Mount Everest – also called Sagarmatha (Nepali: सगरमाथा), Chomolungma or Qomolangma (Tibetan: ཇོ་མོ་གླང་མ) or Zhumulangma (Chinese: 珠穆朗玛峰 Zhūmùlǎngmǎ Fēng) – is the highest mountain on Earth, as measured by the height above sea level of its summit, 8,848 metres (29,029 ft). The mountain, which is part of the Himalaya range in High Asia, is located on the border between Sagarmatha Zone, Nepal, and Tibet, China.

In 1856, the Great Trigonometric Survey of India established the first published height of Everest, then known as Peak XV, at 29,002 ft (8,840 m). In 1865, Everest was given its official English name by the Royal Geographical Society upon recommendation of Andrew Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India at the time. Chomolungma had been in common use by Tibetans for centuries, but Waugh was unable to propose an established local name because Nepal and Tibet were closed to foreigners.

The highest mountain in the world attracts climbers of all levels, from well experienced mountaineers to novice climbers willing to pay substantial sums to professional mountain guides to complete a successful climb. The mountain, while not posing substantial technical climbing difficulty on the standard route (other eight-thousanders such as K2 or Nanga Parbat are much more difficult), still has many inherent dangers such as altitude sickness, weather and wind. By the end of the 2008 climbing season, there had been 4,102 ascents to the summit by about 2,700 individuals.[4] Climbers are a significant source of tourist revenue for Nepal, whose government also requires all prospective climbers to obtain an expensive permit, costing up to US$25,000 per person.[5] Everest has claimed 210 lives, including eight who perished during a 1996 storm high on the mountain. Conditions are so difficult in the death zone that most corpses have been left where they fell. Some of them are visible from standard climbing routes.[6].

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everest

Perth (pronounced /ˈpɜrθ/[2]) is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. With a population of 1,650,000 (2009), Perth ranks fourth amongst the nation's cities, with a growth rate consistently above the national average.[3]

Perth was founded on 12 June 1829 by Captain James Stirling as the political centre of the free settler Swan River Colony. It has continued to serve as the seat of Government for Western Australia to the present day. Its port, Fremantle is a city in its own right and slightly older than Perth.

The metropolitan area is located in the south west of the continent between the Indian Ocean and a low coastal escarpment known as the Darling Range. The central business district and suburbs of Perth are situated on the Swan River. Perth is ranked 4th on The Economist's 2008 list of the World's Most Livable Cities.[4]

Perth became known worldwide as the "City of Lights" as city residents lit their houselights and streetlights as American astronaut John Glenn passed overhead while orbiting the earth on Friendship 7 in 1962.[5] The city repeated its feat as Glenn passed overhead on the Space Shuttle in 1998.[6][7]

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth,_Western_Australia

Moscow (Russian: Москвa, romanised: Moskva, IPA: ru-Moskva.ogg [mɐˈskva] (help·info); see also other names) is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe,[4] and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a global city. It is also the seventh largest city proper in the world, a megacity. Population of Moscow with Moscow Region is 17,001,292 (as of the 2002 Census)[5].

It is located on the Moscow River in the Central Federal District, in the European part of Russia. Historically, it was the capital of the former Soviet Union, Russian Empire, Tsardom of Russia and the Grand Duchy of Moscow. It is the site of the Moscow Kremlin, one of the World Heritage Sites in city, which serves as the residence of the President of Russia. The Russian parliament (the State Duma and the Federation Council) and the Government of Russia also sit in Moscow.

Moscow is a major economic centre and is home to one of the largest numbers of billionaires in the world;[6] in 2008 Moscow was named the world's most expensive city for foreign employees for the third year in a row.[7]

It is home to many scientific and educational institutions, as well as numerous sport facilities. It possesses a complex transport system, that includes 3 international airports, 9 railroad terminals, and the world's second busiest (after Tokyo) metro system which is famous for its architecture and artwork. Its metro is the busiest single-operator subway in the world.

A person from Moscow is called a Muscovite in English, Moskvich[8] in Russian.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moscow

Saint Petersburg (Russian: Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg Санкт-Петербу́рг (help·info), tr.: Sankt-Peterburg, Russian pronunciation: [sankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk]) is a city and a federal subject (a federal city) of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city's other names were Petrograd (Петрогра́д, 1914–1924) and Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991). It is often called just Petersburg (Петербу́рг) and is informally known as Piter (Пи́тер).

Founded by Tsar Peter I of Russia on 27 May, 1703, it was the capital of the Russian Empire for more than two hundred years (1713–1728, 1732–1918). Saint Petersburg ceased being the capital in 1918 after the Russian Revolution of 1917.[8] It is Russia's second largest city after Moscow with 4.6 million inhabitants, and over 6 million people live in its vicinity. Saint Petersburg is a major European cultural centre, and an important Russian port on the Baltic Sea.

Saint Petersburg is often described as the most Western city of Russia.[9] Among cities of the world with over one million people, Saint Petersburg is the northernmost. The Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Russia's political and cultural centre for 200 years, the city is sometimes referred to in Russia as the northern capital. A large number of foreign consulates, international corporations, banks and other businesses are located in Saint Petersburg.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankt_Petersburg

La Silla Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Chile with eighteen telescopes. Nine of these telescopes were built by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) organisation, and several of the others are partly maintained by ESO. The observatory is one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.

La Silla is a 2400 m high mountain, bordering the southern extremity of the Atacama Desert in Chile. It is located about 160 km north of La Serena, 27 km south of Las Campanas Observatory, and 100 km north of Cerro Tololo Observatory.

Originally known as Cinchado, the mountain was renamed La Silla (the saddle) after its shape. It rises quite isolated and remote from any artificial light and dust sources. La Silla was the first observatory in Chile used by ESO.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Silla_Observatory

The Kamchatka Peninsula (Russian: полуостров Камчатка) is a 1,250-kilometer long peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of 472,300 km². It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west.[1] Immediately offshore along the Pacific coast of the peninsula runs the 10,500 meter deep Kuril-Kamchatka Trench.

The Kamchatka Peninsula, the Commander Islands, and Karaginsky Island constitute the Kamchatka Krai of the Russian Federation. The majority of the 402,500 inhabitants are Russians, but there are also about 13,000 Koryaks. More than half of the population lives in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (198,028 people) and nearby Yelizovo (41,533).

The Kamchatka peninsula contains the Volcanoes of Kamchatka UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Kamchatka receives up to 2,700 millimeters (110 in) of precipitation per year. The summers are moderately cool, and the winters tend to be rather stormy with rare amounts of lightning.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamchatka_Peninsula

Auroras, sometimes called the northern and southern (polar) lights or aurorae (singular: aurora), are natural light displays in the sky, usually observed at night, particularly in the polar regions. They typically occur in the ionosphere. They are also referred to as polar auroras. In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis, named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for north wind, Boreas by Pierre Gassendi in 1621.[1] The aurora borealis is also called the northern polar lights, as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the North Magnetic Pole, which is currently in the arctic islands of northern Canada. Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from further away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the sun was rising from an unusual direction. The aurora borealis most often occurs from September to October and from March to April. The northern lights have had a number of names throughout history. The Cree people call this phenomenon the "Dance of the Spirits." Auroras can be spotted throughout the world. It is most visible closer to the poles due to the longer periods of darkness and the magnetic field.

Its southern counterpart, the aurora australis or the southern polar lights, has similar properties, but is only visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, South America, or Australasia. Australis is the Latin word for "of the South."

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora_(astronomy)

Calgary (pronounced /ˈkælɡri, ˈkælɡəri/) is the largest city in the province of Alberta, Canada. Calgary CMA is the third most diverse in Canada in terms of visible minorities after Toronto and Vancouver when considering only CMAs with population greater than 200,000.[4] It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and high plains, approximately 80 km (50 mi) east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies. The city is located in the Parkland region of Alberta. Calgary is the third largest civic municipality, by population, in Canada. As of the 2008 civic census, Calgary's population was 1,042,892.[3] The metropolitan population (CMA) was 1,169,492 in 2008,[5] making Greater Calgary the fifth largest census metropolitan area in the country after Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and Ottawa. Because it is located 298 km (185 mi) due south of Edmonton, statisticians define the narrow populated area between these cities as the "Calgary-Edmonton Corridor."[6] Calgary is the largest Canadian metropolitan area between Toronto and Vancouver.

Calgary is well-known as a destination for winter sports and ecotourism with a number of major mountain resorts near the city and metropolitan area. Economic activity in Calgary is mostly centred on the petroleum industry; however, agriculture, tourism, and high-tech industries also contribute to the city's economic growth. Calgary holds many major annual festivals which include the Calgary Stampede, the Folk Music Festival, the Lilac Festival, One Yellow Rabbit High Performance Rodeo — Calgary's International Festival of the Arts, Wordfest: Banff-Calgary International Writers Festival, Calgary International Spoken Word Festival, One World Festival (GlobalFest), and the fourth largest Caribbean festival in the country (Carifest). In 1988, Calgary became the first Canadian city to host the Olympic Winter Games, and one of the fastest long track speed skating ice rinks in the world was built at the University of Calgary to accommodate these Games.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calgary

The Niagara Falls are voluminous waterfalls on the Niagara River, straddling the international border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York. The falls are 17 miles (27 km) north-northwest of Buffalo, New York and 75 miles (120 km) south-southeast of Toronto, Ontario, between the twin cities of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and Niagara Falls, New York.

Niagara Falls is composed of two major sections separated by Goat Island: Horseshoe Falls, the majority of which lies on the Canadian side of the border, and American Falls on the American side. The smaller Bridal Veil Falls are also located on the American side, separated from the main falls by Luna Island.

Niagara Falls were formed when glaciers receded at the end of the Wisconsin glaciation (the last ice age), and water from the newly-formed Great Lakes carved a path through the Niagara Escarpment en route to the Atlantic Ocean. While not exceptionally high, the Niagara Falls are very wide. More than six million cubic feet (168,000 m³) of water falls over the crest line every minute in high flow,[1] and almost 4 million cubic feet (110,000 m³) on average. It is the most powerful waterfall in North America.[2]

The Niagara Falls are renowned both for their beauty and as a valuable source of hydroelectric power. Managing the balance between recreational, commercial, and industrial uses has been a challenge for the stewards of the falls since the 1800s.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_Falls

The Maldives (en-us-Maldives.ogg /ˈmɒldaɪvz/ (help·info) or /ˈmɒldiːvz/), (Dhivehi: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ Dhivehi Raa’j) or Maldive Islands, officially the Republic of Maldives, is an island country consisting of a group of atolls stretching south of India's Lakshadweep islands between Minicoy Island and the Chagos Archipelago, and about seven hundred kilometres (435 mi) south-west of Sri Lanka in the Laccadive Sea of Indian Ocean. The twenty-six atolls of Maldives encompass a territory featuring 1,192 islets, of which two hundred islands are inhabited.[3]

The original inhabitants were Buddhist, probably since Ashoka's period,[citation needed] in the 3rd century BC. Islam was introduced in 1153. The Maldives then came under the influence of the Portuguese (1558) and the Dutch (1654) seaborne empires. In 1887 it became a British protectorate. In 1965, the Maldives obtained independence from Britain (originally under the name "Maldive Islands"), and in 1968 the Sultanate was replaced by a Republic.

The Maldives is the smallest Asian country in terms of both population and area; it is the smallest predominantly Muslim nation in the world. With an average ground level of 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) above sea level,[4] it is also the country with the lowest highest point in the world, at 2.3 metres (7 ft 7 in).[5]

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maldives

Lake Ladoga (Russian: Лáдожское Óзеро, Ladozhskoye Ozero; Finnish: Laatokka) is a freshwater lake located in Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia, not far from Saint Petersburg. It is the largest lake in Europe, and the 14th largest lake by area in the world.

The lake's area is 17,891 km² (excluding the islands). Its length (north to south) is 219 km, average width is 83 km, average depth is 51 m, maximum depth is about 230 m (in the north-western part). Basin area: 276,000 km², volume: 837 km³[1] (earlier estimated as 908 km³);. There are about 660 islands, with a total area of 435 km². Ladoga's level above the sea is 5 m on average.[2] Most of the islands, including the famous Valaam archipelago, Kilpola and Konevets, are situated in the north-western part.

Separated from the Baltic Sea by the Karelian Isthmus, it drains into the Gulf of Finland via the Neva River.

Lake Ladoga is navigable, being a part of the Volga-Baltic Waterway connecting the Baltic Sea with the Volga River. The Ladoga Canal bypasses the lake in the southern part, connecting the Neva to the Svir.

The basin of Lake Ladoga includes about 50,000 lakes and 3,500 rivers longer than 10 km. About 85% of the water income is due to tributaries, 13% is due to precipitation, and 2% is due to underground waters.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladozhskoe_Ozero

The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, or the Bay, is a metropolitan region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo bays in Northern California.

It encompasses large cities such as San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas. Overall, the Bay Area consists of nine counties, 101 cities, and 7,000 square miles.[1] The nine counties are Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma.[2][3]

The Bay Area encompasses the metropolitan areas of San Francisco (12th largest in the country) and San Jose (31st largest in the country), as well as four other smaller, surrounding metropolitan areas. When defined as a Combined Statistical Area, the Bay Area is the sixth largest in the country, including over 7.2 million people.[4] The Bay Area hosts many cities, towns, military bases, airports, and associated regional, state, and national parks, connected by a massive network of roads, highways, railroads, bridges, tunnels and commuter rail. The combined urban area of San Francisco and San Jose is the 46th largest urban area in the world.

San Francisco is the financial center of the Bay Area (and has the second highest population density in the nation after New York City), while San Jose is the center of Silicon Valley and the most populous city. The Bay Area is renowned for its natural beauty, liberal politics, affluence, diversity, and new age reputation.[5][6]

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_Bay_Area

The Sombrero Galaxy (also known as M104 or NGC 4594) is an unbarred spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo. It has a bright nucleus, an unusually large central bulge, and a prominent dust lane in its inclined disk. The dark dust lane and the bulge give this galaxy the appearance of a sombrero. The galaxy has an apparent magnitude of +9.0, making it easily visible with amateur telescopes. The large bulge, the central supermassive black hole, and the dust lane all attract the attention of professional astronomers.

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sombrero_Galaxy

Shanghai (Chinese: 上海) is the largest city in China in terms of population and one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world, with over 20 million people.[5] Located on China's central eastern coast at the mouth of the Yangtze River, the city is administered as a municipality of the People's Republic of China with province-level status.[6]

Originally a fishing and textiles town, Shanghai grew to importance in the 19th century due to its favourable port location and as one of the cities opened to foreign trade by the 1842 Treaty of Nanking.[7] The city flourished as a center of commerce between east and west, and became a multinational hub of finance and business by the 1930s.[8] However, Shanghai's prosperity was interrupted after the 1949 Communist takeover and the subsequent cessation of foreign investment. Economic reforms in 1990 resulted in intense development and financing in Shanghai, and in 2005 Shanghai became the world's largest cargo port.[9]

The city is a tourist destination renowned for its historical landmarks such as the Bund and Chenghuang Miao, its modern and ever-expanding Pudong skyline including the Oriental Pearl Tower, and its new reputation as a cosmopolitan center of culture and design.[10][11] Today, Shanghai is the largest center of commerce and finance in mainland China, and has been described as the "showpiece" of the world's fastest-growing economy.[12]

(c) wikipedia.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai