Podcast Episodes

American Chestnut Foundation (Classic)

The story of the unimaginable destruction of the American Chestnut tree and the group of scientists, academics and tree lovers who are desperately trying to bring them back from the edge of extinctio…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

The Mirror Lab (Classic)

A spinning furnace tucked under the football stadium at the University of Arizona is building giant telescope mirrors. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: 

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/richard-f-caris-mirr…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Åtvidaberg Sun Cannon (Classic)

Sun cannons have been around since the 1600s. But as far as we know, there’s only one left that’s still up and running. We pay it a visit. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Chile Pepper Institute

Habaneros!  Jalapenos! Green! Red! These days, an appreciation for chiles is pretty mainstream. But that wasn’t always the case. We head to New Mexico to learn how this food became such a huge part o…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Fugitive Train Wreck

A North Carolina town has become a draw for people who want to see the wreckage of the train wreck from the movie “The Fugitive.” But a more interesting – and true – story happened just a pistol shot…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Theatricum Botanicum

A once-blacklisted Hollywood star created a magical theater in Topanga Canyon, California, that still endures and inspires today.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/theatricum…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Voynich Manuscript

One of the oldest books in the world is also the most misunderstood. A medievalist tells us about the Voynich, which is in the collection of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale. 

REA…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Big Bertha Drum (Classic)

She’s about 8 feet wide and 500 pounds. And her history spans all the way from the stockyards of Chicago... to a nuclear test during the Manhattan Project...to a stadium at the University of Texas at…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Kilwa Kisiwani (Classic)

We dig through more than 1,000 years of dirt, history,  colonialism, and myth on the Swahili Coast.

Read more in the Atlas: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/kilwa-kisiwani-ruins

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago

Butter Sculptures

Where can you find the smoothest, most scrumptious edible art? If you ask our host, Dylan, it’s in the Minnesota State Fair butter sculpture room. He’s joined in this episode by Gastro Obscura writer…

Published on 2 years, 7 months ago