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Your Weekly Escape

Extraordinary people, discoveries, and places

This week, explore the birth of the "modern Prometheus" and the year without a summer that helped light the spark. Plus: the source of a strange rumble that rippled across the Earth; America's first murder hornet nest; who really discovered Antarctica?

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How did a teenage girl became the mother of horror? The story begins with a volcano.

In the summer of 1816, reports of odd weather came in from all quarters: summer frosts in North America, red snow in Italy, and eight weeks of nonstop rain in Ireland. It just so happens that during this "year without a summer" Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, later Mary Shelley, crafted her masterpiece.

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PHOTOGRAPH BY NASA EARTH OBSERVATORY

In 1815, a volcanic eruption triggered a global catastrophe

Indonesia's Tambora eruption injected about 100 megatons of sulfur aerosols into the stratosphere, a gaseous surge that eventually morphed into a global haze and sparked a climate crisis. Here's how it unfolded.

THE YEAR WITHOUT A SUMMER

PHOTOGRAPH BY HEMIS/ALAMY

Strange waves rippled around Earth. Now we may know why.

On May 10, 2018, thousands of earthquakes rattled the tiny island of Mayotte. In the midst of this seismic swarm, a strange low-frequency rumble rippled around the world, ringing sensors nearly 11,000 miles away—and baffling scientists.

SOLVING A GEOLOGIC MYSTERY

PHOTOGRAPH BY HERBERT G. PONTING, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

Who really discovered Antarctica? That depends on how you define 'discovered.'

The fateful spotting could be attributed to a Russian expedition on January 27, 1820—or a British one just three days later.

PHOTOGRAPH BY MARK THIESSEN AND REBECCA HALE

The untold story behind the discovery of America's first murder hornet nest

In October 2020, after months of urgent work, researchers found an Asian giant hornet hive in Washington State. Its story was just beginning.

STEVE HATHAWAY/CATERS NEWS; NG VIDEO

This giant 'sea worm' isn't what you think it is

Sea squirt. Fire body. Cockroach of the sea. This bizarre, glowing creatures can measure 26 feet or longer—and it isn't just one animal.

QUOTE

Initially, Tambora's deadly haze created strange, spectacular sunsets that inspired artists the world over. But it also reflected back a fraction of incoming sunlight, cooling the Earth by half a degree Celsius.

Michael Greshko, writer

FROM: More than 200 years ago, this volcano caused a climate catastrophe

PHOTOGRAPH BY IAN TEH

This Vietnamese national park is a spice lover's dream

Hoang Lien is home to forests of black cardamom, an essential ingredient in many Vietnamese dishes. Our writer entered the park, a collection of rugged mountains and valleys near Vietnam’s border with China, to see it harvested in the wild. The trip was both a grand adventure and a lesson in Vietnam’s recent environmental history

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OTHER GREAT READS

The curious case of the Arctic desert island that's not actually an island (Atlas Obscura) ››

On TikTok, the over-65 set is thriving (New York Times) ››

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