IN THE SPRING of 1692, hysteria descended upon the quiet town of Salem, Massachusetts, snaking through the community like an insidious virus. Over several months, a group of young girls claiming to be possessed by the devil condemned a score of men and women to the gallows in one of history’s most infamous witch hunts. It’s said many of these troubled spirits still roam Salem today—including Giles Corey, an 80-year-old farmer accused of witchcraft and crushed to death after publicly questioning the girls’ motives. Howard Street Cemetery, where Corey is buried, is one of many sites across the United States believed to host the paranormal. But what draws us to the supernatural? Margee Kerr, a sociologist and the author of Scream: Chilling Adventures in the Science of Fear, tells the Washington Post that feeling terror when we know we’re safe can bring around a special kind of euphoria and confidence. And some people see ghosts and spirits as proof that the soul can survive the body’s death, psychologist Christopher French explains in The Atlantic. Whether or not you believe in ghosts, these seven spooky destinations prove that haunting lore is often rooted in very real and traumatizing histories. ALIVE WITH VIBRANT colors and home to a diverse array of sealife, coral gardens are one of the most captivating sights in the natural world. But for US-born, Hong Kong-based historical ecologist and National Geographic Explorer Jonathan Cybulski, coral also offers a window into the past. “I like corals because they tell you something about the marine ecosystem. They’re fragile creatures that can only exist in a certain temperature and water quality state, and they’ve found a way to be incredibly resilient in Hong Kong.” Part of the coral biogeochemistry laboratory at the University of Hong Kong, where he is pursuing his PhD, 31-year-old Cybulski specializes in studying coral ecosystems to chart how they have changed over time, and how that data can be used to better conserve or restore them in the future. What surprises many people, he says, is the prevalence and diversity of coral and other marine life that can be seen in Hong Kong. Remarkably, Hong Kong has more coral species than the entire Caribbean combined, while over 25% of China’s marine biodiversity can be found in Hong Kong waters, despite the fact that the territory accounts for less than 0.03% of the country’s coastline. “There are places with 100% coral cover and there are places with over 30 species of coral in one area,” he says. The places Cybulski recommends to see the highest diversity and the highest coral cover in Hong Kong are around the outlying islands between Mirs Bay and Port Shelter in the territory’s northeast, including Tung Ping Chau, Crescent Island, Bluff Island and Sharp island, and in the Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park, a large protected area near Sai Kung that’s home to coral and many other types of sealife.