration date has a shelf life of no more than 3 years. Its shelf life is shorter if it has been exposed to high temperatures.

Sun Safety Tips Videos

Dawn Holman, CDC Behavioral Scientist, talks about the importance of applying the following as a part of a sun safety strategy.

• Use Sunscreen .
• Wear a Hat .
• Seek Shade .
• Wear Clothing that Covers .
• Plan Activities for Morning, Late Afternoon and Evening .

Sun safety tips for schools

Recess and other outdoor activities during the day can put students at risk if their skin isn’t protected from too much exposure to the sun. Teachers and school administrators can take steps to protect students from getting skin cancer later in life.

Increase shade

• Provide shade structures or trees.
• Move outdoor activities to shaded areas.
• Plan for shade when developing or renovating school buildings, playgrounds, or athletic fields.

Promote sun-safe behaviors

• Encourage students to wear hats, sunglasses, and sunscreen outdoors.
• Try to avoid scheduling outdoor activities when the sun is strongest.
• Provide breaks during outdoor activities so that students can reapply sunscreen and get water.

Use proven educational programs

Proven skin cancer prevention interventions and educational programs are available for child care centers and schools. The National Cancer Institute's Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs website lists sun-safety programs for schools.

Sun safety tips for employers

The Occupational Safety and Health Act requires employers to minimize risk of harm to workers. Employers may be required to provide workers’ compensation to employees who get skin cancer because of sun exposure on the job.

Skin cancer can greatly reduce workers’ productivity. Every year, Americans lose more than $100 million in productivity because of restricted activity or absence from work due to skin cancer.

Providing sun protection for outdoor workers helps create a healthy and safe workplace. It can also increase productivity, which saves money. Some of the tips below protect outdoor workers from heat as well as sun exposure.

Increase sun protection for employees

• Encourage sun safety among your employees and provide sun protection when possible.
• Use tents, shelters, and cooling stations to provide shade at worksites.
• Schedule breaks in the shade and allow workers to reapply sunscreen throughout their shifts.
• Create work schedules that minimize sun exposure. For example, schedule outdoor tasks like mowing for early morning instead of noon, and rotate workers to reduce their UV exposure.

Add sun safety to workplace policies and training

• Include sun-safety information in workplace wellness programs. The National Cancer Institute's Evidence-Based Cancer Control Programs website lists sun safety programs for outdoor worksites.
• Teach outdoor workers about the risks of exposure to UV rays and the symptoms of overexposure.

Skin Cancer

To lower your skin cancer risk, protect your skin from the sun and avoid tanning.

For Everyone

Public health.

11 Interesting and Fun Facts About France

Written By: The Planet D

Updated On: January 23, 2024

Woohoo! We’ve missed you France. To celebrate, we’ve rounded up these fun facts about France to get you in the mood to travel in the future. Get more information here on France travel and openings.

If you are dreaming of a  vacation to France  or are just interested in learning more about the country, you will love learning about these France fun facts.

Table of Contents

Fun Facts About France

Did you know that France is the largest country in Europe and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world? France has good food, amazing wine, beautiful cities , and charming culture. It’s no surprise that everyone wants to visit!

From the largest art museum to a bread superstition, this list covers it all. Keep reading for 10 fun facts about France that will make you want to hop on an airplane to Paris immediately.  

• Where To Stay In Paris – Best Neighborhoods and Hotels
• Famous People Buried in the Pere Lachaise Cemetery of Paris
• Enchanting Medieval Villages in France – The French Riviera
• Things to do in Marseille, France

1. France Is the Most-Visited Country in the World 

Of all the countries in the world, France is the most visited! Approximately 89 million people visit France every year to take in the culture and enjoy the food. 

In addition to being the most visited country in the world, Paris is one of the most visited cities. In 2019, over 19 million tourists visited the city of  Paris, France . It consistently ranks in the top 10 most visited cities year after year.

2. France Is Smaller Than Texas

If you want to imagine how big France is, a good comparison is that it is slightly smaller than the state of Texas! France has a ton of personality for such a small country. Check out these Best Paris Hotels with Eiffel Tower Views

While France isn’t that big, it is the biggest country in the European Union . For a little more perspective, France is twice as big as the United Kingdom and eight times the size of Ireland .

• Lonely Planet France – Country Guide to help plan your trip.
• Lonely Planet Paris – Complete Guide to the City
• Paris Itinerary – Our complete 3 Days in Paris Itinerary.

3. France Has the Largest Art Museum 

The  Louvre Museum  in Paris, France is the largest art museum in the world. This museum is so big that if you wanted to spend 30 seconds looking at each piece of art, it would take you approximately 100 days to get through the entire museum.

French artists created 66% of all the artwork in the museum. Here are some of the most famous pieces of artwork in the Louvre Museum:

• The Mona Lisa 
• The Raft of the Medusa
• The Venus de Milo
• The Horse Tamers
• The Wedding at Cana

Before the Louvre Museum became a museum, it was a fortress built in the 12th century and then renovated into a royal palace in the 16th century. Many people claim that the Louvre Museum is haunted due to its age and complicated past. Read Paris Closures and When to Avoid Museum and Attractions

• When visiting Paris, get your Museum Pass to enjoy priority skip the line tickets to more than 60 of the top museums and monuments in and around Paris Explore the Louvre and Versailles, and visit the Arc de Triomphe, the Centre Pompidou, and many others.

4. The French Eat 25,000 Tons of Snails Each Year

Did you know that in France over 25,000 tons of snails are eaten every single year? That is a lot of snails!  On average, a resident of France eats approximately 500 snails per year. The French consider snails to be a delicacy and they are often enjoyed during holidays.

In France, snails are referred to as “escargot”. While there are several different types of escargot that you can eat, one of the most common ways to eat snails in France is cooked in butter and garlic. The best way to eat snails in France is to do so at a French restaurant. Snails are often eaten as an appetizer, and to eat them, your waiter should provide you with special utensils to help crack the shell.

• And here’s one of the more quirkier facts in France , it is illegal to carry live snails on a train in France unless they have a ticket. It is a law that states animals weighing less than 5 kg (11 pounds) must travel with their own ticket. Sounds outdated? Tell that to the guy in 2008 who was fined for having live snails on the train.

5. France Produces Over 1,500 Types of Cheese

While the exact number of cheeses produced in France is unknown, it is said that they make over 1,500 different cheeses! If you happen to love cheese, this may sound like a dream come true.

In fact, France ranks in the top ten countries for their amount of cheese consumption. More than 95% of the French population eats cheese. French cheeses have several defining characteristics such as how long they age, the process of making the cheese, and how moldy they are.

Here is a list of some of the most popular cheeses that you will find in France:

• Camembert de Normandie
• Brie de Meaux
• Fromage Blanc

If you decide to visit France and try these different types of cheeses, be sure to pair wine with them for the full, French experience. 

6. Supermarkets in France Can’t Throw Away Food

Supermarkets in France are not allowed to throw away food that is near the “best by” date. Instead, they must donate the food to a charity or food bank. France passed this law in 2016 to help reduce hunger and prevent food waste! Why doesn’t everyone do this?

Supermarkets in France  are donating about 45,000 pounds of food annually that would have been thrown away if not donated. While some of the fruits and vegetables are deemed unable to be eaten, most of the food is distributed to families in need.

That is great for both the people who could use the food and the environment! The supermarkets also benefit from this law because there is less trash to deal with.

7. France Had a King – That Lasted Only 20 Minutes

Another interesting fact about France is that one of their kings only held the throne for about 20 minutes. This was one of the  shortest reigns of a monarch  that there has ever been. 

Louis XIX was king of France for only 20 minutes after his father had abdicated (renounced his throne). Ironically enough, Louis XIX also abdicated about 20 minutes after his father appointed him to the throne. 

Louis XIX shares this record with Luís Filipe from Portugal. Luís Filipe’s father was murdered in an attack and Luís Filipe was also injured during the same attack. He ended up outliving his father by about 20 minutes, and during this time, he was king of Portugal. 

Check out more fun facts around the world

• 11 Fun Facts About Cuba You Never Knew
• 15 Interesting Facts About Iceland
• 20 Exciting Things to Do in Egypt – Plus A Few Fun Facts
• 23 Interesting Facts About Costa Rica
• Discover These Fun Facts about Spain

8. The French Army Invented Camouflage 

Did you know that the French Army was the one to invent camouflage? The French invented camouflage during World War I in 1915. They hired artists to paint both their vehicles and their guns so that they would blend in with the environment around them. They did this by painting lines that would distract from the shape of the object.

About a year after the French started camouflaging their equipment, other countries began doing the same thing. Each country had its own style of camouflage.

9. It’s Unlucky to Turn a Baguette Upside Down

The French believe that placing a baguette (or any type of bread) upside down on a table can cause bad luck. This legend dates all the way back to the Middle Ages and has never gone away.

Back in the Middle Ages, the town executioner would often not have time to pick up their bread in the morning. The baker would hang a loaf upside down for the executioner to pick up later on in the day.

Because of this practice in the Middle Ages, over time, upside-down bread became a symbol of fear and death. People would avoid any upside-down bread to avoid misfortune. 

If you ever get the chance to visit France, be sure that you do not place any bread on the table upside down. Also, if you see any upside-down bread, avoid it!

10. The Tour de France is More than 100 Years Old

We watch the Tour de France every year. (Even COVID-19 couldn’t hold it back) But did you know that the famous cycling race has been running since 1903? Since its humble beginnings, it is now the most prestigious cycling race in the world lasting 23 days and covering more than 3383 km (2102 miles)

11. The French Drink Over 11 Million Glasses of Wine Each Year

Of all the countries in the world, France consumes the second-largest amount of wine. In total, the French consume approximately 25 million hectoliters per year. They are second to the United States, which consumes about 30 million hectoliters.

In addition to consuming a ton of wine, France is also known for creating the most expensive wine in the world. T his bottle of wine costs around $21,000! While you probably won’t get the chance to try the most expensive wine in France, you may get the opportunity to try some French wine. 

Here are some of the most popular French regions for wine:

• Rhode Valley
• Provence (close to  Marseille, France )

If you ever find yourself in one of these French regions, be sure to stop and taste the wine. You also could pair the wine with some of the cheese that we mentioned earlier.

Fast France Facts

• Capital City: Paris, France
• Population of France: 68 million people
• National Motto: Liberté, égalitié, fraternité – Cool Fact: This is also the national motto of Haiti. It means Liberty, Equality and Fraternity
• The French Flag is Blue White and Red. Le Drapeau Tricolore is translated to The Three-Coloured Flag. (How appropriate)
• French is the official language of 29 countries in the world. (Canada is one of them)
• In Fact, French was once the official language of England! From 1066 to 1362 after the Norman Conquest.

Did You Enjoy These Fun Facts About France?

France is a country that is full of history, culture, and amazing experiences. There are so many fun facts about France that it is impossible to cover them all. 

If you want to experience all that France has to offer, then you should book a trip to Europe’s largest country right away! It is the most popular tourist destination for a reason.

If you love traveling and want to see more posts like this one, be sure to  check out our destinations section  for more travel inspiration. Also, leave a comment down below if you have additional fun facts about France to share.

Read More Fun Facts Around the World

• Italy:   Fun Facts About Italy
• Germany : Top 15 Fun Facts About Germany That You Probably Didn’t Know
• England: 10 Fun Facts About England That You Don’t Already Know
• Greece: 25 Interesting and Fun Facts About Greece
• Canada : 72 Funny And Interesting Facts About Canada
• Belgium: Facts About Belgium

Read More About France

• Paris:   Where To Stay In Paris – Best Neighborhoods and Hotels
• Paris : 3 Days in Paris: The Best Paris Itinerary for Your First Visit
• Marseille :  Things to do in Marseille, France
• French Riviera: Enchanting Medieval Villages in France – The French Riviera

Travel Planning Resources

Looking to book your next trip? Why not use these resources that are tried and tested by yours truly.

Flights: Start planning your trip by finding the best flight deals on Skyscanner

Book your Hotel: Find the best prices on hotels with these two providers. If you are located in Europe use Booking.com and if you are anywhere else use TripAdvisor

Find Apartment Rentals: You will find the cheapest prices on apartment rentals with VRBO . 

Travel Insurance: Don't leave home without it. Here is what we recommend:

• Allianz - Occasional Travelers.
• Medjet - Global air medical transport and travel security.

Need more help planning your trip? Make sure to check out our Resources Page where we highlight all the great companies that we trust when we are traveling.

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About The Planet D

Dave Bouskill and Debra Corbeil are the owners and founders of The Planet D. After traveling to 115 countries, on all 7 continents over the past 13 years they have become one of the foremost experts in travel. Being recognized as top travel bloggers and influencers by the likes of Forbes Magazine , the Society of American Travel Writers and USA Today has allowed them to become leaders in their field.

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6 thoughts on “11 Interesting and Fun Facts About France”

I love the 11 facts about France it help me to make my project easily. Thank you…

I really like the ones about “supermarkets can’t throw food away”. I can soooooooooooooooooo see the benefit of it.?

I love these fun facts about France that I want to book tickets in the summer. Thanks for the facts as I was looking for somewhere to go in the summer with my sister

Absolutely enjoyed reading this!! I’ve been to France countless of times since it’s one of our neighbouring countries (I grew up in Belgium and live in Luxembourg now) but I actually didn’t know most of these facts! Not even about the not-throwing-away-food-law! There are many things where France has pretty weird rules but that law is brilliant! Didn’t know the thing about the baguette either, I never paid attention to this but I will now 🙂 Thanks for sharing! Huge fan of France and I can’t wait to get back to Paris in August.

A debt of gratitude is in order for sharing this great tips to us. It’s truly needful article for everybody. It’s extraordinary article.

Great Post!!

Fun Facts About Sea Turtles

Sea turtles have long captivated tourists worldwide. Spotting one of these majestic creatures is often the highlight of coastal vacations. But sadly, sea turtles are rapidly disappearing from our oceans. Six of the seven species of sea turtle are listed as vulnerable or endangered.  

This blog explores fascinating facts about sea turtles that will help you distinguish the different species. By learning how sea turtles live, you can better understand how to identify a sea turtle’s species, where to spot sea turtles in the wild, and what they may be doing when you see them. 

Sea Turtle Species

Sea turtles can be found in most of the world’s oceans, from as far north as Greenland to as far south as the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. They often migrate across entire oceans, covering thousands of miles to find food, mate, and lay their eggs. Seven species of sea turtles can be found around the world today: hawksbill sea turtles, leatherback sea turtles, olive ridley sea turtles, kemp’s ridley sea turtles, green sea turtles, loggerhead sea turtles, and flatback sea turtles. Although all sea turtles share a common ancestor and behave in similar ways, each species has unique physical traits, diets, habitats, and migration patterns.

Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Hawksbill sea turtles are some of the most recognizable sea turtles on the planet, inhabiting waters in every ocean except the Arctic. They are prized for their unique, mottled shells. This species gets its name from its mouth, which comes to a serrated tip, much like a hawk’s beak. Hawksbills are some of the easiest turtles to identify thanks to their mottled shells, slender, bird-like heads, and mouth shape. Another identifying feature of the hawksbill sea turtle is the ragged, uneven edges on their outer shell sections, which give them an almost jagged appearance. 

Hawksbills’ sharp beaks are perfectly adapted to scraping their favorite food, sponges, off rocks. While sponges are their preferred meal, these turtles are also known to chow down on crustaceans, corals, marine algae, tunicates (sea squirts), sea urchins, small fish, and jellyfish. Their sharp beaks easily fit into small holes in corals or rocks where they scavenge for these alternate food sources when sponges are scarce.

Hawksbill sea turtles enjoy living in coral reef habitats. You are most likely to find them swimming in the Caribbean Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Indo-Pacific. Juvenile hawksbills spend most of their time in open ocean areas, floating on algae mats as they drift in the current.  

Hawksbills are one of two turtle species classified as critically endangered . Scientists estimate that hawksbill populations have declined by more than 80% over the last 100 years.

Leatherback Sea Turtle

Leatherbacks are the largest sea turtles on the planet, weighing between 500 and 1,500 pounds and reaching an average length of 6 feet. The largest leatherback ever recorded weighed over 2,000 pounds and was 10 feet long.  

These sea turtles are the only species on the planet that does not have a hard shell. Instead, leatherbacks have an internal shell consisting of interlocking bones covered in fat and rubbery skin. Their front flippers are proportionally larger than those of their turtle cousins, making them perfectly adapted to travel long distances. 

Leatherbacks primarily feed on jellyfish. Gelatinous creatures like jellyfish can be difficult to swallow, but these turtles have evolved spines in their throat to catch and hold down their food. Leatherbacks can dive deeper than other sea turtles, reaching depths of up to 4,000 feet where they hold their breath for up to 85 minutes to feed on salps that live in deep water.  

Leatherbacks have a longer migration route than other sea turtle species, traveling an average of 3,700 miles each way. They feed in colder waters and then migrate to tropical locations to lay their eggs. Leatherbacks have been observed traveling all the way from northern Canada to the Caribbean.  

Olive Ridley Sea Turtle

Named for the olive green color of their shells, this turtle species is the second-smallest on the planet. Identifying an olive ridley sea turtle can be tricky because they look similar to Kemp’s ridleys. Olive ridleys are slightly bigger than their cousins, with a heart-shaped shell and two claws on each flipper, but they have fewer scutes (hexagonal scales) on their shells.

Olive ridley sea turtles are omnivorous, meaning their diet consists of both meat and plants. They enjoy eating mollusks, algae, lobster, crabs, and sea squirts. These turtles can dive up to 500 feet deep to feed on invertebrates that live on the ocean floor.  

Olive ridley sea turtles can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans. They are mostly pelagic, meaning they spend most of their life in the open ocean. Cargo ships often spot these turtles upwards of 2,400 miles from shore. They can be found in the coastal waters of at least 80 countries, but they only engage in mass nesting behavior on select beaches in Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and India.  

Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle

The Kemp’s ridley sea turtle is the smallest and most endangered sea turtle species. Once thought to be a hybrid between a hawksbill and loggerhead sea turtle, the Kemp’s ridley is recognized as an independent species, most closely related to olive ridleys. While they look quite similar, Kemp’s ridley are slightly smaller than olive ridley sea turtles. Their shell is oval-shaped and is almost as wide as it is long. Kemp’s ridley turtles, like hawksbills, have a triangular head and hooked beak, perfect for crushing their prey.

A Kemp’s ridley sea turtle’s food of choice is crab. Occasionally, these turtles will eat shrimp, jellyfish, snails, clams, or sea stars when crabs are unavailable.  

Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are only found in the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic coast of the United States. Compared to other sea turtle species, they occupy a very small area of the globe. Unlike their olive ridley cousins, Kemp’s ridley turtles prefer to live in shallow waters with muddy or sandy bottoms. Some Kemp’s ridleys migrate, but others prefer to live in one area, feeding just offshore and occasionally heading to the beach to nest. Regardless of where they live, all Kemp’s ridley turtles engage in mass nesting behavior, choosing to nest only in northeastern Mexico.  

Green Sea Turtle

Green sea turtles are the only herbivorous sea turtle species, meaning they do not hunt for food but prefer to graze on plants and algae. Green sea turtles are among the most recognized sea turtles in the world, with popular movie characters like Finding Nemo’s Crush modeled in their likeness. These turtles have an olive-colored shell and a yellow or white underside. A distinct identifying feature of a green sea turtle is the two scales between the eyes.  

A green sea turtle’s serrated beak makes it easy for them to cut seagrass fronds and scrape algae from rocks. As babies, these turtles are omnivorous, feeding on plant and animal matter in sargassum patches in the open ocean. Once they grow large enough to venture out into the ocean and travel to seagrass beds, green sea turtles eat a predominantly vegetarian diet.

You can find green sea turtles in the Mediterranean Sea as well as the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific oceans. As adults, they tend to live in shallow waters near the shore where seagrass is abundant. Green sea turtles have been spotted as far north as Alaska, but most commonly reside in temperate or subtropical areas. They are a tourist attraction in many destinations, such as the Hawaiian islands, where turtle sightings are common on snorkeling or diving trips.

Loggerhead Sea Turtle

Loggerhead sea turtles are named for their distinctly large heads which evolved to support their powerful jaws. Loggerheads use their jaws to easily crush the hard shells of prey like sea snails, whelks, and conch. Loggerheads’ shells are heart-shaped, with a reddish brown coloration on the top and a pale yellow underside.

Loggerheads can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian Ocean, and Mediterranean Sea. Loggerheads in the Pacific undergo a nearly 8,000-mile migration from their feeding grounds in Baja California, Peru, and Chile to nesting beaches in Japan. These turtles spend the first 20 years of their lives in the open ocean, feeding on plants, animals, and sometimes trash that floats by. Once they reach maturity, they migrate to shallower waters where they eat larger prey.

Flatback Sea Turtle

Flatback sea turtles are named for the unique flat shape of their shell, which looks unlike any other sea turtle species. Flatbacks prefer shallow, murky water, rarely entering water deeper than 60 meters to feed.  

Flatbacks enjoy feeding on soft prey like sea cucumbers and jellyfish. They occasionally eat seaweed, mollusks, prawns, and other invertebrates. Flatbacks have the smallest range of all sea turtle species, residing on the Australian continental shelf, and occasionally feeding in waters off of Papua New Guinea. This species exclusively nests on Australian beaches.  

Flatbacks are the only sea turtle species not technically classified as endangered; however, this is due to a lack of data about the population. These turtles live in murky, remote waters, making them difficult for scientists to track.

Sea Turtle Biology & Behavior

Sea turtles are highly specialized to thrive in ocean environments. Although they breathe air, they have unique biological adaptations that help them spend long periods underwater, where they hunt, rest, and mate. 

How Do Sea Turtles Breathe? 

Sea turtles are reptiles, which means they have lungs to breathe air and must come on land to lay their eggs. Though they must swim to the surface to breathe, sea turtles spend most of their life underwater. Turtles can hold their breath for up to seven hours when they are resting, slowing their heart rate down to reduce the amount of oxygen their bodies need.  

How Do Sea Turtles Sleep? 

Turtles can sleep up to 11 hours a day, coming up for air between naps. In deeper waters where they cannot find rocks to rest between, sea turtles sleep on the water’s surface. During mating season, turtles enjoy sleeping on the beach, which helps them regulate their body temperature. 

What Do Sea Turtles Eat? 

Most turtles spend the majority of their lives at sea, hunting for food until it is time to migrate to the beach where they were born to nest. Adult sea turtles eat jellyfish, crustaceans, algae, or seagrass. A sea turtle’s diet varies by species. Baby sea turtles mostly feed on small animals or fronds of seaweed in the open ocean.

What Are Sea Turtles Main Predators?

As a prey species, turtles have stronger senses than humans, meaning they can sense when danger is coming much faster than we can. A big part of a turtle’s day is spent on high alert, making sure they have a place to hide from predators. Sea turtles’ main predators are sharks, though they are sometimes eaten by orcas and large fish like groupers and barracudas.

How Long Do Sea Turtles Live?

Sea turtles are slow-growing animals and most species do not reach maturity until they are at least 20 years old . They have been known to live upwards of 80 years , though their actual lifespan has yet to be determined. It is believed that there may be some turtles alive today that are almost 100 years old.

Sea Turtle Mating and Nesting

Nesting and mating seasons vary by species and location but generally occur in warmer months. The graphic below shows when and where nesting seasons are for each sea turtle species. 

While nesting occurs annually, individual sea turtles only mate and nest an average of every two to three years. After mating, females head to the beach up to three times per season to lay eggs. Females tend to return to the beaches where they were born to nest. They find these nesting sites thanks to a special sixth sense. Turtles can feel the Earth’s magnetic field, giving them a built-in compass that helps them find their way back to their home beach. 

Turtles can travel thousands of miles to find the perfect spot to nest, with some species more particular about where they lay their eggs than others. Once they find the perfect spot to lay their eggs, female sea turtles bury them in the sand. Leatherbacks are the pickiest nesters, and beaches with too much clutter are deemed unsuitable for nest building. Female leatherbacks who do not find a clean nesting site during their breeding season will not nest at all. It can be up to five years before a leatherback nests again, meaning one failed nesting season can greatly affect the species’ population.

Most sea turtle species lay their eggs at night, except Kemp’s ridley turtles who prefer to nest in daylight. Though the number of eggs varies by species, sea turtles lay an average of 100 eggs per nest .   Loggerheads lay the most eggs, while flatbacks lay the least. You can spot a sea turtle nest by looking for piles of loose sand next to turtle tracks along the beach. The longer the nest has been incubating, the harder it is to spot because sand gets compacted over the eggs with time.

The turtle eggs incubate in the warm sand for an average of 2 months before they hatch. Like many reptiles, the temperature of a sea turtle nest determines the gender of the babies that hatch from it, with warmer nests producing all female turtles and cooler nests only producing males. As climate change raises the planet’s temperature, there will be fewer male turtles when it comes time for future generations to mate. 

While most sea turtle species nest individually, both ridley species engage in mass nesting events, called arribadas , where tens of thousands of individuals descend on the beach to nest at once. These mass nesting events take place in Central and South America, as well as India. The largest arribadas take place in Odisha, India, where over 500,000 individuals have been observed nesting at once. As eggs break, bacteria grow in the soil, which can pose a threat to nearby nests.

To combat this problem, scientists in Playa Ostional, Costa Rica , have teamed up with the local community to reduce the number of broken eggs on the beach and create a new source of income for residents. Scientists and trained volunteers count the nesting turtles and inform village officials how many eggs can be harvested with special permits from the government. Thanks to their collaborative efforts, the mortality rate for olive ridley hatchlings has reduced significantly since the project began. Tourists can watch nesting turtles on the beach with a certified guide and head to a local cafe to try sangrita , a raw turtle egg with a few dashes of hot sauce meant to be slurped down from a shot glass. 

There are also nesting projects that benefit solitary nesting sea turtles. In Wrightsville, North Carolina, volunteers protect turtle nests , day and night, until hatchlings emerge. If beachgoers see a turtle, a nest, or turtle tracks, they can text a city hotline that dispatches a volunteer to the site to watch over the animal or guard the nest. This program prevents poaching and helps people avoid setting up their beach chairs over an active nest. In Trinidad and Tobago, the nonprofit organization Nature Seekers trains locals to be turtle tour guides and patrol leaders. The program has reduced unemployment in the country, protected countless turtles from poachers, and contributed to the success of a long-term turtle tagging effort.

Baby Sea Turtles

After the eggs incubate for 40 to 70 days, baby turtles hatch. Once they break out of their eggs, baby sea turtles are called hatchlings. 

The newly hatched turtles begin digging upwards to the surface, waiting for nightfall to run to the ocean. Baby sea turtles know how to travel to the ocean because they are born with a strong instinct to head straight for the sea as fast as they can, preparing them for the dangerous journey. When hatchlings run toward the water, they use the slope of the beach, the sound of the waves, and the light refracting off of the horizon as a guide. 

When artificial lights shine near these nests, baby turtles can get confused, mistaking the lights for the ocean, and travel in the wrong direction. Resorts, beach bars, and other businesses near nesting beaches should use turtle-friendly lights to reduce this problem.

After they reach the water, baby turtles begin what is known as a swimming frenzy, where they swim as fast as they can for days until they leave the dangerous nearshore waters. Most hatchling turtles spend the first part of their lives in the open ocean, hanging onto clumps of seaweed as they drift along the currents. From the moment they hatch, baby sea turtles face considerable obstacles, and scientists estimate that only 1 in 1,000 hatchlings survive to adulthood. 

Learn How to Protect These Incredible Animals

The seven species of sea turtles are uniquely adapted to thrive in their environments. Their lovable looks, interesting life cycles, and calm nature have captivated countless people, inspiring a large conservation movement. Sea turtles are still in danger of extinction. Still, we can all work together to save them by continuing the conversation about how important they are to ecosystems, economies, local communities, and tourists. 

We hope this blog taught you a few new facts about sea turtles. Learn more about why sea turtles are important, why they are endangered, and how you can help protect them in our next blog .

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Old Naples Pub is closing: 5 facts about popular Naples restaurant off Third Street South

You might have heard (right here, in fact) that Old Naples Pub is closing on May 31.

Founded in 1990, It’s one of the oldest restaurants in Collier County , but far from the oldest.

Whether you've stopped by the restaurant or not over the years, here's some interesting tidbits you may not have known about Old Naples Pub along Third Street South.

Who were Old Naples Pub's original partners?

Old Naples Pub’s original partners were friends Stephen Briggs and Donald Flock, Flock’s son Tim Flock, and Kent Schooley. According to Sunbiz, the latter two gentlemen remain partners at The Village Pub, which, like Old Naples Pub, is also managed by Bottleneck Management in Chicago.

An affordable menu at Old Naples Pub

Affordable pub grub rules, with menu items for less than $20. This includes nachos grande, gator tots, beer-battered onion rings, burger, fish & chips and more.

Vintage menus: What prices were like back in the day in Fort Myers, Naples

Old Naples history everywhere

Inside is a veritable museum of Old Naples history. At every turn, including the restrooms, a treasure trove of memorabilia can be admired.

There's a vintage postcard in the women's restroom, an old piano, nearby guitar and more.

What else to know about Old Naples Pub

Though the address is officially 255 13th Ave. S., the Third Street South entrance makes it the street’s southernmost.

Other popular restaurants on and near Third Street South include Campiello, The Continental, Jane’s Café, Ridgway Bar & Grill, Barbatella, Sea Salt, Mediterrano and Tommy Bahama Restaurant and Bar.

Three more long-time Naples restaurants

Naples restaurants: What are the oldest ones left when Old Naples Pub closes May 31?

• Kelly’s Fish House near Tin City opened in 1953.
• The Dock at Crayton Cove was opened in 1976 by Vin DePasquale. The restaurant changed ownership in 2019 .
• Brothers Richard and Joseph Ballo opened Marco Island's The Snook Inn in 1985. The current owner is Luigi Carvelli of Carvelli Restaurant Group .

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How to watch the 2024 Indy 500 - Start time, US TV schedule and more

This Sunday (May 26) will see one of the world's greatest motorsport events take place, as the 108th edition of the Indianapolis 500 gets underway.

With qualifying having been completed last weekend, all 34 drivers return to the iconic Indianapolis Speedway for a final practice session on Friday before Sunday's main event.

It's a weekend to remember for motorsport fans, with the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix also taking place on Sunday morning.

Here then, is how you can follow all the IndyCar action live, with information on session start times, TV schedules and driver entrants detailed below.

READ MORE: F1 Monaco Grand Prix Practice Today: Start times, schedule and ESPN coverage

When is the 2024 Indianapolis 500?

For US viewers, television coverage begins at 11:00am ET (9:00am PT) on NBC. The race can also be streamed on Peacock and IndyCar Live.

The green flag is scheduled to drop at 12:45pm ET (10:45am PT).

When was Indianapolis 500 qualifying?

Team Penske dominated qualifying, with Scott McLaughlin taking Pole, while Will Power and Josef Newgarden round out the front row. Sitting behind them on the grid will be the Arrow McLaren duo of Alexander Rossi and Kyle Larson.

SUNDAY MAY 26 12:45pm ET - Indy 500 Race

Starting Grid for the 2024 Indianapolis 500

Row 2: Alexander Rossi, Kyle Larson, Santino Ferrucci

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Row 9: Tom Blomqvist, Romain Grosjean , Linus Lundqvist

Row 10: Christian Lundgaard, Conor Daly, Pietro Fittipaldi

Row 11: Katherine Legge, Marcus Ericsson, Graham Rahal

Who is the favorite?

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‘Dropping Very Dramatically’: What Deadly Turbulence Did to a Flight

Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 was a rare instance of turbulence resulting in a death.

By Sui-Lee Wee and Muktita Suhartono

Reporting from Bangkok

The seatbelt sign came on moments after the plane started shaking, but, for some, it was too late.

“Whoever wasn’t buckled down, they were just launched into the air within the cabin,” said Dzafran Azmir, who was among the 211 passengers on board the London-to-Singapore flight that encountered deadly turbulence on Tuesday. “Within an instant, they hit the ceiling of the cabin and dropped right back onto the floor.”

The plane, a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300 ER, had taken off from London’s Heathrow Airport on Monday night, about 10 hours earlier. It was about three-quarters full. Many of the travelers were Singaporeans returning home. Some were students studying in England. Others were families and some who had planned a “holiday of a lifetime” to far-flung destinations like Australia.

The bulk of the 13-hour journey of flight SQ321 was over, and many passengers had finished their last meal onboard, a breakfast that these days has been a choice between an omelet with cream cheese or stir-fried Asian noodles, both served with a side of fresh fruit.

By this time, the plane had reached the Bay of Bengal, which sits between the Indian subcontinent and the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Some pilots consider the region “notorious” this time of the year because its monsoon rains can cause turbulence.

But commercial pilots know how to prepare for such scenarios. They rely on weather radar and carry extra fuel so they can fly around and wait for the weather to ease, if needed. Or they follow the course charted by other planes that recently have passed through the area and have warned air traffic controllers about weather upheavals.

One scenario that is impossible to prepare for is when the skies are clear and the plane’s radar does not detect anything amiss. This phenomenon is known as clear air turbulence.

“It could be the plane just starts shaking, we turn on the seatbelt sign, but, unknowingly, we fall into the clear air turbulence zone,” said Captain Teerawat Angkasakulkiat, president of the Thai Pilots Association. “It’s totally unpredictable.”

It’s unclear what happened next with SQ321, but there had been thunderstorms near its flight path. As it was flying over Myanmar, cruising at 37,000 feet above the southern section of the country’s biggest river, the Irrawaddy, it hit what the airline later described as “sudden extreme turbulence.”

For the next three to five minutes, the plane shook violently, said Mr. Dzafran, 28, a university student heading home to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, who was buckled into a window seat in row 52.

“Then it built up, like a feeling of going up a roller coaster, up the crest, and suddenly dropping very dramatically,” he recalled.

His bag, stored under the seat in front of him, flew across the plane, and his phone was flung across the aisle. The woman sitting in the row in front of Mr. Dzafran hit her head so hard on the plastic seatbelt indicator sign above her that it broke. Oxygen masks dropped down from the overhead panel. The person behind him hit a seat. Mr. Dzafran was unharmed, but the other two passengers had bloody gashes on their heads.

At least one passenger, it appeared, was able to react quickly enough and buckle her seatbelt. It was a woman sitting behind Mr. Dzafran.

“That was miraculous luck on her side to respond so quickly,” he said.

Another passenger, Teandra Tukhunen, who was sleeping, was not able to react as fast. She was awakened by the turbulence and saw the seatbelt sign come on, but she had no time to fasten it and was thrown to the ceiling, then to the floor, Ms. Tukhunen, 30, a native of Australia, told Sky News from a hospital in Bangkok, her arm in a sling.

Elsewhere on the plane, people started crying and screaming out in pain. The whiplash was so furious that one passenger said that it appeared as if those who had been walking around on the plane were doing somersaults. Dozens of people, including some crew members, were injured.

As things settled down, it was clear that one of the worst affected passengers was a male traveler, Geoff Kitchen. A grandfather of two who ran a local theater group in the town of Thornbury in southwest England, Mr. Kitchen, 73, had planned a six-week “holiday of a lifetime” to Australia and Southeast Asia with his wife of 50 years, Linda.

Andrew Davies, who was sitting in front of Mr. Kitchen, helped carry him out of his seat and laid him on the floor, where he was given C.P.R. for at least 20 minutes.

With the plane now in Thailand’s airspace, the pilot placed a distress call to Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, asking to make an emergency landing. Then he made an in-flight announcement about the new destination, and asked for anyone who was medically trained to help passengers with injuries.

Forty-five minutes after the ordeal began, Mr. Dzafran said, the plane landed. It was 3.45 p.m. local time.

Several ambulances with flashing lights were standing by. The passengers waited patiently while nurses, emergency medical workers and doctors rushed in to treat the critically injured first. A total of 83 people were injured. Twenty of them were sent to the intensive care unit of a local hospital.

Drew Kessler, the New York-based treasurer of Rotary International who was en route to Singapore for the annual Rotary International Convention, said he had broken his neck while his wife, Vicki, had broken her back.

As Mr. Dzafran prepared to disembark, the crew told passengers to avoid one of the aisles. Mr. Dzafran said he thinks he saw someone lying on the floor. Flight attendants near the business and first class zones were bleeding. Food was strewn across the galleys.

The passengers, dazed and confused, boarded a bus from the tarmac and arrived to a holding area inside the Bangkok airport. Conversations were struck up. A fellow passenger told Mr. Dzafran that someone had died on the plane and showed Mr. Dzafran an online news article. It was Mr. Kitchen. He was the only fatality — one of the few ever blamed on turbulence — and the cause of death hasn’t been released yet.

Singapore Airlines has apologized for the episode, and its investigators have arrived in Bangkok to try to understand what happened.

Mr. Dzafran was among the 143 passengers who emerged unscathed. So was his seatmate, who he said also had her seatbelt on.

Sui-Lee Wee is the Southeast Asia bureau chief for The Times, overseeing coverage of 11 countries in the region. More about Sui-Lee Wee

Muktita Suhartono reports on Thailand and Indonesia. She is based in Bangkok. More about Muktita Suhartono