74 Items Tagged

Sewers

Beneath downtown Minneapolis, Schieks Cave has surprisingly warm groundwater, evidence of a subterranean heat island.

Schieks Cave Below Minneapolis Contains a Lake of Warm Sewage

An urban explorer ventured deep below the bustling streets of downtown Minneapolis. He discovered more than he bargained for.

The Podcast Team June 26, 2025

London, England

The London Museum of Water & Steam

The history of West London’s water supply.

Sheffield, England

Sheffield Megatron

Explore these Victorian-era tunnels under a bustling train station.

Rafflesia, Thailand

10 Places That Smell Like Nowhere Else

Follow your nose through these unique scentscapes.

Atlas Obscura November 12, 2024

Beneath downtown Minneapolis, Schieks Cave has surprisingly warm groundwater, evidence of a subterranean heat island.

The Strange Heat Island Lurking Beneath Minneapolis

An urban explorer ventured deep below downtown in search of Schieks Cave. What he found changed science.

Sarah Scoles August 13, 2024

Zaragoza, Spain

Sewers of Caesar Augusta

The Museum of the Forum of Caesar Augusta showcases the city's ancient Roman sewage system.

Zurich, Switzerland

Ehgraben (Medieval Sewage Ditch)

Use a key to unlock this medieval sewer tunnel.

Danbury, Connecticut

John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant

After the comedian dissed a Connecticut town on his show, they named a sewage treatment plant after him.

A bald eagle catches a coot in its talons at Orlando Wetlands Park in February 2023. The park—a natural wastewater treatment facility—attracts more than 230 bird species, as well as alligators, turtles, bobcats, and other wildlife.

This Orlando Water Park Is Wild. No, Really.

At Orlando Wetlands Park, water goes for a ride—through a natural filtration process—and attracts birds, gators, and more.

Gemma Tarlach May 9, 2023

What the Heck is a Fatberg?

Jessica Leigh Hester takes us into the sewers to learn about her favorite slimy topic: fatbergs.

The Podcast Team October 8, 2025

Hanover, Germany

The Musical Manhole Cover

This gateway to subterranean Hanover plays jazz, pop and rock to surprised passersby.

Us surface dwellers don't usually have to think about what lurks below—even when we're responsible for it.

Descend Into the Sewers With London’s Fatberg-Busters

What can we learn from wipes, oils, and fats when they overwhelm the arteries of the modern world?

Jessica Leigh Hester November 3, 2022

The Shieldhall, assisted by a tug, is silhouetted by the afternoon sun

Southampton, England

SS Shieldhall

Built as part of a "sludge fleet" that transported sewage, this historic steamship now mostly moves people.

Leicester, England

Abbey Sewage Pumping Station

This former sewage pumping station is now a fascinating museum.

Standard toilets like this one are not usually profitable enterprises for the user, but a new project in South Korea is changing that.

Students Are Getting Paid to Poop at a South Korean University

The project transforms human waste into biogas, and allows participants to buy everything from bananas to socks.

Jessica Leigh Hester July 23, 2021

Chandelier Hall in the Cologne sewage system.

13 Places to Wade Into the Wondrous History of Sewers

From guided tours of the world below to a chunk of a fatberg.

Jessica Leigh Hester March 15, 2021

Details of the lamp.

Durham, England

South Bailey Sewer Lamp

These lamps were created to expel sewer gases after an event known as The Great Stink.

The Gowanus: kinda picturesque, but also terribly polluted since the 19th century.

Brooklyn's Putrid, Beloved Gowanus Canal Has Been a Horror for Centuries

A new $1.5 billion cleanup effort is underway, targeting its "black mayonnaise" of pollutants.

Jessica Leigh Hester January 14, 2021