Mauna Kea is a dormant shield volcano on the island of Hawaii, with its summit at 13,803 feet above sea level. Its real claim to size is below the water: measured from its base on the ocean floor, its height is about 30,610 feet, which is greater than Everest's height above sea level. The volcano last erupted between 6,000 and 4,000 years ago. Its high, dry, stable summit has made it one of the best places on Earth for astronomy, with thirteen telescopes from eleven countries built since a road was opened in 1964. The site is also sacred to Native Hawaiians, which keeps its use contested.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.