Since it is too amazing to be real, images of a bending, glass-bottomed bridge in China have gone viral. The Ruyi bridge in Zhejiang province looks more like it belongs in the movie Avatar than it does on Earth. Still, China is notorious for building some pretty cool bridges.

Don’t get confused between Ruyi bridge and Ruyi island, which is an under-construction artificial island in China, as described in Wikipedia.

Initially the wonky walkways is about 140m above the ground, and the glass-bottomed structure, which is 1,400 feet long and suspended 1,000 feet above ground level was first opened in 2016. This architectural and engineering wonder was eventually proven to be true by Snopes, a myth-busting website, after much oohing and aahing.

Since September 2020, the unbelievable bridge has been open to the public. But it didn’t seem to get much coverage outside of China until former Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield shared a mystical video of it on Twitter in November 2020. By that time, it had already attracted over 200,000 visitors.

The bridge’s design was thought to be too far-fetched when it was first announced in 2017, but after opening last year it has now welcomed thousands of tourists.

Inspired by jade ruyi, which symbolises power and good fortune in Chinese folklore, the 140m-high structure is three bridges with a deck partially made from glass.

The park explained in a post on social platform Weibo that “intertwined into an undulating bridge body, visitors have a sense of experience when they pass”.

“The rigid and soft shape is perfectly integrated with the natural scenery of the Fairy House, just like a jade ruyi in the sky, and like a fairy draped silk. The painting is like a screen, and when seen from a distance, the mountains are full of movement, and they also carry beauty and auspiciousness.”

Former Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield tweeted a video of the bridge, joking: “I’d want better handrails.”