The Dead Sea has made it to the final list of spectacular natural landmarks competing for a coveted spot on the "New 7 Wonders of Nature" list, along with 27 other sites.
These sites also include the Grand Canyon, the Matterhorn, the Great Barrier Reef, the Amazon rainforest, Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa and Ecuador's Galapagos islands, Azerbaijan's Mud Volcanoes, Lebanon's Jeita Grotto, Ireland's Moher Cliffs and Germany's Black Forest.
People can vote by Internet or phone. The winners will be announced in 2011 and share in the glory already enjoyed by the seven man-made wonders chosen two years ago.
Over 1 billion people are expected to join in the voting, said the project's director, Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber.
"This campaign should contribute to the appreciation — to the knowledge — of our environment and not just the one in our country but worldwide," he stated. "If we or our children want to save anything, we should first appreciate it."
A panel of experts chose the finalists among the 77 nominees that gained the most votes in an early round of polling. People had suggested 261 landmarks in countries all over the world.