This is Biosphere 2 in the Arizona desert. Constructed between 1987 and ‘89, the ill fated ’self-contained environment’ experiment was supposedly intended to explore the possible use of closed biospheres in space colonisation (you know, like in Total Recall!). The name comes from the idea that it was modelled on “Biosphere 1″, the Earth. Unfortunately it seems that the first inhabitants argued constantly and nearly starved.

It looks like Biosphere 2 is currently available for redevelopment if anyone’s interested… but they also seem to do tours if that’s a little out your league…

Finally, Biosphere 2 featured in the 1996 film Bio-Dome with Pauly Shore and Stephen Baldwin, but David Hill asked me not to mention it.

Thanks to (deep breath) Jon Anderson, Why Law, Colin Marquardt, Yablo, Roy Tanaka, Jered, Matthew, Chris, Parker, Douglas T. Allbright, David Hill and finally Papapenguin. Phew! Thanks guys

As the tallest state capitol in the United States the Louisiana State Capitol is 450 feet high with 34 floors. Twenty-five hundred rail cars were needed to bring in the limestone used on the exterior and the interior marbles which came from distant places, including Vermont and Italy.

Thanks: noj

Yesterday the staff of Google Sightseeing (and everyone else by the queues) went to see Star Wars Episode III, so it seems a good time to post George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch in San Rafael, California. In the middle of the photo you can see George’s ‘Ewok Lake’, if you ask me he should have called it “Lake Luke”.

Thanks: William, Craig, Motz & others

Although not very interesting to look at from space, the Mall of America is the USA’s largest mall. If you switch to map mode you can see that it’s so big inside the building they’ve named the streets.

And if that’s still too boring you can scroll north to Minneapolis / St. Paul Airport where a whole manner of planes are parked, landing and taking off.

Thanks: Brandon, PikaPikaChick & a million others.

Rikers Island is New York City’s largest jail facility and has 15,000 inmates. The only access to (and exit from) the island is via the Rikers Island Bridge to the south.

Thanks: Michael Kizer & Karen