Vasco da Gama Bridge, Lisbon, Portugal 10 Sep 2024

Today"s image features the Vasco da Gama Bridge in Portugal, which looks like a sleek line cutting through Lisbon"s skyline. Up close, it is a cable-stayed bridge with viaducts, stretching across the Tagus River in Parque das Nações, a civil parish in Lisbon. The second longest bridge in Europe, it also holds the title of being the longest in the European Union. Built to ease the traffic jam on Lisbon"s 25 de Abril Bridge and make travel smoother between the north and south of Portugal, the construction of the Vasco da Gama Bridge began in February 1995. It is earthquake-resistant, designed to absorb shifting during a quake. Since its deck is not fixed to the pylons, it can move both lengthwise and sideways. Inaugurated on March 29, 1998, the bridge"s opening was perfectly timed for Expo 98, the World"s Fair celebrating the 500th anniversary of Vasco da Gama"s historic sea route discovery from Europe to India.

© Achim Thomae/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

The other great barrier reef
Sep 9, 2023Ayutthaya Historical Park, Thailand
10 Sep 2025Hay bales in North Yorkshire, England
10 Sept 2026Aerial view of Olvera, Andalusia, Spain

More Desktop Wallpapers:

20 Apr 2025Happy Easter!
Eyes on the skies
3 Dec 2023Advent Sunday
16 Dec 2025Handmade gnomes at a Christmas market
2 Jan 2026Aerial view of Venice, Italy
17 Sept 2026Santenay wine region, Côte de Beaune, Burgundy, France
4 Jul 2024Italica, an old Roman city in Santiponce, Andalusia, Spain
Aug 30, 2023International Whale Shark Day
8 Mar 2024International Womens Day
Rock House in Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio
Where is this ethereal mountain?
18 Dec 2023Capitol Reef National Park, Utah, USA
24 Jun 2024Kelimutu, Flores, Indonesia
27 Jul 2025Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
12 Dec 2025National Poinsettia Day
8 Mar 2026Tom McCall Waterfront Park, Portland, Oregon, United States
28 Jan 2024Channel Country, Australia
27 Feb 2025International Polar Bear Day
6 Jun 2026National Trails Day
City of ice
17 Jul 2026Vai, Crete, Greece
Solo on the savanna
Lighting up the Badlands
13 Jun 2024Registan Square, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
17 Feb 2026Chinese New Year
25 Feb 2026Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska, United States
24 May 2025European Day of Parks
Jewel of the Adriatic
14 Sept 2026Field of kochia plants, China
Hangin around