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New beginnings
New beginnings
Spring means more than just April showers and May flowers. It"s also the season when many baby animals are born. The rainy, warmer days bring new plant growth, which means nursing and foraging moms can provide their newborns with larger amounts of higher-quality food. It also maximizes the "growing season" for spring babies, giving them time to increase in size and put on fat before winter arrives.Desktop Version
It s International Jazz Day
It s International Jazz Day
We’re joining the rest of the world in celebrating International Jazz Day with this 1959 image of the legendary trumpeter Louis Armstrong. Jazz music has its roots in Armstrong’s hometown of New Orleans, but it quickly spread throughout the United States before developing an international appeal and influence. April 30 is designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as International Jazz Day to highlight the music and its role in cultures around the world.Desktop Version
Purple flowers and Golden Week
Purple flowers and Golden Week
The wisteria blossoms are at their peak right now in Kawachi Fuji Gardens. For those who journey to Kitakyushu, Japan, the reward is walking under an enormous canopy of purple, pink, and white wisteria flowers. The wisteria blooms often overlap with Golden Week—the span from April 29 to May 5, when four major holidays in Japan occur. The week begins with Shōwa Day, a celebration for Emperor Hirohito, and ends with Children’s Day. Many workers take the week off and travel while enjoying the spring weather. If you miss out on the wisteria hubbub, come to Kawachi Fuji Gardens in autumn, when the leaves turn and the park hosts a maple-leaf festival.Desktop Version
Making it work—in Norway
Making it work—in Norway
Springtime is high-fashion season for the ruff. In wetlands across northern Europe and Asia, these medium-sized waders gather in marshes to form leks, which are small breeding areas used for courtship displays. Dominant males (also called independents) like the fancy fellow on our homepage, fluff up their colored and intricately patterned capes and collars and mock fight with each other. Their aim? Each wants to secure a prime spot on the lek to showcase his finery and entice watching females to choose him as a mate.Desktop Version
A night of art and culture
A night of art and culture
The arts festival known as Blaue Nacht, or Blue Night, was originally conceived as a one-time event in 2000 to mark the 950th anniversary of the founding of Nuremberg, Bavaria. That inaugural festival was popular enough that it became an annual event soon after, and attendance has grown each year since. More than 100,000 people attend this celebration of the city"s diverse arts and culture each May. The two-night artfest includes light shows projected on the outside of Old Town buildings, music performances, temporary art installations—like "Waldplastik" in today"s image—and access to Nuremberg’s cultural sites.Desktop Version
Visiting Ahch-To on Star Wars Day
Visiting Ahch-To on Star Wars Day
If some other corner of the Internet hasn"t already told you, May 4 is Star Wars Day. (Say it out loud: "May the Fourth," "May the Force…" Get it?) Fans of the movies will recognize the island we"re looking at as Ahch-To, where Luke Skywalker went into exile before Rey found him at the end of "The Force Awakens." Fans of travel and history may know that it"s really Skellig Michael (the Great Skellig), with Little Skellig seen in the background. Together they make up the Skellig Islands, just off the southwest coast of Ireland.Desktop Version
Celebrating Mexico in a Cultural Capital
Celebrating Mexico in a Cultural Capital
For Cinco de Mayo, we’re in San Miguel de Allende, a colonial-era city that’s ramping up for a special year. Located in eastern Guanajuato, it was named the American Cultural Capital in 2019 in celebration of its cultural heritage. This honor is given by an NGO called the International Bureau of Cultural Capitals, and it goes to just one city in either North, Central, or South America each year. The recognition comes with tourism marketing about the city in dozens of countries around the world, so others will learn about San Miguel de Allende’s many cultural charms and special events.Desktop Version
Love blossoms
Love blossoms
Today marks the first day of National Wildflower Week, so we"re shining a light on fireweed—a ‘weed’ in name only and a wildflower that’s a welcome sight wherever it grows. This tall, willowy perennial is a pioneer species, which means it"s often among the first plants to colonize an area cleared by fire or other damaging events. Native to temperate zones in the Northern Hemisphere, fireweed thrives along streams, roadsides, and forests, creating stunning blankets of pink in open meadows.Desktop Version
Spring comes to Glacier National Park
Spring comes to Glacier National Park
You can almost hear the rushing water in this picture of St. Mary Falls at Montana’s Glacier National Park. To get to this picturesque waterfall and its aqua-blue pools you’ll need to journey to the east side of the park near St. Mary Lake. Glacier is home to 700 miles of hiking trails, including the short day hike that leads to St. Mary Falls, taking visitors through conifer forests. If you feel like chasing more waterfalls, you can extend the hike and journey to nearby Virginia Falls. Don’t forget your camera and be on the lookout for woodpeckers, moose, and wildflowers.Desktop Version
’Chess on ice’
’Chess on ice’
Today our photo comes from Naseby, on New Zealand’s South Island. Winter in New Zealand begins on June 1—in the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are inverted from our own. Soon, the lakes in Naseby will freeze over, creating great conditions for outdoor curling, or what competitors call ‘chess on ice.’ And when there’s a multi-game tournament going on, that’s a ‘bonspiel’ in curling lingo. This year marks the first ever Curling World Cup—with the fourth leg of the months-long event beginning today in Beijing, China. This ultimate bonspiel unites teams from around the globe, and on May 12, 2019, we’ll know which nation swept the competition. (Curling joke!)Desktop Version
An endless journey
An 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
Looking back on 150 years of rail travel
Looking back on 150 years of rail travel
In 1986, work began to convert an old rail yard in Scranton, Pennsylvania, from a relic to a heritage preservation site now known as Steamtown. A donated collection of train engines, some dating back to the 1800s, gave Steamtown exhibits to show off, while the fully functional rail yard provides a live demonstration of how trains work—and how rail transit greatly changed the United States.Desktop Version
Bringing together history and technology
Bringing together history and technology
On the second Saturday in May, the Dutch celebrate an iconic national structure—the windmill—like these historic ones at Zaanse Schans. With hundreds of windmills across the country, many sites use the day to demonstrate how windmills work and host art exhibits. But the concept of using wind power isn’t just a historical anecdote—this renewable energy is experiencing a boom, and by 2050 is predicted to provide one-third of the world"s electricity.Desktop Version
The parenting of a piping plover
The parenting of a piping plover
To celebrate Mother’s Day this year, we’re on Jones Beach Island in New York, where piping plovers are helping their newly hatched chicks prepare to leave the nest—just hours after they hatch. While mom and dad were sitting on the unhatched eggs, if a predator, such as a fox, raccoon, or house cat were to get too close, they’d fake an injured wing and limp away from the nest to distract the animal. That’s some extra-mile parenting! Who knows if that little chick will remember to call mom this time next year…Desktop Version
In praise of bogs, swamps, and marshes
In praise of bogs, swamps, and marshes
Swamps and bogs probably aren’t the first things that come to mind when you think of America’s celebrated landscapes. That’s a shame, since wetlands like these play a crucial role in the health of our ecosystems. In addition to providing unique habitat to the many species that call wetlands home, they filter water, provide a natural buffer from storms, absorb flood waters, and capture carbon from the atmosphere—helping to protect our planet from climate change.Desktop Version
Cannes, France, in the spotlight
Cannes, France, in the spotlight
Since its founding in 1946, the Cannes Film Festival has become known for the glamour and luxury of its host city, which sparkles day and night. Celebs come to hang out on yachts and be seen on the red carpet at the Palais des Festivals convention center. But it"s not all about the glitz—Cannes is considered one of the three most prestigious European film festivals, along with the Venice Film Festival and Berlin International Film Festival. This year, the French Directors’ Guild will honor horror legend John Carpenter ("Halloween," "Christine’) with the Carrosse d"Or (Golden Coach Award) for his body of work. New films will compete for the festival"s top prize, the Palme d"Or.Desktop Version
Basking in the glow
Basking in the glow
Norway may not be top of mind for most sun seekers, but around the middle of May until late July, head north to the part of the country inside the Arctic Circle and you can experience a natural phenomenon known as the midnight sun. During these few months the sun is visible at midnight local time, like you see in today"s image of Norway"s North Cape. Of course, as nature strives to maintain a balance, during winter this region experiences polar night, when the sun never rises above the horizon.Desktop Version
3,000 years of history
3,000 years of history
These massive temples—known today as Abu Simbel—were built in the 13th century BCE by the pharaoh Ramesses II. He left a legacy of monuments and temples across Egypt, many of which, like Abu Simbel, featured Ramesses II himself as the star attraction. But over the centuries, these temples were almost completely buried in sand and forgotten. It was not until the early 1800s when an explorer saw the heads of the colossal statues poking through the sand that the temples were again discovered. Then in the 20th century, construction of a dam on the Nile River formed Lake Nasser, a massive reservoir that would have flooded the site where the temples stood. To save them from inundation, the temples were disassembled and relocated to a nearby hill. The process took almost five years and required that workers cut the temples into pieces and reassemble them exactly as they were built 3,000 years ago. We think Ramesses II would approve.Desktop Version
Work out on your way to work
Work out on your way to work
The third Friday in May is National Bike to Work Day, which encourages commuters to try biking as a healthy and safe alternative to driving. The carving we"re looking at is in Bali, Indonesia. It depicts W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp, a Dutch landscape and portrait artist who rode his bike around Bali in the early 1900s, painting as he went—essentially biking to work every day. Nieuwenkamp was the first European artist to visit Bali and was influential in introducing Balinese art to Europe. The carving is part of the Pura Meduwe Karang, one of the largest temples in Bali. The temple served as an entrance to the island in the early 20th century and contains several symbols of international influence to reflect that.Desktop Version
A ‘city’ within Valencia
A ‘city’ within Valencia
Inspired by the City of Science and Industry in Paris, the Valencian Autonomous Government created the City of Arts and Sciences, enlisting the talents of architects Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela to give the Spanish city a modern cultural attraction. Built in a park on the drained riverbed of the Turia River, the first portions of the multi-building attraction opened in 1998. Several additions followed, the most recent being L"Àgora, a covered plaza that opened in 2009 to host concerts, exhibitions, and other events.Desktop Version
High trekking season in Upper Mustang
High trekking season in Upper Mustang
If you’re lucky enough to be one of the thousand or so tourists allowed into Upper Mustang each year, spring and autumn are the best times for trekking through this incredibly dramatic landscape. Tucked into a remote region of Nepal, it’s geographically part of the Tibetan Plateau. The area is surrounded by the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri Massifs and marked with deep gorges, terraced fields, and colorfully stratified rock formations. But perhaps most fascinating of all are the sky caves, 10,000 or so caves dug into the sheer walls of valleys in several areas of the district. Some of these man-made caves are thought to be ancient burial chambers; others are richly decorated with valuable Buddhist paintings, sculptures, and artifacts from the 8th to the 14th centuries. Perched over 150 feet above the valley floor, no one is entirely sure how the caves were built, what they were used for, or even how people accessed them.Desktop Version
The island fox’s incredible comeback
The island fox’s incredible comeback
Meet the island fox, a petite resident of California’s Channel Islands National Park and a true comeback kid. The house-cat-sized creature is endemic to the islands, meaning it’s found nowhere else on Earth. In the 1990s, scientists observed the island fox population on Santa Cruz Island had dropped to fewer than 100 animals. The decline was attributed largely to golden eagles, who moved into new territory after bald eagle populations declined and found the island foxes to be easy prey. (Golden eagles are more prodigious hunters than bald eagles.) Environmental groups launched an effort to bring back the island fox, in part by relocating golden eagles, and by 2015, the population on Santa Cruz Island had rebounded to about 1,750. That’s good news for the fox–and for the entire island ecosystem. As the eagle situation demonstrated, most things in nature are interconnected.Desktop Version
Salmon return to the Copper River
Salmon return to the Copper River
This is the vast delta of the Copper River in south central Alaska. The river is known for its large salmon run, which starts in early May when the sockeye and king salmon come back in huge numbers to spawn. Accompanied by much marketing fanfare, this Copper River catch also signals the return of fresh wild Pacific salmon to grocery stores and restaurants. The price per pound, especially in the early days of the commercial season, is as rich as the fish are in Omega-3 fatty acids.Desktop Version
The artists come to Venice
The artists come to Venice
Our photo today shows a small part of artist Claudia Fontes’ sculpture called "El Problema del Caballo" (The Horse Problem). The Argentinian artist exhibited the large installation work with smashed pieces of stone surrounding the larger-than-life white horse, as if it had crashed into the exhibition space. The installation was shown in 2017 at the Venice Biennale, where artists from around the globe bring their work to show off at this every-other-year arts and culture festival in the Italian city of Venice. The Biennale is just starting up again this month, and many of the programs and exhibits will be going on through the summer and into fall.Desktop Version
Come out of your shell for World Turtle Day
Come out of your shell for World Turtle Day
Make way for the green sea turtle, which you’ll find—if you’re lucky—swimming in tropical and subtropical coastal waters around the world. You’ll notice that despite its name, the green sea turtle’s shell is not green at all. The name comes from the color of its fat, which takes on a greenish hue after the adult turtle starts eating seagrass and algae. Unfortunately, like many other sea turtle species, the green sea turtle is endangered and its population shrinking due to hunting, boat-propeller accidents, plastic pollution, and loss of nesting grounds.Desktop Version