Science Channel's New Series WORLD'S STRANGEST to Debut 5/27

If we've learned one thing from the stories that have captured our Curiosity in recent headlines it is that the earth is a strange place. Mysterious discoveries, social Science wonders and unbelievable displays of nature gone wild, these stories have ensnared our fascination and provoked research in almost every discipline of science. Science Channel is capturing these earthly Oddities in the all-new series WORLD'S STRANGEST. Using a combination of real footage, eyewitness stories, and scientific rendering, this series will examine some of the oddest global events and the Science behind them. WORLD'S STRANGEST premieres on Science Channel Tuesday, May 27th at 8:00PM.

The premiere episode takes us to the outskirts of Louisiana, where the residents of the Lake Peigneur awoke to a terrifying scene: A Whirlpool - almost 80 feet in width - swirling in the middle of the lake and swallowing every car, tree, boat and house in its path. What could cause such an incredible - yet potentially deadly - episode? A government investigation was launched and with the use of geological Science imagining, the results were shocking.

"WORLD'S STRANGEST is The Science Channel spin on the travel genre. We're exploring the stories that are often inexplicable - occurrences in nature so bizarre they call for cutting-edge Science to explain," said Rita Mullin, General Manager of Science Channel.

Complete episode guide below: Interviews and exclusive clips available upon request.

Worlds Strangest: Places Series Premieres May 27 at 8:00PM ET/PT Residents of Louisiana's Lake Peigneur woke up one morning to find a huge whirlpool forming in the center of the lake. Within just 20 minutes, the whirlpool grew to over 80 feet in width and began swallowing trees, boats and even houses. What could have caused such a violent vortex in the middle of a stagnant lake? It turns out that an oilrig drilled a small hole into a salt mine that lay below. Given that salt dissolves in water, which means the 14-inch hole rapidly expanded into a terrifying 50 foot cavern. And since the bigger the hole the bigger the whirlpool, this one became powerful enough to eat up land, destroy boats and even swallow up the 150 foot oil rig that caused it. Addtional stories include low flying air zones in St Maartin, Eccentric shaped office buildings in Ohio, Toxic Waste Spas in Iceland, and Solar Death Ray farms in Spain.

World's Strangest: Explosions Premieres June 3 at 8:00PM Explosives are used for a huge range of military, industrial, and environmental uses, but surprisingly, they can also be used to make a valuable commodity - diamonds. All it takes is placing carbon under intense pressure from an explosion to produce industrial-quality diamonds. Since carbon is the basis of all life on earth, that also means that people can be made into diamonds. A company in Switzerland even uses ashes from the deceased and manufactures them into diamonds to be embedded into the jewelry setting of your choice. Life may end, but diamonds are forever.

World's Strangest: Inventions Premieres June 10 at 8:00PM Forget about expensive TV mounts or complicated wall hangings. A new material, known as 'gecko skin' has been developed that allows a 16 sq. inch piece of fabric to hold as much as 700 lbs. on any surface. For more than a decade scientists have been trying to replicate the geckos' ability to walk on any surface at any angle. This incredible fabric uses an artificial version of the gecko's "satae" hairs to create almost unequaled adhesion power that is continuously reusable and leaves no sticky film. Among the numerous potential applications for this new invention is the ability to scale buildings like a real life Spiderman- minus the red outfit.

Worlds Strangest: Jobs Premieres June 17 at 8:00PM Did you know there is a 12-inch gnome with more than a million frequent flyer miles? Its name is Kern, and it looks like your average "Garden Gnome", but it's the world's first and only Gravity Gnome. British scientist James Nestor created this chip proof resin gnome, in order to accurately measure gravity around the world. Kern is continually packed up and shipped to other scientists along with the same calibrated scale in order to do his job. His weight is recorded and then added to Dr. Nestor's growing database of gravitational information.

Worlds Strangest: Skyfalls Premieres June 24 at 8:00 PM Onenight clear jelly blobs fell from the sky and covered the city of Oakville, Washington. They melted a day later, but many people in the town had lingering flu symptoms for up to 7 months, and a number of the town's pets died. Some believe they were the remains of shooting stars, or alien life forms. Similar events have occurred in other cities including Bournemouth, England, where test found traces of frogspawn! There are numerous theories but no definitive answer.

World's Strangest: Underground Premieres July 1 at 8:00PM What city is spending over a billion dollars to control floodwaters? They're building over 500 miles of subterranean pipeline in order to protect the trillion dollars businesses above? What city faces deadly flooding every spring yet receives only 4 inches of rain per year. Las Vegas, Nevada. Below the glam and glitz of the Strip there is also a secret community of nearly 1,000 people who call these tunnels home, despite the annual risks. World's Strangest: Vehicles

Premieres July 8 at 8:00 PM What ship do you know that deliberately sinks itself? And why? It can go from horizontal to vertical in 28 minutes. FLIP, or floating instrument platform, is the only vessel of its kind. At 355 feet long it purposely submerges over half of its hull straight down into the sea. It is designed to measure precise oceanographic data such as wave height, acoustic signals, water temperature and density.

Worlds Strangest: Places to Sleep Premieres July 15 at 8:00 PM What would drive people to nap along an active railway? First check for oncoming trains, then lay down on the tracks making sure your shoulder or neck rest on one rail and your feet or ankles rest on the other. Then sit back close your eyes and relax. This Indonesian craze is said to cure what ails you, hypertension, diabetes, rheumatism, gout, obesity, and high cholesterol. The secret is electrical shock.

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