Top most dangerous water bodies on earth

There are quite few things that a man cannot do without. Water is one of them. Fortunately for us, mother nature has been very kind and generous - creating springing water bodies even in the driest and rockiest regions of the earth. 

However, our great mother has not been so benevolent in her generosity because some of these water bodies even as they done our horizons turned out to be curses to humanity- with some going to the length of becoming outright deathtraps. Indiscriminate behavior of humans itself have not been quite helpful in de-worsening the situation as they have single-handedly turned various harmless water bodies into black death zones.

These zones are littered all over the planet. So today, we would be looking at the top most deadly waters in the world.

Lets start from the bubbler of civilization itself - Europe;

Rio Tinto River - Spain

Flickr
Now, what river in its healthy condition has deep red waters. Yes, that’s the colour of the Rio Tinto, the first warning of its blatant deadliness. River Tinto  a highly acidic river with a pH going  as low as 1.7. 

Wells its curse is directly inked to its blessing- can you imagine? Its beds are so rich in heavy metals like gold, silver, and copper such that it has been the major source of finance for cities over the years. Now, due to  years of intense and indiscriminate mining, pollution became inevitable. The river became a breeding environment fir chemolithotrophic organisms such as iron-oxidizing bacteria and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria. In short, It became a dead spring flowing.

Boiling Lake, Dominica Republic

      Flickr/Jean and Nathalie

Located in the Morne Trois Pitons National Park, this Lake is actually the world's second largest hot spring and unarguably the hottest. The water temperature along its edges usually go as high as  82 to 92 degrees  and the center's temperature is – ( well you can go and check that out for yourself, I am definitely not trying). Before you go, you will need to be armed with a useful information that the centre is always boiling!!! You can thank me later.

Lake Kivu, Rwanda and  Democratic Republic of Congo Border

Flickr/YAOTieno


If you did some basic geography,you must have heard of the  Great Rift Valley that is slowly being pulled apart with accompanying terrific volcanic activity. Well, It's mostly known for its maximum depth of 485 meters – and this!  250 cubic kilometers of carbon dioxide and 65 cubic kilometers of methane gas!!!

What can be deadlier? Surprisingly, it does not lack swimmers – nor casualties.

Citarum River, Indonesia

Flickr/Jordi Bernabeu Farrús

Believe it or not, that picture is very real. River Citarum is famous globally for one thing -  garbage!. And all man-made. The place is so filled with non-biodegradable waste and harmful chemicals that it's known to be the world's most polluted river.

Sources range from the 200 textile factories lining the river bank that dyes and chemicals like arsenic and mercury  into the river to the millions of residents who treat the river as a huge trash bin. Of course,  no one's crazy enough would drink water from this dumpsite. Even Mad Max.

Lake Karachay, Russia

Lake Karachay is a small lake in the southern Ural mountains, Russia. Since 1951 the Soviet Union used Karachay as a dumping site for radioactive waste from Mayak - one of Russias largest nuclear facility. It is one of the most polluted spot on Earth accumulating  about 4.5 exabecquerels (EBq) of radioactivity over less than 1 square mile of water! Try taking a bath in indian pepper.

The sediment of the lake is composed almost entirely of high level radioactive waste to a depth of roughly 11 feet and is sufficient to give a lethal dose to a human within 1 hour.

 Radiation from the Chernobyl disaster alone released from 5 to 12 EBq of radioactivity over thousands of square miles to aggravate the pollution of the lake.

This pollution has caused the rise of cancer and birth defect rates among the local residents living around the area. It has also gone as bad as making fishes in the lagoon blind. You can imagine...

The Blue Lagoon, Derbyshire, UK

Flickr/Colin Day


Originally an abandoned quarry in Harpur Hill called Far Hill Quarry, It got flooded and became "The Blue Lagoon" due to its striking blue tint. A very beautiful death-gate. First, the water is highly toxic with a pH level of 11.3 which is highly alkaline and can cause fungal infections such as skin and stomach problems. The lagoon also contains rubbish like  dead animals, excrement and automobile waste.

The gorge surprisingly is a popular site for outdoor activities like kayaking, boating, fishing, and hiking enthusiasts irrespective of its deadly nature.

Out of frustration, local authorities had to dye the whole lagoon black to press home the seriousness of its health threat. Well, that effort did not work. Who said there is no fun in horror?

Potomac River , Maryland–West Virginia Border, USA

Even though most people know the Potomac as the river on which  Washington, DC is situated on, the legendary river can also be associated with something less legendary: horrible deaths.

The area between Great Falls and Chain Bridge is characterized by  series of rapids and waterfalls that  can send their victims spiraling downward for almost an entire length of 1.5 kilometers. If that’s not enough, the river’s strongest currents are actually underwater, so if you mistakenly fall in, well – sorry is the name.

At least, six people die each year at the Potomac, and many more risk their lives simply by playing near or around it. There is even a large poster at the bank saying “If you enter the river, you will die” Can a red light be less glaring? But if it was that easy, folks would have stopped smoking a century ago.

Horseshoe Lake - California

Situated in the Mammoth Mountain lava dome complex in Mono County, California. Massive eruptions happened here every 5000 years and so was considered harmless (at least till the next thousand of years) until 20 years ago when the  trees around the lake miraculously started to shrivel and die.

After months of thorough analysis, perplexed scientists finally concluded the trees were choking on excessive levels of carbon dioxide seeping up from subterranean chambers.

In 2006, three people who took shelter in a nearby cave died from the high volume of carbon dioxide. Who said that there was less than a million ways to die in the west.

Lake Nyos – Cameroun, West Africa

Lake Nyos is a crater lake in the Northwest Region of Cameroon. The lake is very deep with high flank sides of an inactive volcano. Pocket of magma lies beneath the lake and leaks carbon dioxide into the water, changing it into carbonic acid turning it into a geographic death trap.

On August 21, 1986 as the result of a landslide the Lake emitted an immense cloud of CO2 suffocating 1,700 people and 3,500 livestock.

The water is so deadly that even the ravaging Boko Haram terrorist group are feared less than this water body by the locals.

Top Most Powerful photographs ever taken in history

‘The eyes are the windows to the soul’. This adage is as old as time itself and holds through innumerable boundaries.

 Pictures have proven to be one of the most trustworthy proofs in recent centuries. They have wrecked many devils, built skyscrapers and brought down mountains. Photographs have stated wars and ended battles.

Most of the groundbreaking photographs ever taken have fixed themselves in the sand of time because of their quality but mostly because of their frightening global impact. Some of them have shaped the way we think while others has directly changed the way we live.

Today we would be looking at the most influential and iconic photographs ever taken.

Lets start digging…..

FOOTPRINT ON THE MOON (1969)

On July 20, 1969, mankind left its footprint for the first time on a body which was neither sand, dirt or anything of this Earth.

Astronaut Neil Armstrong and his crew had made history—he was the first man to ever set foot on the lunar surface, a feat which would have been laughed mere decades predating to that day.

The historical event was broadcast to an excited worldwide audience.

“That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.” Armstrong famously said.

Armstrong and fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin spent the next couple of hours collecting samples, while the third member of the team, Michael Collins, remained in the command module. Apollo 11 then came back safely to Earth on July 24, 1969. The success of the mission meant that the US had won the Space Race and had fulfilled the dream of placing man on the moon.

By the way, there’s no wind on the Moon; so talking about timeless, that footprint won’t fade for millions of years.

ALBINO BOY, BIAFRA-NIGERIA (Don Mccullin, 1969)

It is said that it is the only grass that can truly explain the horrors of two elephants battling. Yes, war is only sweet in the planning room but never on the ground. 

This picture shows a Biafran albino boy whose only crime was to be caught between the Ojukwu-Gowon scuffle during the Nigerian civil war.

Since the government had completely shut borders, pictures were as scarce as food supplies. A brave British war photographer – Don Mccullin sneaked this picture into limelight to spark worldwide outrages and pressure on the Nigerian government to take actions on shipping relief materials to the ravaged region.

According to McCullin, ‘To be starving a Biafran orphan was to be in a most pitiable situation, but to be starving an albino Biafran was to be in a position beyond description. Dying of starvation, he was still ridiculed among his peers, an object of ostracism and insult’

BEAUTY ‘IN’ THE BEAST (2007)

Major Terri Gurrola breaks down upon being reunited with her daughter Gabi.

Gurrola was returning from a year-long deployment in Iraq and was scared her young daughter might have forgotten her.

Well, she didn't!!

The picture showed that even the thickest souls have a soft spot and drew tears from a good number of eyes.

THE FALLING MAN (Richard Drew, 2001)

‘The falling man’ is one of the simplest and most horrifying images from 9/11.

His identity has never been confirmed.

This picture sparked worldwide condemnation of Alquaeda and is one of the fewest photos that brought the world in contact with the real terrorism victims.

RAISING THE FLAG ON IWO JIMA

Arguably the most famous image in American military history – marines raising the stars and stripes of the American flag above Iwo Jima after an extremely violent battle with the Japanese.

Senior commanders immediately recognised the photo’s power and went about using it to shore up support (and money) for the war effort and to motivate veterans

Some of the men raising the flag were killed in battle shortly after the photo was taken, leading to confusion over who was actually in the image.

Irrespective of this, the photograph became an icon of American strength.

VIETNAM EXECUTION (Eddie Adams)

This shocking image shows South Vietnamese police chief Nguyen Ngoc Loan executing Vietcong member Nguyen Van Lem in the street during the Vietnam war.

 On February 1, 1968 - two days after the forces of the People’s Army of Vietnam and the Viet Cong set off the Tet offensive and swarmed into dozens of South Vietnamese cities, a war journalist - Eddie Adams looked through his viewfinder expecting to watch the interrogation of a bound prisoner. But alas, he got the shock of his life!!! , He saw the chief  calmly raise his .38-caliber pistol and summarily fire a bullet through Lem’s head. Without a blink of an eye!!!

To make matters worse, the general justified  by saying, “If you hesitate, if you didn’t do your duty, the men won’t follow you.”

The photo immediately sparked massive outrage against the police chief and subsequently ruined his career.

On the flip side though, you can say the man was just doing his job. Yes, i know what is going on in your head! You are now free to take a jab at me.

The freezing of the moment of Lem’s death symbolized for many the brutality over there, and the picture’s widespread publication helped galvanize growing sentiment in America about the futility of the war. It also landed the lucky folk a Pulitzer.

NAGASAKI, 20 MINUTES AFTER THE ‘LITTLE BOY’ (1945)

On August 9, 1945, America dropped the first atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Nagasaki, killing an estimated 40,000 people on impact. Thousands more would die later from burns and radiation sickness. The scene was hellish, as thousands lay dead or wounded underneath the debris. The city had been reduced to rubble.

Read about the bravest sea explorer ever in history

What’s more striking, though, is that this photo was taken 20 minutes after the explosion. The destruction still enormous is still hanging in the air.

 What’s more, on the right side of the photograph, three people stand in awe of what just happened. We really can’t even imagine what had to be going through the heads of witnesses. Magic, I guess.

THE FIFTH SOLVAY CONFERENCE (1927)

The most famous of all Solvay Conferences had the world’s best scientists discuss the newly discovered phenomenon of quantum physics. These scientists were contemporaries, but many are so individually famous that it’s astounding to see them all gathered in one place.

In the back row, sixth from the right, is Erwin Schrodinger , known for his developments in the field of quantum theory, from which he formulated the great Schrodinger equation in wave mechanics. He shared the Nobel Prize with fellow scientist Paul Dirac.

In the middle row, first from the right, stands Niels Bohr. He was the first to show that energy levels in atoms were quantized. His contributions to science have placed him as one of the founders of modern physics. On the flip side, Bohr was part of the infamous Manhattan Project that resulted in the development of the atomic bomb.

The third person from the left in the front row is the iron lady of science- Yes, the great Marie Curie. in case you don’t know her, She coined the term “radioactivity” and was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize. She was also one of the very few people to win a prize in two disciplines, chemistry and physics.

And then, Front row, fifth from the right—who could ever miss him – yes that is he himself, the lord of the  brain—it’s Albert Einstein . He was pivotal in establishing the quantum theory, as he developed the general theory of relativity. He’s also known for coming up with arguably the world’s best known equation, E=MC . Thanks to his immense contributions to modern physics, the word “Einstein” is nowadays synonymous with “genius.”

Also in pictured were icons such as  Werner and Peter Debye. To sum it up, this conference pretty much created the platform for all of modern-day physics to build upon. Having all of these incredible minds in the same picture is simply mind-blowing if not astonishing.

THE TANK MAN (1989)

The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 produced arguably one of the most iconic images of the 20th century. Here, a single man blocked a whole battalion of Chinese tanks. We can see that the famous unnamed protester is carrying groceries—he wasn’t some freedom fighter trying to prove a point. He was a regular guy just going about his day.

To the right side, we can also see the approaching tanks, which will eventually came to a halt. While all of this is taking place, civilians scramble for safety. But one man, not visibly different from the rest, chooses to stay put. 

....This Way...

It shows that you, I, or anyone (as ordinary as we think we may be) can do extraordinary feats if we really want to.

THE BURNING MONK (1963)

This shocking photograph of  Quang Duc, a monk who set himself on fire at a busy Saigon road intersection was taken  in 1963.

 He died protesting the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government. The regime had made life very difficult for Buddhists, banning them from flying their traditional flag or practicing their belief.

Quang Duc emerged from a car just outside of the Cambodian Embassy, accompanied by two other monks. He calmly sat down in a traditional meditative position while another monk soaked him in Petrol. Quang Duc didn’t even flinch as the other monk struck a match and set him ablaze. Onlookers were mostly shocked, but some of them actually stopped and prayed as the monk burned alive.

His protest sparked worldwide media battering. The image made headlines all over the globe within hours.

 According to President John F. Kennedy: “No news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as that one.”

THE VERSAILLES SIGNING (1919)

The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties that ended World War I. One of the most important one.

Even though peace treaties in general are usually fair and transparent, this particular one - frankly, was terrible. Infact, a pure wreck. Its terms were based on bitterness and revenge, rather than logic.

It put full responsibility of the war on Germany as if they were the only with a gun, making the country pay insanely high reparations (which it didn’t finish paying off until 2010 ).

 This created a huge dent on Germany’s economy, made the nation all too eager to regain strength at any price, and ultimately set the stage for World War II.

So much for peace.

TENZING NORGAY ON EVEREST’S SUMMIT (1953)

Shown above is Tenzing Norgay. On May 29, 1953, he and his companion Edmund Hillary became the first individuals known to reach the summit of Everest. They had managed to conquer the world’s highest mountain a mere three days before Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation.

 Ceremonially, the news didn’t reach the world until the morning of the coronation itself.

The duo spent only about a quarter of an hour on the summit. Hillary then took the famous photo of Tenzing posing with his ice axe, but when Tenzing asked to return the favor, the New Zealander refused .

They took some additional photographs as proof, and with that, the duo slowly began the dangerous descent back to civilization and fame.

This picture shows what great things can be achieved by sheer willpower and determination.