Editing Urban exploration (section)

==Exploration sites==
[[File:Urban Explorer in the entrance of technical gallery.jpg|thumb|Urban explorers at the entrance of a technical gallery under construction in Paris, France]]

===Abandonments===
Ventures into abandoned structures are perhaps the most common example of urban exploration. Many sites are entered first by locals and may have [[graffiti]] or other kinds of [[vandalism]], while others are better preserved. Although targets of exploration vary from one country to another, high-profile abandonments include [[List of abandoned amusement parks|amusement parks]], [[grain elevator]]s, [[factories]], [[power plants]], [[missile silo]]s, [[fallout shelters]], [[hospital]]s, [[Psychiatric hospital|asylums]], [[prisons]], [[schools]], outmoded and abandoned [[skyscraper]]s, [[poor houses]], and [[sanatorium]]s.

In Japan, abandoned infrastructure is known as {{nihongo3||廃墟|haikyo}} (literally "ruins"), and the term is synonymous with the practice of urban exploration.<ref>{{cite web | first = Michael | last = Gakuran | title = The Hazards of Haikyo and Urban Exploration | date = 23 March 2010 | url = http://gakuran.com/the-hazards-of-haikyo-and-urban-exploration/ | access-date = 21 June 2011}}</ref> {{nihongo3|||Haikyo}} are particularly common in Japan because of its rapid industrialization (e.g., [[Hashima Island]]), damage during [[World War II]], the [[Japanese asset price bubble|1980s real estate bubble]], and natural disasters such as the [[2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tokyoweekender.com/2010/05/haikyo-abandoned-treasure/|title=Haikyo: Abandoned Treasure|work=Weekender|date=May 2010|access-date=18 November 2010}}</ref>
[[File:Željava, Underground 5.jpg|thumb|200x200px|Željava underground military airport]]
In [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], a large underground facility abandoned since 1992 is [[Željava Air Base]], situated under the {{Lang|sh|[[Gola Plješevica]]|italic=no}} mountain, near the city of [[Bihać]]. It was the largest [[Underground hangar|underground]] [[airport]] and [[military air base]] in the [[SFR Yugoslavia]], and one of the largest in Europe. The complex contains tunnels in total length of 3.5 km (2.2 mi), and other large facilities. Nowadays, it is popular for urban exploration, although it is risky due to the possibility of anti-personnel landmines being located in unexplored areas, remnants from 1990s [[Bosnian War]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Zeljava Airbase |url=http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/zeljava-airbase |accessdate=27 April 2017 |publisher=[[Atlas Obscura]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=June 17, 1968 |title=Underground Aircraft Dispersal Bihac Airfield, Yugoslavia 44-50N 015-47E |url=https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB439/docs/Underground-Doc4.pdf |access-date=28 July 2022 |work=[[National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency|National Photographic Interpretation Center]] |via=nsarchive2.gwu.edu}}</ref><ref name="lybi">{{cite web |title=Zeljava-jna_jedinice |url=http://www.zeljava-lybi.com/opis_eng.html |accessdate=27 April 2017 |publisher=}}</ref>

Many explorers find the decay of uninhabited space profoundly beautiful, and some are also proficient freelance photographers who document what they see, such as those who document the [[infrastructure]] of the former [[USSR]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Shevchenko|first=Vitaly|title=The urban explorers of the ex-USSR|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-26018424|access-date=12 February 2014|publisher=BBC|date=11 February 2014}}</ref>

Abandoned sites are also popular among [[historians]], [[Historic preservation|preservationists]], [[architects]], [[archaeologists]], [[Industrial Archaeology|industrial archaeologists]], [[ghost hunting|ghost hunters]] and notably, [[Photographer|photographers]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Duda |first=Anna |date=2023-05-04 |title=Tourist photography and heritage. The case of the abandoned city of Pripyat |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1743873X.2022.2161907 |journal=Journal of Heritage Tourism |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=384–400 |doi=10.1080/1743873X.2022.2161907 |issn=1743-873X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sipes |first=Todd |url=https://books.google.com.mt/books?hl=en&lr=&id=GevxAwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT6&dq=abandoned+photography&ots=UkHLHqjPa7&sig=tKilcDLgIUiEl0snHVjMmcKTxi4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=abandoned%20photography&f=false |title=Urban Exploration Photography: A Guide to Shooting Abandoned Places |date=2013-12-17 |publisher=Peachpit Press |isbn=978-0-13-381694-5 |language=en}}</ref>

===Active buildings===
[[File:Light Painting Urbex.jpg|thumb| [[Light painting]] inside an abandoned limestone quarry in [[France]].]]
Another aspect of urban exploration is the practice of exploring active or ''in use'' buildings, which includes gaining access to secured or "member-only" areas, mechanical rooms, roofs, elevator rooms, abandoned floors, and other normally unseen parts of working buildings. The term "infiltration" is often associated with exploring active structures. People entering restricted areas may be committing trespass, and [[Civil law (common law)|civil]] prosecution may result. One notable instance of the urban exploration of active buildings occurred in 2007, when the French urban exploration group [[les UX]] carried out a clandestine operation to repair and restore the [[Panthéon]]'s clock, which had stood inoperable for several decades. The group were able to conduct the repair work in secret, having infiltrated the building and set up a workshop inside a cavity under the Panthéon's dome.<ref>{{Cite news |last=King |first=Emilie Boyer |date=2007-11-26 |title=Undercover restorers fix Paris landmark's clock |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/nov/26/france.artnews |access-date=2025-04-18 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

===Catacombs===
[[File:Catacombes de Paris.jpg|thumb|Catacombs (France)]]
[[Catacombs]] such as those found in [[Catacombs of Paris|Paris]],<ref>{{cite map|url=https://www.pdf-maps.com/maps/105662/paris-underground-map/|title=Paris Underground Map|publisher=Michel-Eugène Lefébure de Fourcy|year=1841}}</ref> [[Catacombs of Rome|Rome]], [[Odessa Catacombs|Odessa]], and [[Catacombs of San Gennaro|Naples]] have been investigated by urban explorers. Some consider the [[Mines of Paris]], comprising many of the tunnels that are not open to public tours, including the catacombs, the "[[Holy Grail]]" due to their extensive nature and history. Explorers of these spaces are known as [[cataphile]]s.

===Sewers and storm drains===
[[File:St Paul storm drain.jpg|thumb|left|160px|Storm drain outfall in [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]]]]
Entry into [[storm drain]]s, or "draining", is another common form of urban exploration. Groups devoted to the task have arisen, such as the [[Cave Clan]] and Darkside in [[Australia]]. Draining has a specialized set of guidelines, the foremost of which is "When it rains, no drains!", because the dangers of becoming entrapped, washed away, or killed increase dramatically during heavy rainfall.

A small subset of explorers enter [[sanitary sewer]]s. Sometimes they are the only connection to caves or other subterranean features. Sewers are among the most dangerous locations to explore owing to the risk of poisoning by buildups of toxic gas (commonly [[methane]], [[hydrogen sulfide]], or [[carbon dioxide]]). Sewers can contain viruses, [[bacteria]], [[protozoa]], and [[Parasitic worm|parasitic worms]]. Protective equipment is recommended for people who enter sewers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Water |first=Municipal Sewer and |date=2020-06-22 |title=How to Keep Sewer Workers Safe |url=https://www.mswmag.com/editorial/2020/07/how-to-keep-sewer-workers-safe |access-date=2022-12-09 |website=Municipal Sewer and Water |language=en}}</ref>

===Transit tunnels===
[[File:DPS-01 and AS1A in D6 tunnel.jpg|thumb|Diesel trains in a tunnel of [[Metro-2]] D6 line in [[Moscow]], Russia]]
Exploring active and abandoned subway and railway tunnels, bores, and [[Ghost station|stations]] is often considered trespassing and can result in civil prosecution due to security concerns. As a result, this type of exploration is rarely publicized. An exception to this is the abandoned [[Rochester Industrial and Rapid Transit Railway|subway of Rochester, New York]], the only American city with an abandoned subway system that was once operational. The [[Cincinnati subway]] is also abandoned but was never completed. [[London]] has a number of stations on the [[London Underground]] network that have been closed over the years, with [[Aldwych tube station]] a popular location for explorers.

===Utility tunnels===
{{main|Utility tunnel}}
[[File:Schiffbau tunnel.jpg|thumb|[[Utility tunnel]] in the center of [[Zürich]], Switzerland]]

Universities, and other large institutions, such as hospitals, often distribute hazardous [[superheated steam]] for heating or cooling buildings from a [[district heating|central heating plant]]. These pipes are generally run through utility tunnels, which are often intended to be accessible solely for the purposes of maintenance. Nevertheless, many of these steam tunnels, especially those on college campuses, have a tradition of exploration by students. This practice was once called "vadding" at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], but students there now call it [[roof and tunnel hacking]].

Some steam tunnels have dirt floors, poor lighting and temperatures above {{convert|45|C|F}}. Others have concrete floors, bright light, and more moderate temperatures. Most steam tunnels have large intake fans to bring in the fresh air and push the hot air out the back, and these may start without warning. Most active steam tunnels do not contain airborne [[asbestos]], but proper breathing protection may be required for other respiratory hazards. Experienced explorers are very cautious inside active utility tunnels since pipes can spew boiling hot water or steam from leaky valves or pressure relief blow-offs. Often there are puddles of muddy water on the floor, making slips and falls a special concern near hot pipes.

Steam tunnels have generally been secured more heavily in recent years due to their frequent use for carrying communications network backbone cables, increased safety and liability concerns, and perceived risk of use in terrorist activities.