The so-called "liminal spaces" are an increasingly prevalent phenomenon online, but do they exist in our reality, or are they only manifested through our nightmares? In a way, they don't feel real, even though they're often actual photographs of places so quiet-looking and unsettling that they couldn't possibly be as empty as they look. There's just something about these odd open spaces that can simultaneously trigger both your claustrophobia and agoraphobia, even if we never knew we had those fears. Liminal spaces don't have much in them, but they can sometimes be scarier than any haunted house from a horror movie, even though we can't exactly explain why. They're, undeniably, also sort of fascinating.

While we hope you never find yourself in a place like "the Backrooms," if you ever do find yourself inside a cursed image, we hope this collection will leave you somewhat educated on the concept. Here, we've gathered the most liminal of spaces to leave you feeling a little uncomfortable and freaked out, so take a good long look at some of the emptiest real places out there.