Highland Park

This "coaster" back in September of '05. Hate to burst everyone's bubble, but this is in no way, shape. or form a coaster! You sit in a bicycle-like seat, there is a basket in front of you(to hold loose articles), and you just pedal.....and pedal.....and pedal....the view was absolutely amazing! You are on top of this mountain, overlooking the water, hanging off the edge of the mountain, just pedaling! Great for taking photos.there all this talk about this ride lately? I know it was in the "10 coasters you wouldnt ride" but.....this ride is so obscure in such a random park in Japan.

The Most Extreme Conditions Ever Seen on Earth

The Longest Bolt of Lightning Ever RecordedFrom Waco to Dallas, Texas, United States - 118 Miles LongPositive lightning develops in the same way as typical lightning bolts, but the positive bolt draws electrons upward from the ground.These lightning bolts tend to be much, much stronger than regular lightning, and may carry as much as a hundred times the energy of a normal flash of lightning.These “superbolts” of lightning, thankfully, are very rare. Only about five superbolts occur for every ten million normal lightning strokes.Superbolts can reach way beyond the normal eight to ten miles of a typical lightning stroke. The longest superbolt on record reached from Waco, Texas to Dallas, after having traveled about a 118 miles.

The Largest Volcanic EruptionLa Garita Caldera in SW Colorado, United States - 1,200 cu miles

The Mariana Trench (or Marianas Trench) is the deepest part of the world’s oceans, and the deepest location on the surface of the Earth’s crust. It has a maximum depth of about 10.9 km (6.77 mi), and is located in the western North Pacific Ocean, to the east and south of the Mariana Islands, near Guam.The bottom of the trench is farther below sea level than Mount Everest is above it (8,850m/29,035ft).

This was chosen because of the firm evidence rather than theory. The eruption that created the La Garita Caldera was the largest known eruption since the Ordovician period, with a VEI magnitude of 8.The scale of La Garita volcanism was far beyond anything known in human history. The resulting deposit, known as the Fish Canyon Tuff, has a volume of approximately 5,000 cubic kilometers (1,200 cu mi), enough material to fill Lake Michigan (in comparison, the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens was only 1.2 cubic kilometers (0.3 cu mi) in volume).The area devastated by the La Garita eruption is thought to have covered a significant portion of what is now Colorado, and ash could have fallen as far as the east coast of North America and the Caribbean.

In addition to being the coldest place on earth, Anarctica is also the wettest and the driest place on earth.Most of Antarctica is covered with vast areas of snow and ice which reflect about 75% of the incoming solar radiation. Winter temperatures are also influenced by latitude, elevation and by the shortage of sunlight during the Antarctic winter. In fact, the coldest temperatures are usually during late August before the return of the sun.

Between March 15-16th, 1952, Cilaos at the center of Réunion, received approximately 74 in (6ft.2?) of rainfall. This is the greatest 24-hour precipitation total ever recorded on earth. The island also holds the record for most rainfall in 72 hours, approximately 155 in (12ft.11?) at Commerson’s Crater in March, 2007.(Sources: Wikipedia, DailyMail)

A NASA satellite recorded surface temperatures in the Lut desert of Iran as high as 71 °C (159 °F), the hottest temperature ever recorded on the surface of the Earth. This region which covers an area of about 480 kilometers is called Gandom Beriyan (the toasted wheat).Its surface is wholly matted with black volcano lava. This dark cover absorbs excessive sunshine, which due to difference of temperature with neighboring elevations forms a wind tunnel. There are reports that no living creature lives in this region. That is why this is arguably the driest place on earth next to the Dry Valleys of Antarctica.

One interior region of the Antarctic is known as The Dry Valleys. These valleys have not seen rainfall in over two million years. With the exception of one valley, whose lakes are briefly filled with water by inland flowing rivers during the summer, the Dry Valleys contain no moisture (water, ice, or snow).The reason why the Dry Valleys exist are the 200 mph Katabatic down winds which evaporate all moisture. The dry valleys are strange: except for a few steep rocks they are the only continental part of Antarctica devoid of ice.Located in the Trans-Antarctic Range, they correspond to a mountain area where evaporation (or rather, sublimation) is more important than snowfall, thus all the ice disappears, leaving dry barren land

A recorded wind speed of 318 mph, the fastest ever recorded near earth’s surface, happened on May 3rd, 1999 when an F5-tornado plowed it’s way through parts of Oklahoma leaving behind devastation and disaster.There are sources that have stated the wind speed only reached 301-302 mph, which would continue to hold the record for the highest wind speed ever recorded near earth’s surface. However,the NWS stationed in Norman, OK reported it to be 318 mph via DOW Radar. There is no other source of wind measurement that can withstand such speeds that we know of.Prior to this recording, Oklahoma still held the highest wind speed ever recorded in a tornado near Red Rock, OK on April 26th, 1991 with wind speeds of approximately

A baby girl with two faces and four eyes

In the rural Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh, 50km north east of New Delhi, a woman gave birth to a baby girl with two faces and four eyes.
The 4 day old is being hailed by villagers as the reincarnation of Ganesha – a Hindu God, who is depicted as having an elephant’s head and is patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of intellect and wisdom

Her birth was welcomed with friendly cheers, claps and offerings. Her parents, who have yet to name her have said that she is a “miracle” and “a gift from god.”

Doctors do not know whether she will be able to eat normally yet. At the moment she is being hand-fed.

If the baby girl had been born over here, she’d be considered a freak. However what I think is incredible is that her difference has been celebrated and she will grow up feeling special rather than a freak of nature.

Tumour Man Has Second Face

A man in China has undergone a second operation to remove a massive, 10kg collection of tumours that have virtually hidden his face and are warping his backbone.

His second operation will remove another section of the tumours, weighing 4.5kg.Huang suffers from Neurofibromatosis, which is a genetic disorder of the nervous system that primarily affects the development and growth of nerve tissues.

Huang Chuncai underwent his second operation to remove the tumours, which currently weigh around 10kg (22lbs), at a hospital in Guangzhou, in southern China's Guangdong province, on January 3.Huang, a 32-year-old native from a remote village in China's southern province of Hunan, said he is relieved after parts of his facial tumours, which originally weighed about 23kg, were removed in July last year.

His facial tumour first became noticeable when he was just 4 years old, the hospital said in July. Since then it grew larger at an ever faster rate, blocking his left eye, pushing his left ear to shoulder level, knocking out his teeth and deforming his backbone. Via : Reuters News

Top 10 Most Expensive Accidents in History

Challenger Explosion $5.5 BillionThe Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after takeoff due on January 28, 1986 due to a faulty O-ring. It failed to seal one of the joints, allowing pressurized gas to reach the outside. This in turn caused the external tank to dump its payload of liquid hydrogen causing a massive explosion. The cost of replacing the Space Shuttle was $2 billion in 1986 ($4.5 billion in today's dollars). The cost of investigation, problem correction, and replacement of lost equipment cost $450 million from 1986-1987 ($1 Billion in today's dollars).

Tanker Truck vs Bridge $358 MillionOn August 26, 2004, a car collided with a tanker truck containing 32,000 liters of fuel on the Wiehltal Bridge in Germany. The tanker crashed through the guardrail and fell 90 feet off the A4 Autobahn resulting in a huge explosion and fire which destroyed the load-bearing ability of the bridge. Temporary repairs cost $40 million and the cost to replace the bridge is estimated at $318

Prestige Oil Spill $12 BillionOn November 13, 2002, the Prestige oil tanker was carrying 77,000 tons of heavy fuel oil when one of its twelve tanks burst during a storm off Galicia, Spain. Fearing that the ship would sink, the captain called for help from Spanish rescue workers, expecting them to take the ship into harbour. However, pressure from local authorities forced the captain to steer the ship away from the coast. The captain tried to get help from the French and Portuguese authorities, but they too ordered the ship away from their shores. The storm eventually took its toll on the ship resulting in the tanker splitting in half and releasing 20 million gallons oil into the sea.According to a report by the Pontevedra Economist Board, the total cleanup cost $12 billion

Space Shuttle Columbia $13 BillionThe Space Shuttle Columbia was the first space worthy shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. It was destroyed during re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003 after a hole was punctured in one of the wings during launch 16 days earlier. The original cost of the shuttle was $2 Billion in 1978. That comes out to $6.3 Billion in today's dollars. $500 million was spent on the investigation, making it the costliest aircraft accident investigation in history. The search and recovery of debris cost $300 million.In the end, the total cost of the accident (not including replacement of the shuttle) came out to $13 Billion according to the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

MetroLink Crash $500 MillionOn September 12, 2008, in what was one of the worst train crashes in California history, 25 people were killed when a Metrolink commuter train crashed head-on into a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles. It is thought that the Metrolink train may have run through a red signal while the conductor was busy text messaging. Wrongful death lawsuits are expected to cause $500 million in losses for Metrolink.

Exxon Valdez $2.5 BillionThe Exxon Valdez oil spill was not a large one in relation to the world's biggest oil spills, but it was a costly one due to the remote location of Prince William Sound (accessible only by helicopter and boat). On March 24, 1989, 10.8 million gallons of oil was spilled when the ship's master, Joseph Hazelwood, left the controls and the ship crashed into a Reef. The cleanup cost Exxon $2.5 billion.

Piper Alpha Oil Rig $3.4 BillionThe world's worst off-shore oil disaster. At one time, it was the world's single largest oil producer, spewing out 317,000 barrels of oil per day. On July 6, 1988, as part of routine maintenance, technicians removed and checked safety valves which were essential in preventing dangerous build-up of liquid gas. There were 100 identical safety valves which were checked. Unfortunately, the technicians made a mistake and forgot to replace one of them. At 10 PM that same night, a technician pressed a start button for the liquid gas pumps and the world's most expensive oil rig accident was set in motion.Within 2 hours, the 300 foot platform was engulfed in flames. It eventually collapsed, killing 167 workers and resulting in $3.4 Billion in damages.

B-2 Bomber Crash $1.4 BillionHere we have our first billion dollar accident (and we're only #7 on the list). This B-2 stealth bomber crashed shortly after taking off from an air base in Guam on February 23, 2008. Investigators blamed distorted data in the flight control computers caused by moisture in the system. This resulted in the aircraft making a sudden nose-up move which made the B-2 stall and crash. This was 1 of only 21 ever built and was the most expensive aviation accident in history. Both pilots were able to eject to safety.

Titanic $150 MillionThe sinking of the Titanic is possibly the most famous accident in the world. But it barely makes our list of top 10 most expensive. On April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage and was considered to be the most luxurious ocean liner ever built. Over 1,500 people lost their lives when the ship ran into an iceberg and sunk in frigid waters. The ship cost $7 million to build ($150 million in today's dollars).