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May 11, 2020A tree amid the Tetons

This limber pine standing alone in the sagebrush flats has a name—Old Patriarch. A favorite subject of nature photographers in Wyoming"s Grand Teton National Park, Old Patriarch is thought to be more than a thousand years old. The Cathedral Group of the Teton Mountains forms a breathtaking backdrop, bursting up from the valley floor below and stretching dramatically to the soaring peaks. The national park spreads out below the spires for 310,000 acres, featuring extraordinary wildlife, pristine lakes, and alpine terrain. Sounds like the Old Patriarch has found quite a home for himself.Desktop Version

Feb 7, 2023Village of Labro, Italy

Join us for a journey to a tiny Italian village about 40 miles northeast of Rome. Labro, which covers about 4.4 square miles, was founded sometime between the 9th and 10th centuries and was assigned to a powerful aristocratic family by Emperor Otto the Great. Perched atop a wooded hill, the Nobili-Vitelleschi castle originally served to secure the border and control communication routes in the valley below.Desktop Version

Jul 3, 2021Diving into the underwater nirvana

Indonesia"s Wakatobi National Park protects one of the most diverse underwater environments in the world. Around 400 species of coral are found in these pristine waters, and they"re home to a staggering variety of marine life, including dolphins, whales, turtles, and hundreds of species of fish. The park was established in 2002, preserving more than 5,000 square miles, most of which is covered by coral reefs. In fact, the barrier reef here is second in size only to the Great Barrier Reef and is so full of life that famed oceanographer and explorer Jacques Cousteau is said to have called it an "underwater nirvana." Many others have followed in Cousteau"s wake, and Wakatobi has become a preeminent destination for diving and snorkeling.Desktop Version

Aug 7, 2021Salt of the earth

This shimmering white expanse could easily be mistaken for Antarctica. But what we"re looking at isn"t snow and ice—it"s a surreal landscape of endless salt high in the Andes of southwest Bolivia. Located at a lofty altitude of about 12,000 feet above sea level, Salar de Uyuni is the world"s largest salt flat (or salt pan), spanning just over 4,000 square miles. It was formed when prehistoric lakes dried up over centuries, leaving behind a desert of bright white salt that can be seen from space. During the rainy season (December to April), a thin layer of water covering the salt transforms the area into a giant mirror that reflects the beautiful Bolivian skies. If you"re driving across the surface at such times, it can appear as though you are navigating through a highway of clouds.Desktop Version

Jan 13, 2021Strolling across the Red Lagoon

Let"s fly down to the Southern Hemisphere to enjoy a summer day at the Laguna Colorada in the southwestern corner of Bolivia. Also called the Red Lagoon, this 23-square-mile shallow salt lake sits at about 14,000 feet above sea level within the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve in the Andes. At various times of the year, it can turn the shade of tomato soup due to microscopic red algae and sediments. During the rainy season from December to April, scores of flamingos flock to the area to dip their comb-like bills into the water to filter out delicious plankton and algae. You can find three of the six types of flamingos here—the Chilean, Andean, and the world"s largest population of the endangered James"s flamingo, once thought to be extinct.Desktop Version

Sep 6, 2019The old guard at Old San Juan

This photo offers an uncommon view of Castillo San Felipe del Morro on the coast of Old San Juan in Puerto Rico—it’s often shown in the bright Caribbean sunlight. In September 2017, Puerto Rico was devastated by the landfall of Hurricane Maria, which wreaked havoc on the landscape, people, and livelihoods of this US territory. While Puerto Rico continues to repair, rebuild, and return to normal two years after the landfall of Maria, other parts of the Caribbean have been damaged by subsequent storms. Hurricane Dorian hit the Bahamas particularly hard. That island nation sits northwest of Puerto Rico, and much closer to Florida.Desktop Version

Dec 19, 2018Hezké svátky

Hezké svátky (Happy holidays) from Prague! The Charles Bridge connects Old Town Prague to the rest of the capital of the Czech Republic. It’s a popular experience for tourists to walk the bridge, snapping photos of the many statues on the span. In our photo today, a light snow coats Prague and enhances the city’s old-world charm.Desktop Version

Oct 3, 2019Love on ice

There"s love in the air here in Antarctica, where these Adélie penguins have congregated after a long winter at sea. October brings them ashore in search of their breeding grounds. Here they"ll pair up and grow their families, gathering in large colonies of thousands and constructing nests made of stones piled together on the shoreline. Love can be a cruel game, and these penguins are known to steal stones from other nests. But when it comes to parenting, Adélie mates make a progressive couple. Once the pair of eggs arrives, the parents will take turns keeping them warm, and both mom and dad will help raise the chicks. In March, Adélie penguins will return to sea, where they"ll spend their winter foraging among icebergs.Desktop Version

Oct 19, 2020A cliff-hanging complex of temples

Feast your eyes on the colorful Mati Si (Horse"s Hoof Temple) and its cliffside complex of sandstone grottoes and wooden pavilions. An indentation in the sandstone provides a clue to the mythical origin of the temple. One legend has it that a frightened longma—a winged dragon horse—visited here thousands of years ago and left its hoof mark in the rock as it landed. What you can"t see in our homepage image is the narrow network of tunnels cut into the cliff, connecting the seven floors and multiple grottoes to the Mati Si pagoda, which is 200 feet high and holds hundreds of Buddha statues.Desktop Version

Feb 8, 2021A hero for the 21st century

Towering above Atlanta"s Sweet Auburn district is this 65-foot-high mural of John Lewis, the civil rights icon. What better way to celebrate Black History Month than to honor Lewis, a son of sharecroppers who carried the struggles of the civil rights movement from the Jim Crow South to the halls of Congress? An Alabama native, Lewis moved to Atlanta in 1963. He was already famous and would become even more so for leading marches, protests, and sit-ins throughout the South. Beaten by police, the KKK, and angry mobs, Lewis never wavered from his belief in nonviolent protest. He famously fought with his voice and peaceful actions, never his fists.Desktop Version

Aug 16, 2020Here s looking at you

This bright-eyed burrowing owl is emerging from its burrow just in time to enjoy the sunset here in Northern California. And yes, you read that right—it’s a burrowing owl. Unlike most owls, burrowing owls nest and roost underground, often in tunnels abandoned by ground squirrels or prairie dogs. It"s one of many traits that make the pint-sized species unique among owls. Burrowing owls live in grasslands, deserts, or other open dry areas with low vegetation. When threatened, they retreat to their burrows and are known to frighten off predators by mimicking the rattling and hissing sounds of a rattlesnake. And while most other owls sleep during the daytime, burrowing owls are often active in the daylight hours. It"s as if they didn"t finish proper owl training.Desktop Version

Jan 27, 2020Thomas Edison s bright idea

On January 27, 1880, Thomas Edison received a patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected to platina contact wires." This wasn"t exactly the first light bulb, but it was the first practical and inexpensive one, a key technological innovation that introduced a new era. To mark the day, we"re looking at the bright lights of New York City and its surrounding area, as seen from the International Space Station.Desktop Version

Jan 14, 2021Summer huts in winter

We"re getting chilly just looking at these snow-covered beach huts in England—and that cyclist slogging through the white stuff. But in the summer, these huts in Brighton and Hove (neighboring towns that share a local government) are in major demand. You can"t stay in them overnight, but they give you a place to change your clothes and stash your belongings, which makes a day at the beach less messy and generally more pleasant. The seaside resort area is also known for attractions like Brighton Palace Pier, which offers amusement park rides and fast food, and the i360 tower, which takes visitors 450 feet up for a 360-degree view across Brighton, the South Downs, and English Channel.Desktop Version

Mar 7, 2020Summer winds down in the Southern Hemisphere

As we in the Northern Hemisphere prepare to greet spring, many in Australia are probably looking forward to the end of a punishing summer. Relatively temperate autumn weather must come as a relief to our friends Down Under. Some are likely greeting the change in seasons with a trip to the pool, like the swimmers in today"s image of the Bronte Baths, an ocean pool located in a Sydney suburb. While seaside swimming pools aren"t unique to Australia, this island country is known for its many oceanside pools, which provide sheltered spots for swimming in places where rocky shorelines and occasional shark attacks can make ocean swimming difficult or dangerous.Desktop Version

Jan 25, 2020Happy New Year! (Again!)

For the first day of the Chinese New Year, we’re showing the southern fortification of the Xi"an City Wall as it was decorated and lit up for last year"s lunar new year party. The south gate was rebuilt in 2014 and is often used to stage the fireworks show that rings in the Chinese New Year, which falls between late January and early February. Why a different new year celebration date? It comes down to the sun versus the moon: While the widely used Gregorian calendar is based on the Earth"s rotation around the sun, the lunar calendar is marked by the phases of the moon. So, the Gregorian new year always falls on January 1, while the lunar new year date moves around from year to year. Either way, we"re excited to have another excuse to throw a party.Desktop Version

Sep 4, 2018What the hay?

Is it harvest time where you live? Perhaps growing up you spent this season bucking hay with your family. If you’re not familiar with the practice, it involves stacking hay bales that weigh up to 150 pounds–-often throwing them up onto higher levels. These days, farmers use sophisticated machinery to handle many aspects of hay production. The round, uniform bales of hay shown here in the fields of Tuscany were likely produced by a baler machine. And the round shape, while not as easy to maneuver as the rectangular style, is more resistant to moisture, which can damage a crop. Happy harvest!Desktop Version

May 9, 2019An endless journey

In May the rainy season in the southern Serengeti ends, and herds of zebras numbering in the hundreds of thousands begin to migrate north across the plains from Tanzania up to the Maasai Mara region of Kenya. The herd in our photo today shows a small portion of the 250,000 zebras that will spend the next couple of months or so on the northern leg of their year-long loop across the plains. Joining the zebras will be 1.5 million blue wildebeest that follow the same migratory route. Not every zebra will survive the 500-mile journey. By July the surviving herd will arrive in Kenya’s Maasai Mara, only to leave in November and return to Tanzania.Desktop Version

Dec 12, 2019On the lookout for Sheep-Cote Clod

You"re looking at one of the oldest breeds of sheep in the world. Icelandic sheep are descended from short-tailed sheep brought to the island from Norway in the 9th and 10th centuries with the first waves of settlers. These sheep, with their dual-layer woolly coats, thrive in this harsh environment, outnumbering people in Iceland by more than 2-to-1. But on December 12, Icelandic sheep, especially the ewes, will have to contend with something more fearsome than the wind chill factor. Sheep-Cote Clod, the first of the 13 Yule Lads, is due to visit. Who"s that and what"s he up to? Take our quiz to find out.Desktop Version

Sep 10, 2021Celebrating all things Austen

Bath, in southwestern England, was the first home Jane Austen knew away from her tiny village when she moved here at about age 25. Though the author only lived in Bath from 1801 to 1806 and did little writing here, no doubt this spa city on the River Avon gave her inspiration. After all, Bath was a popular resort at the time for Britain"s upper crust—the posh, mannered society types whom Austen satirized so wittily in novels like "Pride and Prejudice."Desktop Version

Jul 24, 2020Trunks stick together

In honor of Cousins Day, we"re looking at a pair of African elephants who seem to have nothing but love for each other. Elephants are matriarchal, meaning they live in female-led groups. The matriarch—usually the biggest and oldest female—leads an extended family group that includes aunts, sisters, and their young, so a given herd is likely to be full of cousins.Desktop Version

Mar 20, 2020Heron lies the Salton Sea

Migratory bird species are predictable frequent fliers, taking to the sky to travel along roughly the same route, at the same time, every year. Following sources of food and water along the way, the birds often fly great distances to reach breeding grounds or places to spend the winter. Today, we"re looking at an important stopover for migratory birds—California"s largest lake, the Salton Sea.Desktop Version

Jul 12, 2018Provence blooms with lavender at Sénanque Abbey

Lavender season is in full swing in Provence, and tourists are flocking to destinations like Sénanque Abbey to see the sweet-smelling spectacle of fields painted purple. The monks here at Sénanque cultivate lavender for their livelihood and these days the herb is in demand mostly for its essential oil, which lends a soothing scent to cosmetics, cleaning products, and even food. Lavender ice cream, lemonade, and cakes are popping up on menus around the globe.Desktop Version

May 22, 2020The scene of a literary crime

Remarkable enough in itself, this 800-foot mountain waterfall is also the site of one of fiction"s most enduring showdowns between good and evil. Just outside Meiringen, Switzerland, the Reichenbach Falls are the backdrop for "The Final Problem"—the 1893 Sherlock Holmes story where, on a precipice near the falls (which in the 19th century gushed with far more power than our recent image shows), the genius detective enters a death duel with the criminal Professor Moriarty. In the end, both men plummet to their presumed doom.Desktop Version

May 15, 2020The last thing seen by Wile E. Coyote

We"d say, "Don"t look down," but that"d kind of be missing the point: Verticality is what put Toroweap Overlook on the map. Situated on the Grand Canyon"s elevated North Rim, it offers an unmatched view down a sheer 3,000-foot drop straight to the Colorado riverbed.Desktop Version

Sep 14, 2021Behold the mighty Aldeyjarfoss

In waterfall-dense Iceland, it says something that Aldeyjarfoss is considered one of the most beautiful sights in the country. Fed by Iceland"s largest ice cap, the 65-foot fall is flanked by distinctive hexagon-shaped basalt columns seemingly carved by some Norse god.Desktop Version

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