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Nov 19, 2022Zion National Park turns 103

Our photo brings us to a 16-mile stretch of the Virgin River where it cuts a spectacular thousand-foot-deep gorge through the upper reaches of Utah"s Zion Canyon. Flowing through Zion National Park (which turns 103 today!), the Virgin River is home to unique plants and animals that aren"t found anywhere else, due to the unique intersection of biomes found where the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert all meet. Without the water of the Virgin River system, creatures like the woundfin minnow, one of rarest species on the planet, couldn"t exist.Desktop Version

Oct 10, 2021A shell of many colors

We could perhaps fool you and claim you"re viewing a long-lost Jackson Pollock canvas, but it was Mother Nature who painted this blackfoot paua (aka rainbow abalone) shell. And modern art it ain"t: Fossils from similar marine gastropods date back at least 65 million years.Desktop Version

Apr 23, 2021A house of grand scale(s)

We"re looking at the rooftop of Casa Batlló, a six-story building in the center of Barcelona topped with colorful "scales." What brings us here? Well, here in the Catalonia region of Spain, and in several other locales from England to Ethiopia, it"s the feast of Saint George. You know George (or Jordi, as the Catalans call him): He"s the knight who, legend holds, saved a much-loved princess by defeating a fierce dragon. It"s said the tower jutting from the casa"s tiled roof represents George"s lance thrust into the monster"s scaly back.Desktop Version

Aug 15, 2023Piazza IX Aprile, Taormina, Sicily, Italy

Welcome to Taormina, an historic Italian resort built into a hillside high above the Ionian Sea on the coast of Sicily. From here you can take in panoramic views of the coast of Calabria, on the Italian mainland, the city of Syracuse, and Mount Etna, roughly 20 miles away.Desktop Version

Mar 27, 2022World Theatre Day

What better place to celebrate World Theatre Day than the ancient theater of Taormina, Sicily, an amphitheater built in the Hellenistic style of the Greeks in the third century BCE. The venue was later expanded by the Romans and is one of the signature sights in Taormina. And if you look in the upper-right corner of the photo, that"s Mount Etna giving a performance of its own, spewing a little ash and smoke.Desktop Version

Oct 16, 2020It s harvest time on World Food Day

This tractor is transporting trailers full of one of the world"s most versatile veggies: cabbage. A stalwart in Slavic recipes, a key ingredient in Korean kimchi, and essential to that sauerkraut on your ballpark dog, it"s the perfect cosmopolitan crop to represent World Food Day.Desktop Version

Aug 13, 2021Fight for your lefts

It"s International Left-Handers Day, so why are we showing this horned ghost crab whose right claw is noticeably larger than its left? Well, we"re calling this crab a lefty because while its beefy right pincher is useful for grappling with other crabs, it uses its left claw for precision work like bringing food to its mouth, as a human southpaw does. (Though to be fair, it"s never been observed which claw these crabs use for writing or playing golf.)Desktop Version

Jun 3, 2021Get on your bike and ride

In honor of the UN"s World Bicycle Day, we"re at Triglav National Park in Slovenia, with a bird"s-eye view of riders crossing this dubious-looking wooden suspension bridge over the blue glacial water of the river called Soča. Protecting some of the most magnificent mountain landscapes of the Julian Alps, Triglav is the country"s only national park, but it"s a stunner. Running along Slovenia"s northwestern border with Italy, Triglav was first protected as a "conservation park" in 1924, then made a national park in 1981. The park gets its name from the mountain at its heart, Triglav, long considered a symbol of Slovenia and of Slovene identity.Desktop Version

Jun 13, 2021Bear watching in the Finnish forest

If you go out to the woods today in parts of Finland, you might get a big surprise. That"s because about 2,000 brown bears can be found freely roaming the taiga—or boreal forest—which covers most of the country, making this rugged wilderness in northern Europe the perfect place to see these majestic animals in their natural habitat. And bear watching is a popular pastime in Finland. The bear-watching season begins in April—when the first bears emerge from hibernation in a white blanket of snow—and lasts until fall. Summer nights are the best time to spot the bears, even under the golden glow of the midnight sun for those who venture north of the Arctic Circle. Many observe the creatures from the safety of a "hide," a purpose-built wooden cabin offering visitors a close-up view of a real teddy bear"s picnic.Desktop Version

Jul 29, 2021Hiding in plain sight

Today we"re in Assam, India, to celebrate International Tiger Day, the annual celebration of the magnificent striped cats that have captured our imagination through the ages. This annual observance began in 2010 at a summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, conceived as a way to draw attention to the plight of tigers and spur conservation efforts.Desktop Version

Jan 18, 2023White Sands National Park turns 90

If today"s photo evokes some chilly feelings inside of you, surprise! That"s not snow, but part of the largest gypsum dune field on the planet. We"re at White Sands National Park in New Mexico, which was first established as a monument on this date in 1933 and then became a national park in 2019. Roughly 4.5 billion tons of gypsum sand has massed in the Tularosa Basin over the past 12,000 years, having worn off the surrounding mountains. Thousands of species live in the park, many of which have evolved to have white coloration, allowing them to blend into the environment.Desktop Version

Sep 11, 202120 years later

The glassy lower Manhattan skyline is so pristine it"s hard to fathom the tragic scene it became 20 years ago today. But this twisted beam resting on the Hudson River"s shores is one of many reminders.Desktop Version

May 9, 2023A castle fit for a count

Peeking out above the trees in the Făgăraș Mountains of Romania is Poenari Castle, a fortress steeped in history and legend. In the 15th century, this castle was occupied by the notorious ruler Vlad III, aka Vlad the Impaler, aka Vlad Dracula.Desktop Version

Jun 27, 2022Lavender fields on the Valensole Plateau in Provence, France

We"re sorry. The scratch "n" sniff option was not ready in time for this photo, so you"ll have to imagine the intoxicating fragrance wafting over you... Today we"re in the lavender fields that carpet the Valensole Plateau in Provence, France. A rolling 300 square miles of flowers color the landscape as far as the eye can see. Vincent van Gogh spent time here, and featured lavender in some of his paintings. June is the start of the lavender season, and though it runs till August, peak viewing (and smelling) time varies a little with fluctuations in temperature and rainfall. There are lovely villages that you can meander while visiting the lavender fields, stopping for a pastry or crunchy-soft baguette at an outdoor cafe.Desktop Version

Jul 11, 2022World Population Day

The bustling city streets of Barcelona seem as good a place as any to mark World Population Day. More and more of us are heading to the city. It"s estimated that 2007 was the first year in which more people lived in cities than in rural areas. If current trends continue, by 2050 about two-thirds of the world population will be living in cities. City planners and government officials will need to account for this rapid increase as power grids, water supplies, public transit, and emergency services will all be stretched.Desktop Version

Mar 31, 2022Happy Birthday, Eiffel Tower

Locally, it"s called "La dame de fer," which translates to English as "The Iron Lady." To the rest of the world, it"s the Eiffel Tower, a landmark nearly synonymous with all things Parisian. It"s one of the most recognizable structures in the world and the most visited monument with an entrance fee. The Eiffel Tower took 500 workers two years, two months, and five days to complete. Most of the structural work was finished by the end of March 1889 and to celebrate, the builders led a group of government officials and journalists to the top of the tower on March 31. It was, at the time, the highest man-made structure in the world. With the addition of a new radio antenna on March 15, 2022, the Eiffel Tower grew an additional 20 feet and is now 1,083 feet tall, just in time for its 133rd birthday.Desktop Version

Feb 18, 2022Great Backyard Bird Count

This colorful foursome resting on a tree limb during a winter in France is a group of great tits, one of the most common bird species seen across most of Europe and Asia and in parts of North Africa. Belonging to the same family as North American chickadees, great tits are beloved for their colorful plumage and acrobatic antics while feeding in backyards and in gardens, which makes them an ideal mascot for the Great Backyard Bird Count.Desktop Version

Mar 1, 2022Women s History Month

To celebrate the start of Women"s History Month, our homepage photo features a candid shot of members of the US Army Nurse Corps in 1944. The women are shown in between training exercises while they await deployment to the South Pacific near the end of World War II. At the time, all who served in the Army Nurse Corps were women, and the units were all segregated. And though the need for nurses was urgent, the army had set a quota for just 160 Black nurses. By the end of the war, that number had increased to nearly 500.Desktop Version

Mar 22, 2021Honoring some real heroes of World War II

In this photograph, likely taken in 1941, we see a group of cadets examining a map with their training instructor. They are (from left to right) Lieutenant John Daniels of Chicago, Cadet Clayborne Lockett of Los Angeles, Cadet Lawrence O"Clark of Chicago, Cadet William Melton of Los Angeles, and civilian instructor Milton Crenshaw of Little Rock. The pilots would later be known as the "Tuskegee Airmen," the first Black military aviators in the US Army Air Corps, a precursor of the US Air Force. During World War II, more than 1,000 Tuskegee pilots flew more than 15,000 individual sorties in Europe and North Africa, quickly becoming revered for their bravery and excellence.Desktop Version

Aug 27, 2018Tennis in the park

Here at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, New York City, it’s the opening day of the US Open Tennis Championships. When it began back in 1881 as the US National Championship, it was one of the first tennis tournaments in the world and was limited to amateur players only. It’s been through many iterations since, but this year marks the 50th anniversary of the modern competition, now called an ‘open’ because both amateurs and pros can compete. The US Open completes the fourth and final tournament of the international tennis Grand Slam, the world’s most prestigious pro tournaments.Desktop Version

Jul 13, 2019Batten down the hatches

The athletes on these boats are jockeying for position at the start of the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac Island (pronounced ‘Mack-i-naw’). The ‘Mac,’ at 333 miles long, is the world’s oldest and longest annual freshwater boat race. It’s an amateur event, but make no mistake, these sailors know their stuff. Many go on to race in the America’s Cup. This year’s race is held this weekend. The boats set sail—smallest to largest—just off Chicago’s Navy Pier, passing by the city skyline as we see in our image. When crews pass under the span of the mighty Mackinac Bridge—connecting the Lower Peninsula to the Upper Peninsula—Lake Michigan becomes Lake Huron, and the island appears.Desktop Version

Jul 19, 2018Cosplay strongly encouraged

The first San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) was a single-day event for comic book fans on March 21, 1970. After that successful trial run, the organizers staged a three-day event featuring celebrity appearances later that year. Comic-Con grew quickly from a modest gathering of dedicated fans to the massive multimedia spectacle of SDCC that begins today. Each year, more than 100,000 Comic-Con attendees dress as their favorite characters from the books, television shows, and movies that they love.Desktop Version

Jul 10, 2019Put your helmet on, we’re going for a hike

You’ll need to wear a safety helmet before stepping onto the cliff-hanging path that passes above the Gorge of Gaitanes in Spain"s Málaga province. Look around, but don’t forget to look down from the glass-floor observation platform. This is your opportunity to fully appreciate the 325-foot drop below and consider what life must be like as a mountain goat. The renovated path is far less dangerous than the original, which for many years had no guard rails. Made for workers back in 1905, the first walkway provided access between El Chorro and Gaitanejo hydroelectric power plants. After King Alfonso XIII visited in 1921, the walkway was given its nickname, El Caminito del Rey (The King’s Little Pathway). But after years of use and lack of upkeep, the nickname was updated to ‘The world’s most dangerous walkway.’Desktop Version

Jul 21, 2021An octagonal architectural treasure

Built in the 1240s by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in southeast Italy, Castel del Monte (Castle of the Mount) features an unusual octagonal design. Eight stone walls stretch between eight octagonal towers and enclose an octagonal courtyard. Each of the two floors also has eight trapezoidal rooms. Acclaimed and protected as a World Heritage Site in 1996, the castle symbolically reflects a harmonious integration of classical Roman, Arabic, and medieval architecture and design—and to some, its octagonal symmetry suggests a connection between heaven and earth.Desktop Version

Apr 12, 2022International Day of Human Space Flight

Sixty-one years ago today, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to see Earth from space, with a view likely similar to this image of the waning gibbous moon taken from the International Space Station. With a call of "Poyekhali!" ("Off we go!"), Gagarin launched into low Earth orbit in his Vostok 3KA spacecraft, making history in less than two hours with a complete trip around the planet. Landing in rural Russia, he became an instant worldwide celebrity—that is, after convincing puzzled locals he was a comrade and not a space alien.Desktop Version

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