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Kjell Henriksen Observatory
Kjell Henriksen Observatory
While these domes look like they should be in a movie set depicting a galaxy far, far away, they"re actually part of a scientific research station here on planet Earth. Kjell Henriksen Observatory is named for a Norwegian scientist whose research focused on the polar lights. The aurora borealis is frequently seen here, deep within the Arctic Circle in Norway"s remote Svalbard territory. And the observatory is specially designed to observe the aurora. Since it opened in 2008, the observatory has become a destination for atmospheric scientists, who can rent one of these 30 glass-topped rooms built to house high-end optical instruments.Desktop Version
Mountain goats
Mountain goats
Elusive mountain goats, like these three in Canada"s Yukon Territory, rarely let themselves be discovered as plainly as this. Despite its name, the hooved wild mountain goat is not a true goat—in fact, it"s the only genus and species of its kind in the world. Found only in northwestern North America, its closest relatives aren"t domestic goats, but the chamois of Europe and the goral and serow of Asia.Desktop Version
Westerheversand Lighthouse
Westerheversand Lighthouse
Even in the places most altered by humans, nature seems to slip through, like the Milky Way shown here peeking between light beams from Germany"s Westerheversand Lighthouse. This beacon lies along the Wadden Sea, which forms the world"s largest tidal flat along the Dutch, German, and Danish coasts.Desktop Version
New Year s Eve
New Year s Eve
The Land of Fire and Ice earns its nickname from the unique landscape of volcanoes and glaciers here, but Iceland"s white-hot celebrations in the dead of the Nordic midwinter also evoke the phrase. The tradition of New Year"s Eve bonfires in Iceland is said to date from the 18th century, when a group of schoolboys heralded the new year by scrounging up and torching a huge pile of wood scraps. The unruly teenagers" celebration sparked the general public"s interest, and annual fires—like this one in Reykjavik—became an internationally noted tradition for Icelanders. Huddle up to the fire and raise a toasty-warm toast to the new year!Desktop Version
New Year s Day
New Year s Day
This harp seal is starting 2022 off right. While many of us may be napping today to recover from New Year"s Eve celebrations, this seal is napping because it can. All the noise and excitement were last night, just 40 miles away at New York City"s ball drop, but it"s quiet enough here at Long Island"s Jones Beach for our sleepy friend to recuperate in the sand. Harp seals are one of five types of seals that populate Jones Beach from November to May. They travel from as far away as the Canadian Arctic and northwestern Greenland to rest up and feed before making their way north again in the spring.Desktop Version
Prague, Czech Republic
Prague, Czech Republic
As a haze of blowing snow diffuses the streetlights of Prague, try to count the steeples, belfries, turrets, and towers that make up the Czech capital"s skyline. You may lose count like 19th-century travel writers did when they dubbed Prague the City of 100 Spires. The number is closer to 500 currently.Desktop Version
Lick Observatory
Lick Observatory
Shrouded in snow on the summit of Mount Hamilton, in the Diablo Range just east of San Jose, California, lies the world"s first permanently occupied mountaintop observatory. Constructed between 1876 and 1887, the Lick Observatory has been the site of significant discoveries, including several of Jupiter"s moons and other planetary systems. It"s named for American real-estate entrepreneur James Lick, who set aside $700,000 for the University of California to build a facility that would be home to a "telescope superior to and more powerful than any telescope yet made."Desktop Version
Borrego Badlands
Borrego Badlands
If you"re looking to take in a beautiful sunset over some exotic terrain, you could do worse than the Borrego Badlands, a 20-mile stretch of desert in southeastern California"s Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This arid landscape is not the kind of dune-filled terrain that you might visualize when you think of a desert. Instead, it"s a series of rolling hills, canyons, gullies, and arroyos, speckled with sparse but hardy vegetation. It makes for a surreal and beautiful view.Desktop Version
National Bird Day
National Bird Day
In honor of National Bird Day, observed every year on January 5, we"re at the Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve in the Pichincha Province of Ecuador, a 2,000-acre conservation area that was established in 1981. Bellavista is located at high altitude, in the northwestern Andes mountains, and is home to a huge variety of bird species, including the plate-billed mountain toucan you see here.Desktop Version
Kochelsee in Bavaria
Kochelsee in Bavaria
To English speakers, this is Lake Kochel. To German speakers, it"s Kochelsee. Whatever you call it, this popular recreation spot in Bavaria looks great all decked out in winter white. Imagine how quiet it must be when the lake is blanketed by snow. Now stretch your imagination further to the warm summer months when the shores of Kochelsee are busy with tourists out to get a dose of nature. The lake is just an hour"s journey by car or train, south from Munich. Visit during summer and you"re likely to see windsurfers gliding across the surface of the lake.Desktop Version
Nazaré Lighthouse
Nazaré Lighthouse
Instead of Surfin" USA, today we"re Surfin" Portugal—though if you shout a reverential "cowabunga" at these colossal waves, we"re sure the locals will get your meaning.Desktop Version
American bison
American bison
For an American bison, winter is the season to slow down, plump up, and let your hair grow out. Relatable, sure, but these massive mammals get there without the aid of beer, chips, and a couch.Desktop Version
Rice processing in Bangladesh
Rice processing in Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, a nation that"s never recorded a freezing temperature, rice growing is a year-round affair. But growing an aquatic crop in the dry season—October through March—is complicated, requiring high-yield plant strains and additional irrigation.Desktop Version
Ski touring in Austria
Ski touring in Austria
The High Tauern mountain range above the Austrian spa town of Bad Gastein is one of many regions around the world that attract brave ski-touring enthusiasts, like the three skiers crossing the ridge here. Ski touring is a sport for only the most skilled athletes since it usually involves navigating remote alpine territory and climbing with mountaineering gear, generally without removing your skis.Desktop Version
Porcupine
Porcupine
Psycho quiller? Nope, this is no homicidal rodent. Act friendly and keep a tail"s length of distance, and you should be safe from a spiny fate. (That thing about porcupines launching their quills at you like darts? Yeah, total myth.)Desktop Version
Take the Stairs Day
Take the Stairs Day
In honor of Take the Stairs Day, we"re here in China"s Guizhou province peering over at Mount Fanjing. Visitors will need to climb almost 9,000 steps to reach the summit of the mountain, the highest peak of the Wuling Mountains. Look closely at the image and you can see how the stairs wind up, up, up around stone outcroppings and through a gorge.Desktop Version
Tasiilaq, Greenland
Tasiilaq, Greenland
It"s said that Erik the Red gave Greenland its deceptively pleasant name to draw unwitting settlers to the snowy subcontinent. The Viking leader wasn"t totally fibbing, though: Greenland can turn pretty darn green when the aurora borealis gives the glaciers a glow-up.Desktop Version
Road to Sa Calobra, Majorca, Spain
Road to Sa Calobra, Majorca, Spain
Though twists and turns abound on this road leading to Sa Calobra, on the Spanish island of Majorca, you"d have a hard time getting lost out here—there"s only one road in and out of this coastal town. Rather than cut a more direct path through the mountains via tunnels, the road"s designer chose to incorporate numerous switchbacks and hairpin turns, allowing sightseers to journey above ground. After all, if you make the long trip to this Mediterranean island paradise, you won"t want to miss a thing—just keep an eye on the road too!Desktop Version
To Sua Ocean Trench
To Sua Ocean Trench
This majestic swimming hole on Samoa"s Upolu Island sits just inland from the coast. It was formed when the roof of an ancient lava tube collapsed, exposing the 98-foot-deep teal-blue pool. This is the largest of many such tide pools and blow holes formed in the area thousands of years ago. An underground cave system connects this swimming hole to the nearby ocean, and the water rises and falls with the tides.Desktop Version
Hot and Spicy Food Day
Hot and Spicy Food Day
The super-spicy curries of Bangladeshi cuisine start out here in the chili fields, where workers harvest and sort red chili peppers by hand. Once picked, the peppers are sun-dried and used whole or ground into powder. The chilis not only add a flavorful kick to foods but help kill bacteria as well. Plus, spicy foods help diners cool down: One natural reaction to capsaicin, the active chemical in chilis, is sweating, which can help chill the skin amid tropical heat.Desktop Version
Martin Luther King Day
Martin Luther King Day
Sculptor William "Bill" Tarr created the large, untitled memorial that welcomes students to Martin Luther King Jr. Educational Campus in Manhattan. The steel block features quotations from King and famous phrases from the civil rights movement. It was designed to weather over time, changing in color and texture as it ages. The school was founded in 1975 and is now home to seven distinct high schools, each focusing on a different discipline, including law, technology, and the arts.Desktop Version
Winnie-the-Pooh Day
Winnie-the-Pooh Day
Today we"re in England"s Ashdown Forest, a tranquil patch of woods 30 miles south of London in East Sussex. We"ve wandered here because this is the enchanted forest that inspired author A.A. Milne"s depiction of Winnie-the-Pooh"s neighborhood, the Hundred Acre Wood. It"s our way of celebrating Winnie-the-Pooh Day, observed each year by the Pooh faithful on January 18, Milne"s birthday. The author, along with help from illustrator E.H. Shepard, introduced the world to Pooh and his many forest friends with the beloved "Winnie-the-Pooh" books, first published in 1926.Desktop Version
Kluane National Park
Kluane National Park
What looks here like an ice road for 50-foot-tall truckers is really Kaskawulsh Glacier in Canada"s Kluane National Park. This corner of the Yukon is home to the largest ice field on Earth outside of the poles, with the slow, steady flow of more than 2,000 glaciers continually carving these vast canyons amid the peaks.Desktop Version
Penguin Awareness Day
Penguin Awareness Day
Let"s hear it for our poster penguin on Penguin Awareness Day. This cheerful specimen is an Adélie penguin, a species commonly encountered along the coasts of Antarctica this time of year. Breeding season for these birds begins by October, when they gather in colonies of thousands, coupling off and constructing nests made of stones.Desktop Version
National Hug Day
National Hug Day
Even the toughest predator on the South African savannah can get snuggly, especially on Hugging Day. Founded 35 years ago, this celebration of the embrace is meant to lift spirits during the post-holiday lull, encouraging family and friends to hug each other more often, not only today but every day. So, what are you waiting for? Go hug people!Desktop Version