Welcome to our Seven Wonders of the World Natural Edition!
Many people are fascinated by the Seven Wonders of the World. But there are many natural wonders that people love to explore, too. Nature is a wondrous thing and the earth’s filled with stunning places. And they are worth exploring.
People have been exploring the world around them for centuries, and there are many natural wonders to explore. Natural wonders are beautiful and have a special way of making people feel. This post will explore seven natural wonders people enjoy exploring.
Seven Wonders of the World Natural Edition
Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in the United States, in the state of Arizona.
It’s largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park – one of the first national parks in the United States. The canyon is 277 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and attains a depth of over a mile (6,093 feet). Nearly two billion years of the Earth’s history have been exposed via the Colorado River. And its tributaries cut their channels through layer after layer of rock while the Colorado Plateaus were uplifted. And there is both the north and south rim to explore.
The exposure of geologic strata has made it possible for geologists. And other scientists to study the evolutionary sequence of life forms that inhabited this region. Many of which lived over hundreds and millions of years.
Great Barrier Reef, Australia
The Great Barrier Reef is a coral reef system that is in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Queensland, Australia. It is the largest coral reef system in the world and is home to a variety of marine life, including dolphins, sharks, and whales. We know it for its different and spectacular formations.
The Great Barrier Reef is dying. But there are conservation efforts underway. Because of climate change. And it is still one of the biggest tourist attraction in Australia.
Northern Lights
Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, is a natural phenomenon that bewilders spectators. It is caused by solar wind particles colliding with atoms in the atmosphere. This collision creates colorful lights that can be seen from the Earth’s surface.
Northern Lights are visible in the Northern Hemisphere. Specifically near the North Pole where they are known as Aurora Borealis or (Northern Lights). and near the South Pole where they are known as Aurora Australis (Southern Lights).
Northern Lights are visible in different places over the world. But given the right conditions, we can see them in the northern hemisphere. And particularly in Scandinavia, Canada, Alaska, Arctic Circle, and Iceland.
This is also my favorite of the 7 natural wonder.
Harbor of Rio De Janeiro
The Harbor of Rio de Janeiro is a natural wonder that can be found in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The harbor is surrounded by mountains and is connected to the sea via a series of channels.
The total area of the harbor is 7,500 square kilometers. The average depth of the water is 12 meters, with a maximum depth of 25 meters.
It contains over 1,200 islands and shoals.
The major attraction of this natural wonder is its tropical climate, which attracts tourists from all over the world. It also has some beautiful beaches and lush forests that provide recreation areas for visitors.
This natural wonder was first discovered in 1502 by Portuguese navigator Gaspar de Lemos. When he arrived at an island named Ilha Grande (Big Island). The name “Rio de Janeiro” was given by navigators.
The Serra do Mar runs along Brazil’s southeastern coast. And it separates the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean from the cooler waters of the South Atlantic. This chain of mountains reaches its highest elevation at Pico da Bandeira, which is 3,355 meters above sea level.
Because of this meeting between land and sea, there are many harbors along this part of Brazil’s coast. The most famous is Rio de Janeiro’s Guanabara Bay, which has been called “the most beautiful estuary in the world” by UNESCO.
Rio de Janeiro’s harbor was formed when the first Portuguese navigators arrived in Brazil in 1500. They were looking for gold, but they found none – so they started trading instead.
That means Rio is home to both a natural wonder of the world. And one of the Seven Wonders of the World for the Modern Day.
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the tallest mountain on Earth. It is in the Mahalangur section of the Himalaya Range and is in the Khumbu region of Nepal. They named it after Sir George Everest (1790-1866), who surveyed the Himalayan region between 1841-1860. In 1886, the mountain is part of Nepal Sagarmatha National Park, to protect it from poachers and over-grazing by yaks. In 1999, UNESCO designated it as a World Heritage Site.
The peak of Mount Everest reaches 29,029 feet (8,848 meters) above sea level. Many people have reached the summit since 1953 when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach their peak.
At 29,029 feet above sea level, Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world. And has attracted thrill seekers from around the globe since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first climbed it in 1953.
It lies on the border between Nepal and Tibet, China. We also know it as Chomolungma in the Tibetan language, which means “Mother Goddess of Mountains”.
Victoria Falls
Victoria Falls is the largest waterfall in the world by volume. It is on the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are about 100 feet wide and 1,700 feet (510 m) tall without being formed by a lake or dam.
Victoria Falls is one of the natural wonders of the world and is a highlight of any visit to Africa. The falls comprise two main sections – a horseshoe-shaped curtain of water with a length of 1,708 meters. And a width of 800 meters at its crest; and an unbroken sheet of water measuring 2,604 meters long by 1,375 meters wide at the center line. That is a lot of falling water!
The falls are so huge that they can be seen from space, which a big camera lens. They’re also beautiful, with their rainbow colors created by the spray of water as it falls 180 feet over the edge of a cliff.
The falls are split into two main sections that differ in height. And the larger lower falls, which are about a mile wide, and the smaller upper falls, which are about 250 feet wide. The difference in height between these two sections is only about 180 feet. But because they’re separated by over a mile of flat ground, they look much further apart than they are.
There are some amazing vantage points to check out the falls.
Paricutin Volcano, Michoacan, Mexico
Paricutin is a cinder cone volcano in Mexico, which was born in the cornfield of farmer Dionisio Pulido on February 20, 1943. It has grown steadily since then, and today reaches about 1,200 feet (370 m) above the surrounding landscape.
The volcano has been inactive since 1952, but we still consider it an active volcano because it could erupt again. The last eruption was an explosive one that destroyed most of the village.
The eruptions have been small compared to other volcanoes in Mexico, but the lava flows have covered about 500 acres (2 km2) of land since 1943. Paricutin is part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, which includes several other active volcanoes. Such as Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl.
This volcano formed in 1943 when a farmer named Dionisio Pulido noticed a strange hill growing out of his cornfield. With no apparent cause for its existence.
In 1943, Dionisio Pulido was plowing his field when he felt a bump in his plow. He pulled it up and found that there was a hole filled with ash and lava. We moved to work in another field for the rest of the day. Feeling a slight tremor.
That night, the volcano erupted with black smoke.
The next morning, there was a new mountain where the hole was! The volcano grew until it was about 300 feet tall. It began spitting out lava in 1944 and continued doing so until 1952.
Over time, it grew larger until it was nearly 1,500 feet tall at its peak.
The Paricutin Volcano, also known as the “volcano that ate a village,” as it slowly consumed two villages.
They studied the volcano’s growth and development, which was rapid and violent. Scientists believe it will eventually die out, as other volcanoes do after erupting for some time.
You can read more about the 7 Wonders of the Natural World National Geographic has more on the subject.
More About the Seven Wonders of the World Natural
7 Wonders of the World Ancient
We go over them all of them in detail in our post about the seven wonders of the Ancient world. But here is a quick list.
- Great Pyramid of Giza. The Great Pyramid, is the only Ancient Wonder that still exists.
- Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
- Statue of Zeus.
- Temple of Artemis.
- Mausoleum of Halicarnassus.
- Pharos (Lighthouse) of Alexandria.
New Seven Wonders of the World
There are also new seven wonder of the world. These new 7 wonders of the modern world wonder are everywhere from North America to China.
And all of them are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site network.
- Great Wall of China.
- Chichén Itzá (Chichen Itza) El Castillo
- Petra. the Khaznah
- Machu Picchu
- Christ the Redeemer
- Colosseum
- Taj Mahal
25 Natural Wonders of the World
Everybody has their list of natural wonders! And I am no exception. Here are our 25 Natural Wonders of the World that you can still visit.
- Komodo Island, Indonesia
- Halong Bay – Halong Bay, Vietnam is one of the most beautiful places in Southeast Asia. Ha Long Bay is a must-visit!
- Yellowstone National Park – A natural wonder of the world where you can spend a lot of time. There is some great camping in Yellowstone National Park.
- The Amazon River – The Longest River in the world.
- Amazon Rainforest – One of the least explored places on our planet. And the biggest forest in South America.
- Jeju Island
- Cape Town – Yes, this is a city in South Africa. But have you ever seen a city with more beautiful surroundings? Table Mountain should be one of the 7 natural wonders.
- Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica.
- Puerto Princesa Underground River, Philippines.
- The Sahara Desert, North Africa.
- The Galapagos Islands
- Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland
- Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- Iguazu Falls, Brazil-Argentina
- The Blue Grotto, Capri
- The River of Five Colors, Colombia
- Perito Moreno Glacier, Patagonia
These UNESCO 7 Natural Wonders of the World are worth adding to your bucket list! These showcase some of the most beautiful places that planet earth offers.
But this list isn’t an end-all, be-all. You have significant buildings like the Empire State Building. Plus all the natural places to visit in the world.