12 Natural Wonders That Don’t Exist Anymore (4 of 7)

Aral Sea (Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan)

The Aral Sea used to be the world’s fourth-largest lake. By the 1950s, Soviet irrigation projects began diverting its water, and then climate change finished the job. Miles from the remaining water, entire fishing towns now sit in dusty deserts. Restoration projects have brought back small sections, but the Aral will never be what it was.

Azure Window (Malta)

For 500 years, waves sculpted a perfect rock arch on Malta’s coast—the famous Azure Window. It was pictured everywhere from postcards to movies to Windows screensavers. But they don’t call it erosion for nothing. In 2017, a storm finally sent the entire arch crashing into the sea in seconds.