A man looking toward the North Korean city of Namyang from the city of Tumen in Jilin province, northeast China.
Pedro PARDO / AFP via Getty Images
In recent years, photographers have captured everyday life in North Korea.
The images give a rare glimpse into the completely isolated nation.
Many are bleak, while others seem like they could have been taken anywhere.
It's still rare for the outside world to get a glimpse of daily life in North Korea. The country only recently allowed Western tourists back in following the COVID-19 pandemic, and sometimes photographers have difficulty getting to certain locations.
Last year, an AFP photographer captured rare images showing daily life in North Korea.
Pedro Pardo took photos of a remote part of North Korea's border from China's Jilin province. The images offer a bleak yet fascinating look at life in a country shrouded in secrecy.
Recent images that other photographers took in Pyongyang, the country's capital, almost seem like they could be from any city. They show people strolling the streets or celebrating the New Year, yet there are often large signs displaying propaganda as a backdrop.
North Korea was founded in 1948 under Kim Il Sung as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, inspired by strict Marxist-Leninist principles.
Its population of roughly 26 million people lives largely in isolation from the rest of the world in the austere communist state, barred from going abroad without permission from the government and subjected to state-run media that blare propaganda praising the nation and its supreme leader, Kim Jong Un.
North Korea's self-imposed isolation is largely because of its guiding principle of "Juche," or self-reliance, the idea that it should be able to function completely independently and remain separate from the rest of the world.
In practice, this has achieved little other than stifling the country's economy and trade, and many of its citizens face high poverty levels and severe food shortages. The CIA says the country "remains one of the World's most isolated and one of Asia's poorest."
The Guardian reported last year that since the 1950s, an estimated 31,000 North Koreans had sought to escape and defected to South Korea. The number surged in 2023 amid what the unification ministry in Seoul called "worsening conditions in North Korea."
Photos present a unique look into those conditions and life in one of the world's last communist states.
A sign reads "Great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il will always be with us" in Pyongyang, the country's capital.
People walk outside the Pyongyang Department Store No. 1 near a celebrative poster marking Kim Jong Il's birthday in 2025.
KIM WON JIN/AFP via Getty Images
A loudspeaker for broadcasts is seen in Kaepoong, which South Korea considers a propaganda village.
A loudspeaker in Kaepoong near the demilitarized zone in 2024.
Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters
Buildings appear in need of repair in Kaesong.
A person walking in a field outside Kaesong across the Demilitarized Zone in 2024.
ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images
An art exhibit for Kim Jong Il's birthday is full of paintings of the family.
People visit an art exhibition in celebration of Kim Jong Il in 2025.
Kim Won Jin/AFP via Getty Images
People walk along a street in Pyongyang.
People walk along a street in the area near the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang in 2025.
Kim Won Jin/AFP via Getty Images
North Korean soldiers work on the border near China.
North Korean soldiers, seen from Tumen, China, in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
The North Korean city of Hyesan is seen from China.
Hyesan, North Korea, seen from China in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
A train carriage pulls a wagon in the North Korean city of Namyang.
Namyang, North Korea, seen from the city of Tumen in Northeastern China in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
A sign on a hillside in the town of Chunggang reads, "My country is the best."
The North Korean town of Chunggang, seen from Linjiang in China in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
A watchtower is manned on the border in Hyesan.
North Korean village of Hyesan, seen from Changba, China, in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
Portraits of the former North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are seen in Chunggang.
Homes in Chunggang, North Korea, seen from the town of Linjiang in China in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
Large portraits of the former leaders are displayed on a government building in Namyang.
A building in Namyang, North Korea, seen from the Chinese city of Tumen in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
North Korean people work in a field.
A view of North Korea from Tumen in China's northeast Jilin province in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
A sign in Chunggang reads, "Let's unify the party and all society with the revolutionary ideas of comrade Kim Jong Un!"
Chunggang, North Korean, seen from the Chinese border town of Linjiang in 2024.
Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images
Trucks cross a border bridge connecting Changbai, China, and Hyesan, North Korea.
The border bridge that connects the Chinese town of Changbai with Hyesan, North Korean in 2024.
Pawnee City, Nebraska, is giving qualified homebuyers $50,000 for down payment assistance.
Courtesy of Ryan Swihart
A small Nebraska city with less than 900 residents has unveiled an incentive for newcomers.
Pawnee City is offering $50,000 in down payment assistance to qualified new residents.
Officials hope that the payments to help people buy newly built homes spark a "rural renaissance."
Fans of "Parks and Recreation" can finally live out their dreams of living in Pawnee — sort of.
Pawnee City, Nebraska, which is about 90 minutes south of Lincoln, Nebraska, and two hours north of Kansa City, Missouri, is offering $50,000 to new residents who qualify.
Downtown in Pawnee City, Nebraska.
Courtesy of Ryan Swihart
Between March 14, when the program was announced, and March 27, 115 people have applied, Pawnee City Chamber of Commerce official Aaron Sawyer told Business Insider.
The city's plan, dubbed Vision 2030, starts with a commitment to build 25 new single-family homes on currently empty lots. Plans on the Vision 2030 website show ranch-style homes with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, two-car garages, and spacious backyards priced at $325,000. (The average home value in Pawnee City is $102,705, according to Zillow.)
The program's $50,000 payouts will go toward down payment assistance for buyers of the new houses.
Applications are open to families, single professionals, or retirees. Qualified homebuyers must make less than certain income caps, which range from $69,450 for a one-person household to $115,100 for a six-person household.
Interested homebuyers must complete an application form that asks for their current employers, monthly incomes, and household sizes.
A home in Pawnee City.
Courtesy of Ryan Swihart
In November 2024, workers broke ground on the first home, which is expected to be ready for move-in by this summer, according to the Vision 2030 website.
Remote work can be a source of tension between employers and their workers, with Amazon and J.P. Morgan calling employees back to the office five days a week five years after their initial COVID-19 shutdowns. But for those who still have the flexibility, the opportunity to move somewhere with a financial incentive can be enticing in today's expensive housing market, where older homes may cost just as much as new builds.
Pawnee City is dreaming of a 'rural renaissance'
The down-payment assistance initiative is part of Pawnee City's effort to spark a "rural renaissance" that could rejuvenate the town, according to the Vision 2030 website.
Its population has dwindled. Pawnee City has 865 residents, according to the most recent data available from the US Census.The city has experienced a 50-year decline from a population high of 1,280 residents, according to the civic group Pawnee Bold.
A playground in Pawnee City.
Courtesy of Ryan Swihart
For such a small place, Pawnee City has still produced several notable figures, including the first governor of Nebraska, David Butler; vintage Hollywood star Irish McCalla; and famous comedian Larry the Cable Guy.
"It's a great place to grow up and raise kids," said Sawyer, who has ties to the city through his grandparents. Pawnee City has its own school, hospital, two parks, and a brand-new amphitheater that just opened last year, he added, which is notable for a town of its size.
This summer's amphitheater programming will include a polka band, a rock concert, and a screening of "Cars" that features a visit from the hometown hero himself: Larry the Cable Guy.
"Social wellness," which blends socializing with health and fitness, is becoming more popular.
A Business Insider health reporter went to a social sauna and ice bath class designed to reset the nervous system.
At first it was awkward, but that changed when she got in an ice bath with a classmate.
I turned right at Barry's Boot Camp and arrived at my destination: Arc, a communal sauna and cold plunge studio in London's financial district, which markets itself as a place for people to connect.
You can start your week there with a guided contrast therapy class —that is, switching between extreme heat and cold— at 7:30 a.m. on Monday morning, and see it out with a sauna party on Saturday night, complete with DJs, aromatherapy, and of course, cold plunges.
While saunas and ice baths aren't new (they're known to help athletes recover faster and are a must in any bougie gym or spa), they're quickly becoming a staple of social wellness: the blending together of socializing with wellness activities, such as running clubs and longevity retreats.
The merging of these trends makes sense. The global wellness industry was valued at $6.3 trillion in 2023, up 25% since 2019, and after being starved of social connection during the COVID-19 pandemic, people are becoming more aware of the link between socializing and longevity.
Social saunas are popping up everywhere. Rebase, another self-proclaimed "social wellness" club, opened in London last May, while Othership, a Toronto-based "social sauna" and ice bath studio, launched its first US spa in July with more than 20 locations across North America expected to follow in the next five years. Bathhouse, a New York-based spa with two locations, just added four additional pools and two saunas to its Williamsburg branch.
Arc opened in London's Canary Wharf in January and calls itself a community-focused space, where guests are guided on "a journey of self-discovery, personal growth, and meaningful connection within themselves and others." I was there to attend Dopamine Reset, a guided contrast therapy session that promises to "reset the brain's reward system," "break old habits," and "unlock new levels of growth and peak experiences" — a tall order for a 50-minute class.
I wanted to try it for two reasons. Firstly, as a woman in my twenties I naturally spend too much time on the internet and have anxiety. So, I'm always keen to experiment with something that might snap me out of my thought spirals. But secondly, and most importantly, I wanted to see if meeting new people while exposing myself to extreme temperatures, almost nude, would be as awkward as it sounds, or actually provide an opportunity for bonding. Breaking the ice, if you will.
So I took the plunge and booked the £35 ($44) class.
I felt uncomfortable walking into the class
The Lounge was an amphitheater-shaped communal area.
Francesca Jones for BI
Excited and nervous, I left the chic changing room in my swimsuit and entered a dimly lit ampitheatre-cum-cave called The Lounge: a terracotta room big enough for 50 people, with a tiered conversation pit at its center. I sat near three young women, all wearing smartwatches that were most certainly tracking their biometrics. So far, so awkward and lonely.
Of the 12 out of a possible 40 of us in the 12:30 p.m. class, there was only one man, who was taking a break from training for Hyrox, a buzzy, intensive indoor fitness competition.
(You'll notice that there are no people in the photos accompanying this piece — the sauna understandably didn't want us to take pics of guests in their swimsuits, or disrupt their journeys of self-discovery).
After a few minutes, our teacher — or "sauna master" in Arc lingo — appeared mic'd up and wearing a one-piece swimsuit and a long sarong to explain the structure of the class.
We would be led through breathwork, meditation, and gentle stretches in the sauna for around 15 minutes before hitting the ice baths. There, we would submerge ourselves in freezing water (a maximum of 42 degrees Fahrenheit) for two minutes. The magic — the activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps the body relax — starts to happen after the 30-second mark, she said.
We spread out along the benches of the sauna built to could accommodate 65 people
The sauna master at Arc threw an ice ball infused with essential oils over the coals in the sauna.
Francesca Jones for BI
The 65-person wooden sauna was wide and tall enough for the twelve of us to spread out along its three benches. Our teacher started the class by throwing a snowball filled with essential oils onto the coals at the center of the room and whipping a towel in a circular motion in the air to spread the floral aromas. The room was heated to a near-uncomfortable 200 degrees Fahrenheit, and I started sweating almost immediately.
Breathing exercises in extreme heat weren't relaxing
Kim Schewitz in the 65-person sauna.
Francesca Jones for BI
As we started the breathwork —which involved rounds of inhaling, holding our breath, and exhaling for four seconds each — I loosened up a bit, mainly because we were encouraged to close our eyes. I'm used to breathing exercises like this in my weekly yoga classes and know my way around the Headspace app , but holding my breath in the extreme heat was strenuous and frankly unpleasant.
I didn't feel particularly relaxed yet and hadn't shared so much as a smile with anyone. This all changed when we moved on to the next section of the class.
I shared my ice bath with a fellow classmate
The ice baths were a maximum of 42 degrees Fahrenheit.
Francesca Jones for BI
After a quick post-sauna rinse in the shower room adjacent to the sauna, where I slathered myself with complementary Malin+Goetz shower gel, it was time to get chilly.
In a charcoal-colored room made entirely out of stone were eight ice baths. It had a harsh feel compared to the light natural materials of the sauna and the lounge.
Each bath was large enough for two people, and I partnered with Carli Wheatley, 42, who I later found out is a lymphatic massage therapist and has worked in the wellness industry for years — a theme among my classmates.
I felt apprehensive as we assumed our positions and at the count of three, all stepped inside the icy vats and sat down. The pain hit my feet, legs, and hands immediately, and I had to fight the urge to get out. But lo and behold, after about 30 seconds, my muscles started to relax, and I felt calmer. Wheatley and I intermittently shared exasperated looks, which reassured me.
A gong signaled that two minutes were up, and we stepped out. My legs felt numb, and it was as if currents of electricity were zapping me. I felt awake from the inside out: an awakeness I had never felt before. Like an espresso entering your bloodstream, but without the mania.
After the ice bath, I started to feel more comfortable and chatted with the people around me
Most people hadn't come to socialize but were up for chatting.
Francesca Jones for BI
Re-entering the sauna, the atmosphere had softened. Everyone's body language was more open, and we started chatting about our shared experience (trauma). The intensity of the ice bath served as a welcome social buffer.
I asked people why they decided to come and if they enjoyed it. Those I spoke to (I wasn't able to chat with everyone in the class) were either into health and wellness or worked in the industry. They had come for the sauna's physical and mental benefits, not to socialize, but I do wonder if this would've been different had I come to an evening event.
Renata Bianchi, a 38-year-old hypnotherapist from Brazil, said that she found Arc online, thought the facilities looked beautiful, and wanted to try it. She told me she'd like to come back again next week.
One woman, who wants to train as a sauna master and is a fan of the cult health-optimization podcast, the "Huberman Lab," told us that she had been to Arc about seven times in the three months since it opened. She grew up using saunas and loves the high she gets from contrast therapy.
"I've heard it's good for metabolism and brown fat, but that's not why I do it," she said.
I went for a second dip, with friends!
The sound of the gong signaled that two minutes in the ice bath was up.
Francesca Jones for BI
Although no one had come for the social aspect, they were all up for chatting, and a group of us decided to give the ice baths a second go. We exhaled loudly and giggled to get through round two. It reminded me a little of summer camp.
We popped into the sauna again to warm up, shared some last-minute reflections on the state of the world, and gradually dispersed.
As I made my way back to the changing area, I realized that I hadn't thought about anything outside of these three rooms for at least 20 minutes. That was a huge win, which told me I had been in the moment and felt calm.
The social sauna class got me out of my head
There was complementary Malin+Goetz shower gel next to the showers.
Francesca Jones for BI
I felt calmer and more grounded leaving Arc than I did walking in. I also had some pleasant conversations and enjoyed myself.
But, as is the case with many wellness treatments designed to help you destress and boost your sense of well-being, the effects were short-lived. After I left the luxury subterranean spa, I rejoined the real world: the cause of my stress.
I felt that I could've achieved that calm feeling for less money, or even for free, if I put my phone down and started each morning with a sunrise walk.
But it's easier to go to a sauna class than to delete your Instagram account or confront a demanding boss.
If I had the money and the time, I could see myself becoming a regular, albeit more for the relaxation than the connection. Did I leave with a new group of friends? No. But it got me out of my head and chatting to people, which is a difficult feat in our fast-paced, digital-first world.
Alaska cruises are booming in popularity. Some residents of Juneau, the state's cruise hub, are fed up with it.
Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images
Alaskan cruises have surged in popularity — its cruise hub, Juneau, saw a record 1.73 million cruisers in 2024.
The cruise boom has boosted the city's local economy but strained its infrastructure and residents.
In response, Juneau has set daily ship and passenger limits.
Hundreds of miles of hiking trails may surround Juneau, Alaska, but living there year-round is no walk in the park.
In the winter, the state's capital city sees less than seven hours of sunlight daily. With some restaurants and shops closed, these chilly months can feel quiet and gloomy for the city's 31,555 residents.
But in the spring and summer, when the bears awaken and the flowers come alive, so too do the city's streets — largely thanks to the bustling cruise industry.
As Alaska's busiest cruise hub, Juneau can get slammed with upward of 17,000 cruise tourists on any given summer day. With it has come local economic success — and a growing disdain for the vacation-at-sea industry.
Juneau saw a record 1.73 million cruise passengers in 2024.
: Sergi Reboredo/VW PICS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Juneau saw a record 1.73 million cruisers in 2024 — a 33% spike from the pre-COVID-19 pandemic record in 2019, according to a study by McKinley Research Group for the city. It's not much compared to Miami's 8.2 million cruisers in 2024, for comparison, but unlike Florida, Juneau only operates a six-month cruise season and is relatively small, with no drivable roads leading in and out.
When it comes to tourism, cruises are the main source by a long shot. Alaska State Sen. Jesse Kiehl told Business Insider that he estimates Juneau will only see about 175,000 independent tourists — those that don't come on ships — this year.
"We have this huge opportunity that most small towns would kill to have at their doorstep," Laura McDonnell, the owner of local gift shop Caribou Crossings, told BI. Cruisers make up 98% of her business' revenue, she estimates. "They're so enamored and happy to be here, and it's taken some of them their whole lives to get here. Cruise tourism is what's made that accessible."
The Alaskan cruise gold rush
Cruise giants like Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival have reported booming demand for their Alaska cruises.
Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Carnival Corp's CEO told analysts in 2024 that Alaskan voyages were "off the charts." That's especially true for first-time cruisers, he said, touting popular "cruisetours" that include stops at the company's lodge near Denali National Park.
This year is expected to look no different. Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings have reported banner demand for their 2025 Alaskan itineraries.
Norwegian plans to deploy a larger ship for longer voyages. Holland America is spending $70 million to expand guest accommodations at the Denali lodge.
Cruises are crucial to the local economy, Kiehl said. The McKinley study found they injected some $375 million in 2023, mostly from direct passenger spending.
But like most any town with a significant cruise port, not everyone is pleased with the influx of tourists.
Residents have pushed back
The majority of Juneau's tourists come by cruise.
Ken Schulze/Shutterstock
"I have to say that visitors have gotten a little rowdier," Liz Perry, the CEO of Travel Juneau, told BI. "Since COVID-19, it's gotten even worse. They feel entitled to very, very high levels of service at a time when our operators are really working to give that service, but they may not be able to get staffed up."
Downtown Juneau is sandwiched between mountains and the water. The streets are narrow and hilly, many one-way. As such, thousands of people suddenly storming downtown can slow traffic. (To alleviate this, the city is building a waterfront pedestrian walkway near the cruise ports.)
Concurrently, the surge can overwhelm the city's cell network, which has caused locals to lose cell reception and WiFi. (Juneau's visitor industry director, Alexandra Pierce, told BI that the city is implementing public WiFi and working with two providers to increase network capacity.)
And then there's the vicious cycle of visitors leaving trash, the trash attracting bears, and the bears exciting visitors. (The state ultimately euthanized two black bears in downtown Juneau last summer.)
"All of those things combine to contribute to resident discontent," Pierce said. "As people responsible for managing these destinations and stewarding them, it is almost a game of whack-a-mole."
Residents have reported issues with noise, air quality, traffic, and cell reception.
Ritu Manoj Jethani/Shutterstock
To mitigate locals' concerns, the city negotiated with the cruise industry to implement a five-ship per day limit in 2024. Starting in 2026, the city will also cap the number of incoming cruise ship passengers at 16,000 per day, excluding Saturdays, which will have a 12,000-passenger limit.
In a McKinley survey of 501 Juneau residents in late 2024, 20% of respondents said further limiting cruise volume should be the city's most important priority. That's up 5% from the year prior.
But they don't want too many restrictions — voters drew the line at "ship-free Saturdays," a ballot proposition that failed to pass in late 2024.
Residents are increasingly becoming discontent with the cruise boom.
Ken Schulze/Shutterstock
"Having the limits gives us the opportunity to fine-tune and improve as opposed to just triage and be reactive all the time," Pierce said.
Yes, local businesses (in tandem with the city and cruise lines) will ultimately miss out on greater profits. However, "local always comes first," Holly Johnson, the CMO of tour operator Wings Airway, told BI. About 85% of her company's customers come from cruises, yet she supports the ship and passenger limits.
"We could live anywhere, but this is where we live," she said.
Both Bacha Coffee and TWG Tea are known for their maximalist interior designs.
V3 Gourmet
TWG Tea and Bacha Coffee, with their ultra-maximalist interiors, exude luxury.
But products in their cafés start at around $10.
The brands' CEO says he wants people to be able to afford a luxurious experience at a low price.
Stepping into a TWG Tea store in Singapore is a sensory overload.
The store is designed to be ultra-maximalist. Golden tins of hundreds of different tea blends are stacked on the walls, and warm ambient lighting and polished checkered floors make it feel like a palace.
While the interiors and the products' packaging scream luxury, the packaged teas start at around 30 Singapore dollars, or $22.
If one chooses to dine in, one can choose teas from an extensive tea book consisting of over 800 varieties. Servings of the selected teas — brought out in round, gold teapots — start at SG$12, containing about 3 cups worth of drink.
Taha Bouqdib, the CEO of the Singaporean company V3 Gourmet, which owns TWG Tea and Bacha Coffee, told BI that keeping prices low is a top priority for him.
"When you enter our store, even from $10, you are our client already," he said.
A set of five macarons at TWG Tea's outlet in Marina Bay Sands, one of Singapore's biggest malls, retails for SG$12.50. For comparison, Angelina, another upscale café in MBS located close to TWG, sells a set of four macaroons for SG$19, per its website.
TWG Tea's sister brand, Bacha Coffee, offers the same luxe experience. Red and gold boxes of coffee blends are stacked on the ceiling, and products are displayed on shiny golden shelves.
Bouqdib said he wants each customer to feel like they have been personally invited to his home.
V3 Gourmet
Like TWG Tea, it offers affordable luxury, too. The Bacha Coffee outlet in MBS sells croissants for SG$10 and pre-packaged coffee boxes for SG$32.
Affordable luxury
TWG Tea started in Singapore in 2008 and is now sold in over 100 locations globally. Bacha Coffee, founded in Morocco in 1910 and revived by V3 Gourmet in 2019, sells products in 28 stores around the world.
Bouqdib said that young people — even those without deep pockets — are great for TWG Tea and Bacha Coffee's business.
He said he wanted to price his products so that children or students with some spare pocket money could buy them as gifts or to pamper themselves.
A Bacha Coffee café in Morocco.
V3 Gourmet
Bacha, in particular, has been attracting a young clientele, he said. This customer base is looking for premium, good-quality products and is willing to spend "a couple of dollars more" on quality coffee, he added.
Keeping prices on the lower side has meant that TWG Tea and Bacha Coffee have been largely spared from the ongoing luxury slump, he said.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, the luxury industry took a hit when "aspirational" luxury shoppers scaled back on spending. In 2024, luxury spending stagnated, and big brands saw their share prices drop.
Bouqdib said luxury buyers feeling the pinch were less likely to spend thousands of dollars on expensive handbags and watches. But they still craved a luxe experience — which is where TWG Tea and Bacha Coffee are attempting to position their brands.
And Bouqdib says he thinks simplicity and authenticity are best — even in a market where there can be hundreds of permutations for coffee orders.
His stores "don't have this big machine for espresso with the barista behind," he said. They prepare the coffee as in the old days, he said. In Bacha stores, the coffee is served in gold kettles.
"I think the original always is the winner," Bouqdib said. "To go back to the reality, to go back to how I can appreciate a nice cup of coffee."
Engineers collected ice cores for testing inside the trenches of Camp Century.
ERDC Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory
The US has had a military presence in Greenland since World War II.
But an abandoned underground military site poses a major environmental threat as the planet warms.
Researchers found thousands of gallons of waste buried under the ice sheet could resurface by 2100.
The US has long sought Greenland, whether access or control, because of its strategic and economic importance, dating back as early as the late 19th century.
President Donald Trump doubled down on his long-standing ambitions to acquire Greenland in January, saying he won't rule out military force or economic coercion to secure the territory of a NATO ally.
While Denmark has repeatedly refused to sell ownership of the self-governing territory, the US has maintained a military presence in Greenland since World War II. The US military built several bases and sites across Greenland's ice sheet, most of which were left abandoned or decommissioned after the Cold War. Vice President JD Vance is set to visit the only operational US base there, Pituffik Space Base, on Friday with his wife.
Greenland's formidable ice was also the biggest problem for a legendary Cold War-era top secret project — a tunnel city under the ice designed to store hundreds of nuclear missiles within firing distance of the Soviet Union.
Camp Century was presented to the public as an Arctic research facility after it was built in 1960, but the covert missile operation wasn't declassified by the US government until 1995.
NASA scientists detected the abandoned "city under the ice" 100 feet below the surface last year, sparking concerns about its potential environmental hazards as the climate crisis warms the Arctic more than any other region on Earth.
Tunneling through snow and ice
A snow removal machine was used to plow the main trench of Camp Century.
US Army/Pictorial Parade/Archive Photos/Getty Images
Construction began in 1959 on the $8 million remote facility, located about 150 miles away from Thule Air Base, a key Arctic defense outpost and the US' northernmost active military base; it is now named Pituffik Space Base.
Named Camp Century because it was initially intended to be located 100 miles from the Greenland ice cap, the site was plagued by harsh winter conditions, including winds as high as 125 miles per hour and temperatures as low as -70 degrees Fahrenheit.
Members of the US Army Corps of Engineers transported 6,000 tons of supplies and materials to the site to dig nearly two dozen underground tunnels covered by steel arches and a layer of snow, completing the subterranean base in late 1960.
'A city under the ice'
Trench construction at Camp Century in 1960.
US Army Corps of Engineers
Camp Century's largest trench, known as "Main Street," was about 26 feet wide and stretched over 1,000 feet. The sprawling underground complex housed as many as 200 personnel underground.
Engineers drilled a well in the camp to access 10,000 gallons of fresh water daily, and insulated, heated piping ran throughout the facility for water and electricity.
The base also featured a kitchen and cafeteria, medical clinic, laundry area, communications center, and dormitories. The facility also featured a recreation hall, chapel, and barbershop.
'Almost science fiction'
US Army engineers transport parts of a portable nuclear power plant.
Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
Camp Century was powered by a 400-ton portable nuclear reactor, the first of its kind. Due to the subfreezing temperatures making the metal very brittle, transporting the PM-2 reactor had to be handled with extreme care during installation.
Soldiers maintained the medium-power reactor daily by cutting back snow and ice with chainsaws to protect it from damage. The PM-2 reactor operated for nearly three years before it was deactivated and removed from the facility.
"Think of all the energy and resources it took to do this, to build those tunnels and put soldiers down there. It's almost science fiction," Paul Bierman, a geoscientist who studied soil samples from the site, told National Geographic. "No one would dream of doing that today."
Public location, covert purpose
US Army researchers installed supports to reinforce the trenches in Camp Century.
US Army/Pictorial Parade/Archive Photos/Getty Images
The US publicly presented Camp Century as a scientific research facility, where researchers and engineers were tasked with analyzing ice cap conditions, glacial movement, and cold-weather survival.
However, the scientific objective of the facility was a cover for a top-secret US operation, known as "Project Iceworm," to store and deploy hundreds of nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles.
The initiative remained covert to circumvent Denmark's strict nuclear-free policy following WWII while taking advantage of Greenland's proximity to the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
Project Iceworm
People climbed a ladder to the escape hatch leading into Camp Century.
US Army/Pictorial Parade/Archive Photos/Getty Images
Project Iceworm sought to expand the existing facility by an additional 52,000 square miles — three times the size of Denmark — to house 60 launch control centers. The facility would have stored up to 600 "Iceman" missiles, modified two-stage intercontinental ballistic missiles with a range of 3,300 miles.
Aside from its strategic location less than 3,000 miles away from Moscow, Project Iceworm was also seen as a potential way to secure alliances and share nuclear weapons with other NATO countries, particularly France, which wanted to be part of the nuclear partnership between the US and the UK.
However, the military operation faced significant challenges, including overcoming bureaucratic hurdles, modifying the Iceman missile to endure extremely cold conditions, and even just continuing underground operations as the Greenland ice sheet became increasingly unstable.
The Army decided not to risk the loss of hundreds of missiles if the facility collapsed, eventually canceling Project Iceworm just three years after Camp Century was built.
The facility continued to operate at a limited capacity before it was abandoned in 1967.
Some scientific success
Researchers use a thermal drill to cut through the ice cap.
US Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory
While missiles were never transported to Camp Century, researchers found some success in their studies of ice cores collected at the site and deep soil analysis.
The research ultimately contributed to the development of climate models, according to Bierman, who is a professor at the University of Vermont. Ancient soil samples collected at Camp Century were composed of leaves, mosses, twigs, and insects that offered Bierman and his team into how the climate crisis could impact the Arctic over the next century.
"It takes you from 1966 to global climate change and onward to the effects of Greenland's melting," Bierman said. "That's pretty profound."
"There are things we can learn about ice sheets that we can never learn from the ice itself," he added. "It comes from the stuff below the ice."
A ticking radioactive time bomb
An aerial view of the power plant that powered Camp Century.
US Army/Wikimedia
After the camp was decommissioned in 1967, the US military failed to remove the facility's waste and infrastructure, assuming that it would eventually be entombed in Greenland's ice sheet over the subsequent decades.
Though Camp Century now resides under nearly 100 feet of snow and ice, researchers took inventory of what was left behind and found nearly 136 acres of waste — about the size of 100 football fields. A 2016 study found that more than 50,000 gallons of diesel fuel, 63,000 gallons of sewage and radioactive coolant, thousands of gallons of wastewater, and an unknown amount of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) remained buried at the abandoned facility.
At the current melting rate of the Arctic, researchers estimate that the waste could resurface around 2100, releasing pollutants that pose a major threat to surrounding ecosystems and human health.
"Two generations ago, people were interring waste in different areas of the world, and now climate change is modifying those sites," William Colgan, a climate and glacier scientist at York University and lead author of the study, said in a 2016 statement.
"Once the site transitions from net snowfall to net melt, it's only a matter of time before the wastes melt out; it becomes irreversible," he continued.
Who's on cleanup duty?
A container of lubricant oil for a US military vehicle was left to rust at an abandoned military base in Greenland.
John McConnico/AP
As the threat of biological, chemical, and radioactive waste looms, the question remains as to who is responsible for cleaning up the waste, from Camp Century and other abandoned US military facilities scattered throughout Greenland.
In 2018, Greenland and Denmark signed an agreement allocating 180 million Danish kroner — about $29 million — over six years to clean up some of the US military bases. In 2021, the cleanup efforts were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The US hasn't formally taken responsibility to clean up its abandoned facilities. If Trump were to carry through on acquiring Greenland, the world's largest island that is believed to be suffuse with valuable rare earth minerals, the US would contend directly with this looming environmental disaster.
Colgan told Politico there haven't been any attempts to clean up Camp Century so far amid fears of disturbing the radioactive site too much.
"There is actually a conscious effort not to drill into the debris field," he said. "We don't actually know the full nature of what's down there."
5G's impact has been underwhelming, with limited consumer benefits and unmet promises.
High costs and technical challenges hindered 5G's widespread adoption and network expansion.
US carriers face difficulties monetizing 5G, with coverage gaps and declining revenue per user.
Remember when 5G was going to change everything?
Back in 2019, wireless industry leaders didn't just promise better cell service. They promised a better world where doctors could operate on patients remotely, and smart cities with driverless cars would make roads safer and less congested.
Fast forward to today, and the average consumer might be hard-pressed to notice much difference between 4G and 5G in their daily lives.
The Hype Machine
Many of the most ambitious promises either didn't require 5G or were simply impractical. For instance, remote surgery demands more than just high-speed internet; it requires sterile environments, anesthesia, and willing patients. Similarly, autonomous vehicles need to function independently of a mobile connection, raising questions about the need for 5G to begin with.
However, more recent reports mentioning 5G take a different tack — downgrading from bold claims like ultraconvenient "smart cities" to 5G-enabled drones that can monitor for insurance fraud.
The Technical Reality
One of the most significant advancements in 5G is the use of higher frequencies, which carry more information, but don't travel as far.
So, to use them, you need more antennas closer together — something called network densification. Building out the 5G network in the US has required hundreds of billions of dollars of investment.
To cut costs, much of the early 5G infrastructure was built by tweaking existing 4G sites. This approach, known as non-standalone 5G, offers efficiency but delivers a 4G-like experience.
Another thing that was supposed to be really different about 5G was the introduction of millimeter waves, which can theoretically provide much greater capacity. They are useful in select locations where crowds really pack in like stadiums or airports.
But in general, the distance they travel is so short and these waves are so easily blocked that widespread use in mobile networks just hasn't made a lot of sense, and many smartphones don't even support them.
It's not all bad news. When phones are actually connected to a 5G network, they generally get faster speeds and lower latency.
The thing is that for most people and most purposes, 4G was already good enough.
Coverage — not speed — is one of the biggest problems we still face.
The Coverage Divide
In the US, coverage is patchy or nonexistent in many remote or rural areas.
Carriers simply haven't built their networks out in a lot of these places, often because there aren't enough paying customers living there to justify the investment. This is part of what's called the "digital divide."
The defining feature of 5G is its higher, shorter-range frequencies. If the top priority was expanding coverage, building out existing 4G to more places networks would have been more efficient than upgrading so much existing 4G infrastructure in cities.
If you've ever seen a TV ad about 5G, then you might now be a little confused because the maps they show tend to make it look like 5G is already nearly everywhere.
Douglas Dawson has tested cellphone speeds across the country for his telecommunication consulting firm, CCG, and found that 5G only covers 30% to 40% of the land area in most US counties.
"People have trouble even making a cellphone call — 4G or 5G — because towers only have a limited circle around them of coverage," he said.
We asked the 3 major US carriers for comment on the accuracy of their maps.
Only T-Mobile answered the question directly. "Coverage Maps provide a general service expectation; it's not flawless," a spokesperson said.
Users may see a 5G icon on their phones even when not connected to a 5G network.
The Washington Post reported that, in the US, the icon just means that a mobile network is nearby and not necessarily that you're connected to it.
We asked all major US carriers about this, too.
AT&T said the 5G icon appears where the technology is available. T-Mobile said their icon is always accurate, and Verizon didn't get back to us.
A 2024 industry report showed that Verizon and AT&T 5G users were connected to a 5G network only about one-tenth of the time.
This is despite the fact that the US wireless industry has built nearly 100,000 new cell sites since 2018.
It's no surprise that carriers amplified the hype. They invested an enormous amount of money into it.
The Costly Reality
The three major US phone carriers spent over $100 billion on licenses to use the frequencies.
That doesn't include the cost of upgrading 4G sites to 5G or of building tons of new cell sites, which has required billions more dollars in investment.
However, they have struggled to monetize 5G, with monthly phone bills decreasing because of competition. The average revenue per user has been trending downwards even as investment from carriers has risen, putting them in a difficult position.
The Race
Because telecommunications is of massive economic and social importance equipment vendors — those who sell the actual infrastructure like antennas — and industry trade groups can lobby government officials, telling them that the next generation will be essential and transformative — and that if they don't act quickly, they might miss out on the benefits.
This pressure contributed to the narrative that the US and other nations were engaged in a global "5G race."
In turn, politicians who are most likely not telecoms engineering experts but might also be eager to implement new infrastructure projects see this as a no-risk position. Who wouldn't want to align themselves with the next frontier of technological innovation?
This rush could have resulted in many of these problems, including the decision to start with non-standalone 5G networks, and the the failure of 5G to differentiate itself from 4G in the eyes of consumers.
But 5G was also rushed in the planning phase.
Developing a plan for a new generation usually takes about 10 years, but 5G was rushed out in just eight. This was partially because of global political pressure, and because Japan planned a splashy 5G debut for the 2020 Olympics, even though it ended up delayed a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Looking Ahead: 6G and Beyond
It's possible that 5G will be a continuation of a pattern established by previous networks.
The odd generations — 1G and 3G — were somewhat disappointing, but the even generations that followed worked out the kinks and had greater benefits.
So we could see bigger transformations with 6G.
But as we get closer to the sixth generation, most experts Business Insider spoke to said it's on the same troubled path.
Wall Street bonuses reached a record $47.5 billion last year, according to a new report.
The New York State Comptroller found individual bonuses were, on average, $244,700.
But the resurgent year for industry comp might not be here to stay, the report warned.
Wall Street made it rain last year as a resurgent year for dealmaking gave financial services firms a much-needed boost.
Now, a report from the Office of the New York State Comptroller shows that those same rainmakers might not have much need for their umbrellas this year. Dealmakinghas sputtered and stalled so far in 2025.
In 2024, Wall Street bonuses paid between December and March jumped 34%, to $47.5 billion, the highest total on record, and up from a total pool of $35.4 billion last year, according to the new report. The average bonus for employees in New York City's securities industry rose to $244,700, up 31.5% from the year before, the report — based on Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's annual estimate — found.
For comparison, the bonus pool for New York City's securities industry in 2023 totaled $33.8 billion. It trailed previous highs like 2021's $42.7 billion, which capped off a year of frenzied dealmaking. The average individual bonus in 2023 was $176,500, down 2% from the previous year's $180,000.
This year's gains — which lifted Wall Street's profits by some 90%, the report noted — were driven by strong economic growth, which boosted trading, underwriting, and deal-making activity that swept the industry. The industry's elevated bonus year is set to generate an additional $600 million in state income tax revenue and $275 million more for the city itself compared with 2023's bonus comp, DiNapoli projects.
To compile his annual report, DiNapoli's office evaluates personal income tax withholding trends, as well as cash bonuses paid for work performed in 2024 or previous years that have just been redeemed. Employees outside of New York City are excluded from the assessment.
Wall Street bonuses reached record levels this year, according to a new report.
NurPhoto/Getty Images
Smashing records, flashing red lights
The stronger bonus year smashed several records, including the highest year for incentive comp in Wall Street's history, the report said, and marked the bonus pool's "first major increase since the COVID-19 pandemic highs."
Individual banks reported heightened profits last year as the defibrillator of dealmaking helped get the industry's blood pumping once again. Goldman Sachs, for instance, reported total revenue of $53.5 billion last year, up from $46.3 billion the year prior, in its fourth-quarter earnings release in January. JPMorgan Chase, America's biggest bank by assets, said its net income last year was $58.5 billion, up from $49.6 billion the year before.
But, the comptroller noted, there are some warning signs that the reasons to celebrate may be fleeting.
"Increasing uncertainty in the economy amid significant federal policy changes may dampen the outlook for parts of the securities industry in 2025," DiNapoli warned.
In recent weeks, the industry's dreams of a sustained dealmaking rebound have been upended as the corporate sector metabolizes some of the convulsive policy shifts and tariff threats of President Donald Trump's administration. According to the London Stock Exchange Group's most recent investment banking scorecard, published earlier this month, US mergers and acquisitions activity amounted to nearly $271 billion since the start of the year — down 24% compared with the same period in 2024.
The comptroller's report included other findings — including a slight uptick in the total number of financial services sector jobs in New York City. The comptroller's office identified an increase in the total number of securities industry jobs based in New York City in 2024 of roughly 1.6% versus the year prior: 201,500 jobs in 2024, up from 198,400 in 2023.
As a result, securities headcount in New York has now surpassed "the previous peak seen in 2000," the report continued.
There have been over 60 seasons of "Bachelor"-related TV.
That means there have also been dozens of "Bachelor" relationships, both failed and successful.
The latest season of "The Bachelor" concluded on Monday.
"The Bachelor" and its related spinoffs are about one thing: finding love.
Yet, while there have been over 60 seasons of Bachelor Nation content, there are only 32 couples from the franchise still together.
On March 24, Grant Ellis concluded his run as the 29th star of "The Bachelor" by successfully proposing to his season's winner, Juliana Pasquarosa.
That means they'll be joining this list of couples from the franchise who are still together.
Grant Ellis and Juliana Pasquarosa
Grant Ellis and Juliana Pasquarosa in 2024.
Anne Marie Fox/Disney/Getty Images
Grant Ellis proposed to Juliana Pasquarosa during the March 2025 finale of "The Bachelor."
It's been something of a tough season for Ellis, who was a fan-favorite when he appeared on Jenn Tran's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2024, but he pulled through and found his happily ever after (at least, for now).
Joey Graziadei and Kelsey Anderson
Graziadei and Anderson.
John Fleenor/Disney/ABC
Joey Graziadei proposed to Kelsey Anderson during the March 2024 finale of "The Bachelor."
Graziadei has become a fan-favorite lead in this long and storied franchise since he came in second on Charity Lawson's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2023.
In fact, his Fantasy Suites episode was the most-watched episode of the show since the 2022 finale of Clayton Echard's season, according to Variety.
So, many people were delighted to see him propose to Anderson on a beach in Tulum and to watch her say yes.
They confirmed during "After the Final Rose" that they are still engaged, and have since moved to Los Angeles after Graziadei won "Dancing with the Stars."
Dotun Olubeko and Charity Lawson
Lawson and Olubeko in November 2023.
Emma McIntyre/Variety/Getty Images
Dotun Olubeko got down on one knee and proposed to Charity Lawson, as fans saw on the "Bachelorette" finale in August 2023.
Lawson, who appeared on Zach Shallcross' season of "The Bachelor" earlier in the year, proved herself to be a steadying presence on a show usually filled with drama.
"The Bachelorette" viewers saw Olubeko and Lawson develop a strong relationship, grow as a couple, and eventually get engaged in Fiji.
"We're not really trying to have a super incredibly 17-year length engagement," Lawson told People following the finale. "We obviously came here to find love, and we have successfully done that."
Tessa Tookes and Joey Kirchner
Tookes and Kirchner in 2022.
CityTv
Tessa Tookes, who appeared on Clayton Echard's season of "The Bachelor," found love on "Bachelor in Paradise Canada" in 2022. She married Joey Kirchner in September 2024.
Tookes, who was eliminated during week two of Echard's season in 2022, provided viewers with a franchise first during the season two finale of "Bachelor in Paradise Canada": She became the first woman to propose to a man on the show when she asked Kirchner (first seen on season one of "Bachelor in Paradise Canada" in 2021) to marry her.
Speaking to Yahoo Canada about her decision, Tookes said, "I know my love for Joey. Even if he declined, I'd still feel really good about making that call. And women can propose." She added, "It felt really good to do something that's never been done before."
According to an Instagram post by Tookes, the two wed in September 2024 in Ontario.
Zach Shallcross and Kaity Biggar
Zach Shallcross and Kaity Biggar in January 2024.
James Clark/Disney/Getty Images
Fans watched as Zach Shallcross successfully proposed to Kaity Biggar in March 2023.
After a very dramatic final week as the lead, Shallcross — who originally appeared on Rachel Recchia and Gabby Windey's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2022 — got down on one knee in Thailand and proposed to Biggar during the finale, which aired in March 2023.
That month, Shallcross told People, "Right now, the main emphasis is living together in Austin, getting to know each other more and more, and just see how things go. There's no rush."
In July 2023, Biggar posted on Instagram that the two are "officially roommates" in Austin together, and are still together in 2025 — they even set a wedding date for later this year.
Serena Pitt and Joe Amabile
Pitt and Amabile in December 2021.
Rich Polk/E! Entertainment/NBCUniversal/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Serena Pitt and Joe Amabile got married (again) in Charleston in September 2023 after meeting on the seventh season of "Bachelor in Paradise."
Throughout the entire seventh season of "Paradise," there wasn't a stronger couple than "Grocery Store Joe" Amabile (originally from Becca Kufrin's season in 2018) and Pitt (from Matt James' season in 2021). Even though Amabile's "Paradise" ex, Kendall Long, showed up at the proposal, nothing could shake their relationship.
They left the beach engaged in fall 2021, and just over a year later, they got married at a New York City courthouse with "Paradise" castmate Natasha Parker as a witness. The couple posted footage from their courthouse ceremony to Instagram in October 2022 and wrote in the caption that they still planned to have a wedding the following September.
Shortly after getting married, they told People: "We still plan on having a big wedding next fall that we are already planning, but with everything being so public in our relationship, having a private moment just the two of us felt so special and intimate."
In September 2023, they got married again, this time in front of their friends and family — with "Paradise" bartender Wells Adams officiating.
Kenny Braasch and Mari Pepin
Braasch and Pepin in January 2024.
James Clark/Disney/Getty Images
Kenny Braasch and Mari Pepin wed in November 2023, after having a rocky time in "Paradise."
After starting off strong, Pepin, who was on Matt James' season in 2021, decided that she wanted to be able to date other people. Braasch, from Clare Crawley and Tayshia Adams' season in 2020, then started pursuing castmates Demi Burnett and Tia Booth.
However, Pepin soon decided she wanted Braasch back, and they got back together. He even proposed at the end of the season.
As People reported, the two got married in Puerto Rico in November 2023.
Becca Kufrin and Thomas Jacobs
Kufrin and Jacobs in June 2022.
Dara-Michelle Farr via Getty Images
Becca Kufrin and Thomas Jacobs broke up, but they later rekindled their romance off-screen. Now, they're married, and Kufrin gave birth to their first child in September 2023.
After getting dumped on TV by Arie Luyendyk in 2018, Kufrin went on to star in her own season of "The Bachelorette" that year. She confirmed on an episode of her podcast, "Bachelor Happy Hour," that her relationship with the winner, Garrett Yrigoyen, ended in 2020.
Then, when Kufrin appeared on "Paradise" in 2021, she was hesitant to date Jacobs, who had appeared on Katie Thurston's season earlier in the year and was portrayed as one of the season's villains. However, the two built a solid relationship during the show, until Kufrin called things off during the "Paradise" finale.
The two reconnected off-screen and began dating. In May 2022, they revealed on Instagram that they'd gotten engaged and, as Kufrin wrote in the caption, "in the ultimate plot twist," she proposed to Jacobs.
In October 2022, Jacobs returned the favor and proposed to Kufrin. "We are so excited! It's time we can finally start wedding planning," Kufrin told People at the time.
Kufrin announced her pregnancy in April 2023. In September 2023, the two confirmed the birth of their son, Benson, on Instagram. The next month, they tied the knot.
Noah Erb and Abigail Heringer
Abigail Heringer and Noah Erb in December 2022.
Paul Archuleta/Getty Images
Noah Erb and Abigail Heringer got married in October 2024.
Heringer, from Matt James' season in 2021, and Erb, from Tayshia Adams' season in 2020, went on the first date of their season of "Paradise" and they were together for the entire season, with a few hiccups along the way.
In the penultimate episode of the season, Erb decided that he was simultaneously falling in love with Heringer and didn't think she was "his person." They left Mexico separately.
But like Kufrin and Jacobs, the two reconnected post-"Paradise," which they confirmed during the reunion in October 2021.
The two announced on Instagram in August 2023 that they were engaged, accompanied by a caption that referenced Taylor Swift's song "Lover." They wed 14 months later in Oklahoma.
Chris Conran and Alana Milne
Conran and Milne in December 2021.
Paul Archuleta/Getty Images
Chris Conran and Alana Milne got kicked off "Paradise" together in 2021. They got engaged in March 2024.
Conran, who was eliminated on night one of Clare Crawley's season in 2020, was originally dating Jessenia Cruz of Matt James' season in 2021, but that changed when Alana Milne, also from James' season, entered the beach.
The two quickly decided to pursue a relationship, leaving Cruz in the dust. In turn, everyone on the beach ganged up on them and claimed that they'd been dating pre-"Paradise," a claim they both denied.
After the cast essentially told them that none of them would speak to the couple if they stayed, they left separately.
But then Conran and Milne were spotted hanging out together, and Milne confirmed the relationship on her Instagram story, posting a photo of the two kissing captioned, "Paradise is wherever I'm with you." Conran reposted and wrote: "3 months of no cameras or producers."
In March 2024, the duo posted on Instagram confirming their engagement.
Dylan Barbour and Hannah Godwin
Barbour and Godwin in June 2022.
Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images
After a rocky start, Dylan Barbour and Hannah Godwin made it through season six of "BIP." They got married at a French estate in August 2023.
Barbour (from Hannah Brown's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2019) made it clear that he was only there for Godwin — who was left blindsided on Colton Underwood's season of "The Bachelor," also in 2019 — during the first episode of season six of "Paradise" in 2019. However, she needed a little more time to explore things with Blake Horstmann, a runner-up on Becca Kufrin's season of "The Bachelorette."
Horstmann had even flown down to Alabama to visit her before the two began filming for "Bachelor in Paradise," a fact that was withheld from the rest of the cast (and the viewing public) until the fourth episode.
But Godwin chose to stick with Barbour, and the two got engaged on the finale, which aired in September 2019. They married in August 2023.
Dean and Caelynn Bell
Dean and Caelynn in December 2022.
Steve Granitz/FilmMagic/Getty Images
After meeting on "Bachelor in Paradise" in 2019, Dean Bell (née) Unglert and Caelynn Bell (née) Miller-Keyes wed in September 2023.
When Unglert, who was on Rachel Lindsay's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2017, left "Paradise" early, Miller-Keyes was devastated. But he returned to say he had made a mistake and asked Miller-Keyes to leave Mexico with him to figure out their relationship.
This wasn't a complete surprise, as E! News reported in July 2019 that the two were dating, but fans finally got to see how their relationship unfolded during an episode of "Bachelor in Paradise" that aired in September 2019.
Miller-Keyes, who made it to hometown dates on Colton Underwood's season in 2018, left behind her rebound guy, Connor Saeli, from Hannah Brown's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2019 to join Unglert in his much-discussed van.
In October 2022, a source told People that Unglert and Miller-Keyes were engaged. That month, Unglert also spoke about the proposal during an episode of his podcast with fellow "Bachelor" alum Jared Haibon. A few days later, Unglert confirmed the news on his Instagram.
They married in September 2023 at a Colorado mountain resort outside Aspen and changed their last names to Bell, Unglert's mother's maiden name.
Kevin Wendt and Astrid Loch
Loch and Wendt in August 2018.
Paul Hebert via Getty Images
Kevin Wendt and Astrid Loch started dating during "Bachelor in Paradise" in 2018. They're now married with two kids.
Known affectionately by their fellow "Paradise" contestants as "Mom and Dad," the cast was shocked when the most solid couple of the season broke up on the last day of "Paradise" during season five in September 2018.
Wendt, straight off a stint on "Bachelor Winter Games" in 2018, copped to still being affected by his split from ex-girlfriend Ashley Iaconetti (who appears elsewhere on this list). Loch, from Nick Viall's season of "The Bachelor" in 2017, was blindsided.
The two were brought together again during the reunion episode. They got engaged in August 2019 and welcomed their son August in November 2021, People reported. They married in October 2022.
In February 2023, Loch shared that they were expecting their second child, and their son, Nash, was born in October.
Arie Luyendyk and Lauren Burnham
Burnham and Luyendyk in July 2018.
Presley Ann/Getty Images
Arie Luyendyk and Lauren Burnham got engaged on the "After the Final Rose" special after Luyendyk shocked the world by dumping Becca Kufrin on TV. They're now married with three kids.
Luyendyk first appeared on the eighth season of "The Bachelorette" in 2012, competing for the love of Emily Maynard. He eventually became the runner-up.
In 2017, ABC made the surprising move to bring him back for the 22nd season of "The Bachelor," where viewers watched him propose to Kufrin.
Soon after the proposal, however, Luyendyk decided he had made a mistake and contacted Burnham, the runner-up from his season, before breaking up with Kufrin while the cameras were rolling, making for a controversial moment in Bachelor Nation's history.
Luyendyk and Burnham began their relationship anew, and he proposed to her on the live "After the Final Rose" special, which aired after the finale in March 2018.
They had a destination wedding in Hawaii in January 2019, People reported, and their daughter, Alessi, was born in May of that year.
They later welcomed twins Lux and Senna in June 2021, and are expecting their fourth child this year.
Raven Gates and Adam Gottschalk
Gates and Gottschalk in September 2019.
Raymond Hall/Getty Images
Raven Gates and Adam Gottschalk found love on season four of "Bachelor in Paradise." They got married in April 2021 and now have two kids together.
Gates quickly became a fan favorite while she was a contestant on Nick Viall's season of "The Bachelor" in 2017. After finishing in second place, she made her way to Mexico for "Bachelor in Paradise" that August where she met Gottschalk, who had been a contestant on Rachel Lindsay's season of "The Bachelorette" earlier that year.
In June 2019, they shared matching Instagram posts announcing their engagement. Gates revealed on social media that they postponed their May 2020 wedding due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but they finally married in April 2021, as she shared on Instagram.
Their son Gates was born in January 2022, and their son Max was born in July 2023.
Jordan Rodgers and JoJo Fletcher
Rodgers and Fletcher in 2020.
John Fleenor/ABC/Getty Images
Jordan Rodgers proposed to JoJo Fletcher during season 12 of "The Bachelorette." They got married in May 2022.
After Fletcher, first seen on Ben Higgins' season in 2016, sent Robby Hayes home, she accepted a proposal from Rodgers on the "The Bachelorette," which aired later that year.
Years later, Fletcher and Rodgers are still together. In fact, in August 2019, Rodgers "re-proposed" to Fletcher, complete with a new ring, as Fletcher shared on Instagram. In May 2022, after six years together and two postponed wedding dates, Fletcher and Rodgers married at a California winery.
The couple also had a reality series on CNBC, "Cash Pad," where they partnered with "homeowners hoping to turn their properties into ideal short-term rentals," according to the network.
They also hosted the competition show "Battle of the Fittest Couples" from October to December 2019 on the Paramount Network, and another competition show, "The Big D," on USA from June to August 2023.
Jared Haibon and Ashley Iaconetti
Jared Haibon, Ashley Iaconetti, and their son Dawson in January 2023.
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Jared Haibon and Ashley Iaconetti's love story began in 2015. They married in August 2019, and now have two kids.
In 2015, Haibon and Iaconetti competed on Kaitlyn Bristowe and Chris Soules' seasons of "The Bachelorette" and "The Bachelor" respectively, and met during the second season of "Bachelor in Paradise" in 2015. At the time, Iaconetti was smitten, but Haibon wasn't as interested.
According to a 45-minute video the couple released on Iaconetti's YouTube channel about how they fell in love, Haibon realized he had to make his move when Iaconetti returned from "Bachelor Winter Games" in 2018 with a boyfriend (Kevin Wendt).
Their relationship was made Instagram-official in May 2018, and Haibon proposed just a few weeks later, as E! News reported. The couple married in Rhode Island in August 2019, with a number of Bachelor Nation members in attendance at their wedding, as People reported at the time.
In March 2021, they announced their move to Rhode Island on Instagram and opened Audrey's Coffeehouse and Lounge in South Kingstown.
Their son, Dawson, was born in January 2022.
In January 2024, Iaconetti and Haibon announced that she was pregnant with their second baby. Their son Hayden was born in July.
Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert
Tolbert and Roper in November 2019.
Paul Archuleta/Getty Images
Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert met on "Bachelor in Paradise" in 2015 and got married eight months later. They welcomed their third child in November 2020.
Tolbert was originally on Kaitlyn Bristowe's season, while Roper was on Chris Soules' season of "The Bachelor," both in 2015.
But now, "Janner," as they're known, are the gold standard for "Bachelor in Paradise" couples. They were the first in the spinoff's history to get engaged and actually get married — there had been a few false starts with other couples — and they have been making it work ever since their finale aired in September 2015.
They had their issues — which were shown on their season of "Marriage Boot Camp" in 2016 — but they worked through them.
Their first daughter, Emerson, was born in August 2017. Their son, Brooks, was born in July 2019, after Roper gave birth in her closet, which she shared on Instagram. And in November 2020, they welcomed their third child, Reed.
In August 2023, Roper shared on Instagram that she was experiencing "a missed miscarriage," and said her unborn son's heart had stopped though her body hadn't "released the pregnancy yet."
"I've been carrying him with so much pride and cherish every moment still left with part of him, but it has also been equally as challenging and devastating," she wrote.
Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici
Giudici and Lowe in December 2018.
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Sleep Number
Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici remain the sole winning "Bachelor" couple to get married. Giudici gave birth to their third child in December 2019.
Lowe is the only "Bachelor" lead (season 17, 2013) who has stayed with the winner of his season — both Jason Mesnick and Arie Luyendyk returned to the runners-up of their seasons. Lowe had previously appeared on Emily Maynard's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2012.
As People reported, Lowe and Giudici had their first son, Samuel, in July 2016, two years after their televised wedding in 2014. Their second son, Isaiah, was born in June 2018.
Their third child, a daughter they named Mia, was born in December 2019.
Chris Siegfried and Desiree Hartsock
Hartsock and Siegfried in August 2018.
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Chris Siegfried proposed to Desiree Hartsock on season nine of "The Bachelorette." They got married in 2015 and had their first child in 2016, their second in January 2019, and their third in November 2024.
Hartsock originally appeared on Sean Lowe's season of "The Bachelor" in 2013, but she was sent home. Her season of "The Bachelorette" was especially controversial — she was broken up with by Brooks Forester during the second-to-last week of the show, who many considered to be the frontrunner. Some fans believed Hartsock was settling when she accepted Siegfried's proposal back in August 2013.
Despite the controversy, Siegfried and Hartsock got married in January 2015. Their son, Asher, was born a year later. In July 2018, the couple told Us Weekly that they were expecting their second child, Zander. He was born in January 2019.
Also, in 2018, the couple appeared on "Marriage Boot Camp," a show where couples confront the marital issues they're facing. They decided to stay together and work on their relationship.
In May 2024, Siegfried announced she was pregnant with their third child. Their son, Noah, was born that November.
Joan Vassos and Chock Chapple
Vassos and Chapple in December 2024.
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Our very first "Golden Bachelorette" Joan Vassos got engaged to Chock Chapple during the season finale that aired in November 2024.
Vassos had appeared on "The Golden Bachelor" to compete for Gerry Turner's heart, but she had to exit in week three due to a family emergency. In May 2024, she was named the star of the first season of "The Golden Bachelorette."
Chapple was a frontrunner throughout the season, so it wasn't a big surprise when he got down on one knee and proposed.
According to social media, the two are still together and planning to move to New York City.
Holly Durst and Blake Julian
Julian and Durst in 2011.
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Holly Durst and Blake Julian have the distinction of being the only successful couple from the short-lived spinoff series "Bachelor Pad." They have two kids.
Durst and Julian met during the second season of "Bachelor Pad" in 2011. Julian was fresh off Ashley Hebert's season of "The Bachelorette," and Durst had last been seen on Matt Grant's season in 2008. Julian's proposal was announced during the season finale.
The two got married in June 2012.
In July 2019, Durst posted an Instagram video detailing their 7-year struggle with infertility, IVF, miscarriages, and surrogacy.
In September 2019, Julian and Durst revealed on Instagram that they had adopted a baby, Poppy.
Then, in January 2023, they announced the adoption of their son, Knox.
Jason Mesnick and Molly Malaney
Mesnick and Malaney in January 2024.
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Jason Mesnick proposed to Melissa Rycroft on the finale of his season of "The Bachelor," but revealed on "After the Final Rose" that he was still in love with runner-up Molly Malaney. They celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary in 2024.
Mesnick was originally on DeAnna Pappas' season in 2008. He proposed to Rycroft, dumped her on "After the Final Rose," and immediately asked Malaney if they could resume their relationship in March 2009, which they discussed during an interview with People that month.
Malaney and Mesnick were engaged later that year in October 2009, Mesnick confirmed to Us Weekly, and were married just a few months later.
Now, they're one of the few "Bachelor" success stories, even if their love story didn't start off in the most conventional way. They had their daughter Riley in 2013.
Things worked out for Rycroft, too. After the breakup, she reunited with her ex, Tye Strickland. They got married in 2009, and have three kids.
Trista Rehn and Ryan Sutter
Sutter and Rehn in January 2024.
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Trista Rehn was the very first "Bachelorette" and set a high bar for the franchise — she's been with the winner of her season, Ryan Sutter, since 2003.
Just uttering the words "Trista and Ryan" around a "Bachelor" fan will send them on a trip down memory lane. The year was 2003, and Trista was the very first "Bachelorette," after getting sent home as the runner-up of the first season of "The Bachelor."
Rehn chose Sutter in the finale, and he proposed. Their wedding was televised (the first of the franchise) and shown as a miniseries called "Trista and Ryan's Wedding" in December 2003.
Rehn also appeared on the first season of "Dancing with the Stars" in 2005, and the couple appeared on "Marriage Boot Camp" in 2014. They're still married, live in Colorado, and have two kids, Max and Blakesley.
Brendan Morais and Serene Russell
Brendan Morais and Serene Russell.
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Brendan Morais and Serene Russell shocked "Bachelor" fans when they hard-launched their relationship on Instagram in March 2025 — there hadn't been any speculation about their relationship at all.
It's been a minute since either was on TV, but here's where you know them from: Morais was initially on Tayshia Adams' season of "The Bachelorette" in 2020, but left because he wasn't ready to propose.
He then controversially appeared on "Bachelor in Paradise" in 2021 — although he spent the beginning of the season pursuing Natasha Parker, it was revealed he was basically killing time until Pieper James (from Matt James' season in 2021) walked on the beach. They dated for a while but eventually broke up at some point in 2023 or 2024.
Russell first appeared on Clayton Echard's season of "The Bachelor" in 2022. That same year, she traveled to Mexico for season eight of "Bachelor in Paradise" and got engaged to Brandon Jones (Michelle Young's season of "The Bachelorette," 2021). They broke up in 2023.
It's unclear how Morais and Russell met, but the two seem to be going strong.
Brayden Bowers and Christina Mandrell
Bowers and Mandrell in January 2024.
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Brayden Bowers proposed to Christina Mandrell in January 2024 on live TV. They eloped in Nashville in December.
Bowers, of Lawson's season, might have been eliminated from "Bachelor in Paradise" after failing to secure a rose, but he was still able to find love within the franchise.
During the finale of season nine of "Paradise," which aired in December 2023, it was revealed that Bowers has been dating Mandrell, from Shallcross' season, for the last few months.
"Beyond the cameras and reality show drama, Brayden (aka MY BOYFRIEND!) and I found something truly special," Mandrell wrote on Instagram.
On the red carpet of Turner and Nist's televised wedding in January, Bowers got down on one knee and proposed to Mandrell, who accepted, as seen on Instagram. They surprised fans later that year by eloping, per People.
Anna Redman and Chris Bukowski
Bukowski in 2019 and Redman in 2021.
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Anna Redman and Chris Bukowski announced their relationship on Instagram in March 2022.
Redman and Bukowski, both Chicago residents, made their relationship Instagram-official in March 2022, with Redman captioning a series of photos "hard launch." They moved in together a few months later.
While these two never interacted on-screen, they're both "Bachelor" alums. Bukowski has famously appeared on multiple seasons, including Emily Maynard's season of "The Bachelorette," season three of "Bachelor Pad," and three seasons of "Bachelor in Paradise." He unsuccessfully attempted to join Andi Dorfman's season of "The Bachelorette" as well.
Bachelor Nation reported that Bukowski got engaged to Katie Morton on his last appearance on "Paradise" in 2019, but they broke up a few months later, according to a since-deleted Instagram post.
You might remember Redman from her controversial appearance on Matt James' season of "The Bachelor" in 2021 when she spread rumors that a fellow contestant was "entertaining men for money." She later briefly appeared on "Bachelor in Paradise" later that year.
According to an episode of Joe Amabile's podcast "Clickbait," Amabile and his wife, Serena Pitt, introduced the two.
Jordan Chapman and Corrinne Jones
Chapman and Jones in November 2021.
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Jordan Chapman and Corrinne Jones never appeared on-screen together, but they found love in Bachelor Nation.
Chapman and Jones, from Clayshia's season in 2020 and Matt James' season in 2021, respectively, made their Instagram debut in September 2021.
They got engaged in September 2024.
It's unclear how exactly they met since they never overlapped on our TV screens, but Bachelor Nation is well-connected.
Mike Renner and Olivia Miller
Renner in 2018 and Miller in 2022.
Mike Renner and Olivia Miller are Bachelor Nation's self-proclaimed "most irrelevant" couple. They got engaged in July 2024.
If you remember either of these former "Bachelor" contestants, you're a true super-fan. Renner, a sports analyst, was eliminated during week three of Becca Kufrin's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2018. Miller, a stylist, is a more recent contestant, appearing on Zach Shallcross' season of "The Bachelor" in 2023, but she was sent home during night one.
They hard-launched their relationship in June 2023, according to Bachelor Nation, by calling themselves "Bachelor Nation's most irrelevant couple." Just over a year later, in July 2024, Renner proposed to Miller.
Peyton Wright and Chris Lambton
Wright and Lambton in May 2012.
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Peyton Wright and Chris Lambton also never interacted on-screen, but they met through friends from Bachelor Nation.
Wright and Lambton were never part of the same show — Wright appeared on the 10th season of "The Bachelor" competing for Andy Baldwin's heart in 2007 but was left behind on a two-on-one date. She later appeared on the first season of "Bachelor Pad."
Lambton, on the other hand, made it all the way to the final two in Ali Fedotowsky's season of "The Bachelorette" in 2010, and even turned down the opportunity to be the next "Bachelor," he told Boston.com.
The two didn't find love on TV, but hit it off when they were introduced to each other by friends from the Bachelor Nation at a golf tournament in 2010, People reported in 2013.
They got married in May 2012 and have been together since.
"I'm so glad Andy Baldwin left me standing there on that aircraft carrier," Wright told People ahead of the couple's first anniversary in 2013. "I'm glad it didn't go any further because it wouldn't have worked out."
They have two children: a daughter, Lyla, who was born in November 2016, and a son, Hayes, who was born in December 2018.
The couple hosted the HGTV show "Going Yard," which ran for two seasons. They also collaborated with HSN on a furniture line called Chris and Peyton by Design.
Jesse Csincsak and Ann Lueders
Csincsak and Lueders in August 2010.
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Jesse Csincsak won the season of "The Bachelorette" he appeared on in 2008 and proposed to DeAnna Pappas, but the two broke up after a few months. His future wife, Ann Lueders, was eliminated on night one of Jason Mesnick's season in 2009.
The couple met on a "Bachelor" reunion cruise that Csincsak organized.
He told Hollywood 411 in 2017 that he "realized that there were a lot of women who had gone on the show who were also single and could understand what I was going through." Csincsak added that he began inviting past contestants to the reunions he hosted.
"Ann just happened to come on the first cruise I hosted to Mexico and the rest is history," he said.
Csincsak and Lueders married in 2010 while Lueders was pregnant with their first child, Noah.
According to Us Weekly, their daughter Charlotte was born three years later, and their third child, Brian, was born in December 2016.
Tara Durr and John Presser
Presser and Durr in January 2011.
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Tara Durr and John Presser were both sent home on night one of their respective seasons, and they met on a private "Bachelor" alumni Facebook group.
Durr was eliminated after night one of Lorenzo Borghese's season of "The Bachelor" in 2006, and Presser was eliminated after night one of Jillian Harris' season of "The Bachelorette" in 2009.
According to People, they met through a private "Bachelor" alumni Facebook group in July 2009 and were engaged by February 2010. They were married later that year, in November, the St. Augustine Record reported at the time.