Residents have turned the old opal mines into makeshift homes to escape the oppressive heat.Mark Kolbe/Getty Images
In the middle of the Australian Outback, there's a town where chimneys rise from the sand and big red signs warn people of "unmarked holes."
Welcome to Coober Pedy, the town that lives underground.
What began in 1916 as perhaps the largest opal mining operation in the world has since expanded into a subterranean community that is safely out of reach from the region's 120-degree summers.
Entire bedrooms, bookstores, churches, and bars are installed in the carved underground walls of Coober Pedy — and after 100 years of living in these "dugouts," the folks who call it home have no plans of stopping.
Here's a look inside the underground mining town of Coober Pedy.
Read the original article on Business InsiderAustralia produces roughly 95% of the world's precious opal supply, and mining is still a popular trade in Coober Pedy. However, most mining is fully mechanized today.
Signs just like this one are scattered all over the town.
Inhabitants and visitors need to watch their step — especially at night.
This store's outdoor sign advertises that it sells everything from DVDs and video games to fossils and opals.
The Opal Bug is an opal shop in Coober Pedy that sells everything from the gems to jewelry and watches. However, many visitors also like to visit the shop to see the famous opal-colored Volkswagen Beetle.
Both of the town's supermarkets are located on the same street aboveground.
A room in the cozy inn that runs for around $150 a night.
The town of Coober Pedy is only accessible by a small airstrip, by coach tour or private car, and via the Ghan railway line running between Darwin and Adelaide.
Underground Books was converted from a 1930s-era mining shaft into a small bookstore filled with Coober Pedy history books and more.
The church is located 55 feet below the Earth's surface.
Visitors must pay an entrance fee to tour Faye's Underground Home, but it's considered one of the must-see spots in Coober Pedy.
The only difference between "normal" homes and those in Coober Pedy is that these homes have no access to sunlight.
The underground homes have all the amenities of traditional ones — internet access, electricity, and water.
Rooms like this, the bedroom of Faye Nayler, a woman who picked and shoveled her own home in 1960, are the norm.
They'll likely spend most of their lives there, escaping the harsh Australian sun and making their home beneath the Australian Outback.
The town has an eerie, other-worldly feel to it, despite being home to around 2,500 residents.
Many turned the mines into makeshift homes to escape the oppressive heat.
When the water receded, the minerals from the ocean's seabed filled cracks in the earth and created colorful opals in the terrain.
After World War I, soldiers returned home and began mining the terrain for opal — a precious gem.
According to ABC News, Coober Pedy sources its water from the Great Artesian Basin located about 15 miles away from the town.
Even in the shade, it's common to feel temperatures of 100-plus. Much to the dismay of locals and visitors, there's little rainfall to provide relief from the harsh sun.
The town is referred to as the "opal capital of the world." Coober Pedy is an Aboriginal word that roughly translates to "white man in a hole."
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