The Daily Planet: Giant Earth Lookalike.

The Daily Planet: Giant Earth Lookalike

Despite its jaw-dropping size, the Daily Planet is not the world's largest world (which is in New York) but it is larger than the world's largest rotating globe (that's in Maine). The Daily Planet is 72 feet tall, and its placement -- wedged against the side of a downtown building in Raleigh, North Carolina, as if it rolled there -- somehow makes it look even more colossal.

Completed in 2012, The Daily Planet houses a multimedia theater-of-sorts with a 2,000-square-foot video screen that projects science presentations and nature images. Outside, the globe is a hollow steel ball covered in hi-res satellite photos of the Earth. The images were rolled onto the globe's exterior like a billboard getting a new advertisement -- which means that the Daily Planet could some day be transformed into another planet if we ever get tired of looking at our own.

The Daily Planet: Giant Earth Lookalike

Nature Research Center of the NC Museum of Natural Sciences

Address:: 11 W. Jones St., Raleigh, NC
Directions:: Nature Research Center of the NC Museum of Natural Sciences. Downtown, on the southwest corner of W. Jones and N. Salisbury Sts, a block east of US Hwy 70/401.
Phone:: 919-733-7450
Admission:: Free, both inside and outside.
RA Rates:: Worth a Detour

More on The Daily Planet: Giant Earth Lookalike

Nearby Offbeat Places

Roman General George Washington, Raleigh, NC - < 1 mi.

Big Acorn, Raleigh, NC - < 1 mi.

Birth Kitchen of Andrew Johnson, Raleigh, NC - < 1 mi.

In the region:

Mercury-Redstone Rocket Replica, Durham, NC - 22 mi.

More Quirky Attractions in North Carolina

Stories, reports and tips on tourist attractions and odd sights in North Carolina.

Explore Thousands of Unique Roadside Landmarks!

Strange and amusing destinations in the US and Canada are our specialty. Start here.
Use RoadsideAmerica.com's Attraction Maps to plan your next road trip.