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Aug 24, 2019Get the bear facts

If you want to see a brown bear in the wild—and from a safe distance—this is a good time to head to Katmai National Park and Preserve in southern Alaska. The 4.1-million-acre park is home to about 2,200 brown bears, the largest population of protected brown bears on the continent. In summer and early fall, these normally solitary creatures congregate and wade into rivers and streams to feast on salmon returning home to spawn. One of the best spots for bear watching is Brooks Camp, which offers three platforms built just for this purpose. But it takes some effort to get there—the park is only accessible by plane or boat.Desktop Version

Jul 17, 2018Is there a bug-egg emoji for this?

Nothing says ‘smile!’ like a bunch of eggs laid by a member of the Pentatomidae family of insects. Not all stink bug eggs look like they have faces, but this incident of ‘life imitates emoji’ was too good to pass up today. That’s right, it’s World Emoji Day. Those tiny, cartoonish pictures that often stand in for words and phrases in social media posts and text messages have become a system of communication all their own. But why on July 17? Early on in the (very recent) history of emoji, the calendar emoji displayed July 17. So, when the time came for emoji to get their own day of recognition, this date stood out above all others.Desktop Version

Nov 22, 2018Tom Turkey takes Manhattan

The Tom Turkey float has been in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade since 1971, missing only one outing in 2003. The hat-wearing turkey flaps his wings and rolls out as the lead attraction in the parade, with Santa Claus bringing up the rear to bookend this holiday tradition. Long before Tom joined the lineup, and a few years before giant balloons shaped like animals and cartoon characters came along, live animals from the Central Park Zoo were a big feature in the parade. Did you watch the procession today?Desktop Version

Jun 26, 2019Get amped for Glastonbury

Greetings from Glastonbury Tor and St. Michael"s Tower in Somerset county of South West England. The tor (a Celtic word for an isolated hill) is often mentioned in Celtic mythology, and some believe it to be the site of Avalon, a mythical island central to legends of King Arthur. Glastonbury Tor has other enduring spiritual associations as well, particularly to various neopagan beliefs. Archaeological evidence suggests that several buildings have been constructed at the top of the hill over many centuries, but all that remains today is the roofless tower of St. Michael’s Church, built in the 1300s.Desktop Version

Aug 10, 2019Seville celebrates first world tour

Five hundred years ago today, in 1519, Ferdinand Magellan departed from Seville, Spain, on his quest for a western passage to the Spice Islands. He sailed five ships and a crew of more than 230 men down the Guadalquivir, the river in today"s image. Magellan wouldn’t have seen this incarnation of Seville’s Triana Bridge, though. It was built more than three centuries after the expedition"s return to the city in 1522. While successful in finding a western route to the Pacific Ocean and returning with valuable spices, the feat came at great cost. Only one ship, under the command of Juan Sebastián Elcano, and 17 other crew members completed the global circumnavigation, returning to Spain three years after setting off. Magellan wasn’t among them. He was killed on April 27, 1521, at the Battle of Mactan in the Philippines.Desktop Version

May 27, 2021Listening to the sea

Two enormous horns like those of old-fashioned gramophones are pointed toward the North Sea along this stretch of the Belgian coast. At the end of one of the horns, a bronze figure of a woman sits on a bench, seemingly listening to the distant sounds of the sea, while the other horn invites a visitor to do the same. The woman"s antiquated clothing, the outsized bolts on the horns, and the fluted Victrola-like design all echo the Belle Époque style once prevalent here on the Flemish coast. (Click on the above image to see more detailed views.)Desktop Version

Mar 15, 2022Beware the Ides of March

We"re at the Roman Forum for the Ides of March, a date made famous as the time of Julius Caesar"s assassination. According to the ancient historian Plutarch, Caesar had been warned by a seer that his life would be in danger no later than the Ides of March, something that William Shakespeare dramatizes in his famous tragedy of Caesar’s life and assassination. While historical fact and fiction can diverge, we do know that before March 15, 44 BCE was over, a group of senators had intercepted Caesar here in the Forum as Caesar was on his way to the Senate House. They stabbed him 23 times, killing him. Afterward, Rome descended into civil war, ending the Roman Republic, and leading to the rise of the Roman Empire.Desktop Version

Jun 16, 2020In the footsteps of Leopold Bloom

Today we"re looking down at St. Stephen"s Green in Dublin in honor of Bloomsday, a day when people celebrate Irish author James Joyce and his famous 1922 novel "Ulysses." But why today, you ask? That"s because the novel follows the meanderings and thoughts (and meandering thoughts) of the protagonist, Leopold Bloom, and a host of other characters—real and fictional—from 8 AM on June 16, 1904, through the early hours of the next morning.Desktop Version

Jul 25, 2021Illuminated Uluru

This landmark of the Land Down Under is usually pictured in sweltering desert sunlight. Now a 21st-century addition near the ancient rock of Uluru has people flocking here even at night.Desktop Version

Aug 17, 2021Wanderin Wawayanda

Preserving more than 35,000 acres of prime New Jersey highland wilderness, Wawayanda State Park brushes up against the state"s border with New York. The park"s name comes from a transliteration of the Indigenous Lenape people"s word for the area, said to mean "winding water" or "water on the mountain." A lake and a mountain within the park are also called Wawayanda—perhaps because it"s so fun to say?Desktop Version

Jul 21, 2019A peek behind the royal curtain

In today"s image, we"re featuring a view of the East Front of Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial to highlight a seasonal event and a historic one. On Friday Buckingham Palace began its official summer tourist season, offering visitors a chance to tour the magnificent state rooms used for official and ceremonial events in this working royal residence. This year, to mark the 200th anniversary of Queen Victoria"s birth, visitors can also see artifacts from her reign and artwork depicting her life at Buckingham Palace in a special collection called Queen Victoria"s Palace.Desktop Version

Oct 12, 2020Indigenous Peoples Day

With this image of totem poles, carved and erected by Haida people in British Columbia, Canada, we"re touching on two important events in North America today, one in the United States and the other in Canada. In the US, an increasing number of Americans observe the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples Day, a celebration of Native American peoples and an implicit (and sometimes explicit) critique of the Columbus Day holiday. Observations of Indigenous Peoples Day reflect an effort to honor the tribes, nations, and cultures that existed in North America before the arrival of European settlers and have endured since then.Desktop Version

Feb 13, 2023El Valle de la Luna, Chile

El Valle de la Luna (the Valley of the Moon) is located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The Achaches Lookout, seen here, offers breathtaking views of volcanoes in the distance. In 1982, El Valle de la Luna was declared a nature sanctuary for its stunning, untouched habitat and its peculiar lunar-like terrain.Desktop Version

Mar 18, 2023Gamboa Crater, Mars

It would be pretty tough to live on Mars. It"s cold, dry, and the conditions are harsh. The planet"s average temperature is about –81 degrees Fahrenheit, but it can get as low as –243 at the poles. But with many canyons, extinct volcanoes, and ice caps, it"s beautiful to look at from afar. Most photos of the red planet highlight its rusty color, caused by high levels of iron oxide.Desktop Version

Feb 12, 2023Blue-footed booby, Galápagos Islands

Today we"re celebrating Darwin Day with this blue-footed booby on the shores of the Galápagos Islands, where the famous naturalist observed wildlife and collected specimens that would inform his theory of evolution.Desktop Version

Dec 27, 2019 Winterpret on ice

These skaters in the village of Kinderdijk are embracing "winterpret," a Dutch word that means "winter joy" or "winter fun." Whenever temps drop low enough, many locals take to the ice and skate away on a complex network of canals. These waterways were built centuries ago—along with pumps, dikes, and the windmills pictured here—to protect the village of Kinderdijk by diverting water from the land. It"s an important job, since Kinderdijk, like much of the Netherlands, lies below sea level and flooding is a major problem. Nowadays a modern water management system with multiple pumping stations does the work, and the windmills are left with a new job–to maintain an iconic Dutch scene. In 1997, the Kinderdijk windmills were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.Desktop Version

Feb 10, 2020This park is Superkilen

The half-mile-long linear urban park called Superkilen was designed to inspire residents and visitors to congregate together in Nørrebro, one of Copenhagen"s most culturally and ethnically diverse neighborhoods. What was once a public space battling gang activity, graffiti, and vandalism, is now an example of "extreme public participation." The people who live around Superkilen helped design it, adding cultural objects that represent their homelands—more than 60 countries.Desktop Version

Mar 22, 2020Celebrating World Water Day

The stepwell that these women are climbing is an apt image to mark World Water Day. Stepwells originated in western India over a thousand years ago as way for locals in that arid climate to easily and reliably access fresh water—even during the driest months. The Panna Meena Ka Kund stepwell in Jaipur is a classic example of the beautiful, regular, geometric architecture used to produce these useful public works. Most stepwells also feature shaded side chambers where locals (primarily women) can gather to escape the heat of the day.Desktop Version

Oct 21, 2018Welcome to El Cervantino

Every autumn in Guanajuato, Mexico, the city celebrates the Festival Internacional Cervantino, or El Cervantino, as it is known to many. The event began in the mid-20th century as a festival of theater performances—short plays called entreméses, mostly those written by Spanish novelist and playwright Cervantes. But in the 1970s, the festival expanded to include many additional arts, music, and cultural performances from around the world. This photo captures a performance by a group called Studio Festi.Desktop Version

Mar 15, 2020Celebrating 200 years of statehood

We"re wandering out onto the striated coastal rocks of Maine"s Pemaquid Point at sunrise to mark 200 years since Maine joined the Union as the 23rd US state. With roughly 5,000 miles of jagged, rocky coastline, Maine is studded with dozens of lighthouses, and the light at Pemaquid Point is one of the most celebrated—and historic. First, that history: President John Quincy Adams commissioned the lighthouse in 1827, but it needed to be rebuilt in 1835 after the original began falling apart. (Note: Don"t use salt water when mixing your mortar.) Maine residents chose the Pemaquid Point Light for display on their state"s coin as part of the US 50 State Quarters Program.Desktop Version

Jul 15, 2021A river runs through rice fields

We"re peering down the winding Ngo Dong River at a group of rowboats meandering through rice paddy fields. This is Ninh Bình province in Vietnam, about 60 miles south of Hanoi. On these two-hour tours by traditional Vietnamese rowboat, visitors wend their way between limestone karst peaks, through grottoes, and, if they"re lucky, by workers harvesting rice in the fields, their wide-brimmed hats shielding them from the sun. Perhaps the most spectacular time to take this river cruise is around harvest time in late May and early June when the paddy fields are awash in a golden glow with a backdrop of bright green hillsides. But don"t be surprised if the person rowing your boat moves the oars from hands to feet. It"s tradition here for rowers to give their arms a break and let their legs take over.Desktop Version

Nov 21, 2018A showcase for future fame

The now legendary Apollo Theater first opened in 1914 as Hurtig & Seamon"s New Burlesque Theater. It became the Apollo in 1934, when it was opened to black patrons, who by then had transformed Harlem into a thriving center of African American culture. Amateur Night at the theater began the first year the Apollo opened, and it’s been a defining part of the Apollo experience ever since. Amateur Night has also been instrumental in launching the show business careers of numerous stars, including Jimi Hendrix, and on this day in 1934, a teenage Ella Fitzgerald, who won the amateur contest, starting her down a path toward becoming one of the most iconic singing voices of the 20th century. Tonight, the Apollo is hosting its Grand Finale for the 2018 Amateur Night season. Perhaps somebody taking the stage tonight will go on to greater fame?Desktop Version

Mar 30, 2020Spread some love with Bing

We hope this aerial view of Galešnjak, or Love Island, serves as inspiration to spread some love today via our newest feature: Give Mode. When you switch to Give Mode on Bing, your Bing searches will earn Microsoft Rewards points that automatically benefit your nonprofit of choice. Pick from more than 1 million charities, including those responding to the new coronavirus in the US and abroad. Your cause will get real monetary donations, and Microsoft will match them through June. What’s not to love?Desktop Version

Oct 29, 2019And the skies filled with bats…

As if right on cue for Halloween, this is the time of year when millions of straw-colored fruit bats begin to descend on Zambia"s Kasanka National Park. They come in such vast numbers that it"s thought to be one of the largest concentrations of mammals in the world. From the end of October to mid-December, these large fruit-eating bats pack into a small area in the forest to roost. But when the sun begins to set, they start to swarm, darkening the skies as they head out to gorge on fruit in the Mushitu swamp forest. Experts believe their migration starts about 2,000 miles north, in Congo.Desktop Version

Aug 22, 2022Burrowing owls

Forget looking up in the trees to find these guys. They are burrowing owls, which means that they live on the ground or under it. In fact, they often take advantage of the hard work of tunnelers such as prairie dogs or gophers by building their nests in the burrows they dug and abandoned. Think of burrowing owls as squatters of the avian world. You"ll find these 7½- to 11-inch birds in North and South America, especially in grasslands, farming areas, or dry expanses with vegetation that is close to the ground.Desktop Version

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