Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major podcast apps.


In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, we head to the Namib Desert in Africa, where the landscape is dotted with mysterious, pimple-like indents known as fairy circles. Where do these things come from? Scientist Walter Tschinkel has spent the last several years studying and experiencing a natural occurrence so enchanting, locals describe it as “The Footprints of the Gods.”

Our podcast is an audio guide to the world’s wondrous, awe-inspiring, strange places. In under 15 minutes, we’ll take you to an incredible site, and along the way you’ll meet some fascinating people and hear their stories. Join us daily, Monday through Thursday, to explore a new wonder with cofounder Dylan Thuras and a neighborhood of Atlas Obscura reporters.

Olga Ernst & Hp.Baumeler/Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0