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A winter wonderland in Northeast China
A winter wonderland in Northeast China
The annual Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival is considered the largest such event in the world. It’s home to record-breaking ice sculptures, including a 101-foot-tall tower installed just this year and shaped like the dress of a flamenco dancer. Here you can meander through entire villages made of ice and built to scale. You can also see ice replicas of famous landmarks like the Sphinx and the Great Wall of China. Last year’s event attracted more than 18 million visitors to this chilly destination, aptly nicknamed ‘Ice City.’Desktop Version
Snow aglow in central Japan
Snow aglow in central Japan
Here at Yunishigawa Onsen, a hot spring spa town in central Japan, the Yunishigawa Kamakura Festival lights up the countryside each winter. Kamakuras are snow huts that range in size from these small, candlelit structures along the river banks to large igloo-like domes. People gather in the larger kamakuras to worship, socialize, or share a meal. The entire community pitches in to build and light the kamakuras during the festival, which runs from late January to early March.Desktop Version
A rest stop for the birds
A rest stop for the birds
Every year, from February to April, 80 percent of North America’s sandhill crane population stops in Nebraska to eat and rest before finishing their lengthy migration to the northern reaches of Canada, Alaska, and even Siberia. Tourists flock (sorry) to nearby towns such as Kearney, Nebraska, to watch this spectacle take place. Some half a million cranes stop to wade through the shallow braids of the Platte River in the valley here, feasting on crop residue from the many cornfields in the area.Desktop Version
Celebrating World Art Day
Celebrating World Art Day
On World Art Day, we"re looking at Yayoi Kusama"s sculptural installation "With All My Love for The Tulips, I Pray Forever (2011)." Kusama is a Japanese artist who spent several years in New York, where this exhibition was held in 2017. She’s known for combining the organic and the artificial, as she does with these oversized polka-dotted tulips that blend into their background.Desktop Version
A winter’s holiday ends
A winter’s holiday ends
Should you find yourself in Lerwick, Scotland, on the last Tuesday of January, you’ll witness a celebration to mark the end of Yule called Up Helly Aa. Here in the Shetland Islands, off the northern coast of Britain, the cultural influence of the Vikings is still felt. And when the Yule season comes to a close, many Shetlanders dress up like Vikings—it’s a tradition called ‘guising,’ short for ‘disguise.’ In their Viking costumes, they march the streets of Lerwick singing songs and delivering short comedic performances. Ultimately, a torchlight procession ends with the marchers setting a fake Viking galley ship ablaze. The name ‘Up Helly Aa’ is roughly translated as Up Holy All, an invitation for all to rise and join in the holiday revelry.Desktop Version
World Laughter Day—it s a hoot
World Laughter Day—it s a hoot
We could all use a little laughter right now, and this snowy owl seems to have the right idea. Or maybe she knows it"s World Laughter Day, which has been celebrated every first Sunday in May since 1998. Started in India by Dr. Madan Kataria, founder of the worldwide laughter yoga movement, World Laughter Day aims to raise awareness about laughter and its healing benefits. It"s not about watching or reading something funny—though there"s nothing wrong with that—it"s about improving your mood and well-being by laughing spontaneously. However you choose to do it, take inspiration from the owl and laugh today.Desktop Version
Beautiful baobabs
Beautiful baobabs
Today we celebrate the island nation of Madagascar, located off the southeast coast of Africa, which became independent of France 60 years ago today, in 1960. Madagascar"s national tree is the stately baobab—impossibly tall and imposing, but a little silly at the same time. In fact, its nickname is the "upside-down tree," since it looks like it was planted with its roots in the air. Six of the world"s nine baobab species are native to Madagascar. The trees we"re looking at today are Grandidier"s baobabs, the largest of them all, lining the Avenue of the Baobabs near the western coast.Desktop Version
It’s not a pinecone, it’s a pangolin
It’s not a pinecone, it’s a pangolin
Today is World Pangolin Day, an event dedicated to highlighting this unique and rare mammal. Eight different species of pangolins live in Asia and Africa, and all are known for their solitary, nocturnal lives. Those sharp, protective scales are made of keratin, the same stuff as your hair and fingernails. Pangolins also have short legs and long, curved claws that come in handy when digging into an ant mound or a termite nest for food. By curling into a ball, the pangolin protects its belly and the inner parts of its limbs—the only areas of a pangolin’s body not covered by thick scales. But that defense is useless against its biggest threats, which include deforestation and poaching. We’re grateful for the conservation organizations around the world that are working to protect this species and its habitat.Desktop Version
The eloquence of elephants
The eloquence of elephants
Okay, this herd of African bush elephants probably doesn’t celebrate National Grammar Day with the rest of us. But scientists are studying the sometimes surprising ways in which African elephants converse—including the ultra-low frequency vocal sounds they make that are imperceptible to humans. These subharmonic ‘rumblings’ vibrate through the ground and can be felt by other elephants on the bottoms of their feet. And who knows, maybe these sounds follow a kind of grammatical structure we don’t yet comprehend. But perhaps we should start by trying to master English grammar.Desktop Version
The Door County Coastal Byway in Wisconsin
The Door County Coastal Byway in Wisconsin
This curving road is part of a 66-mile loop on the Door Peninsula that offers views of Lake Michigan, the Bay of Green Bay, and the Niagara Escarpment bluffs, as well as dense forests, farmland, and shoreside towns. America’s Dairyland has designated five such Scenic Byways, routes that take drivers through particularly beautiful passages and areas of historic interest, often with parks and other recreation areas along the way to encourage drivers to stop, get out, and enjoy the state’s natural wonders.Desktop Version
A day to celebrate the sun
A day to celebrate the sun
A few times each year, the rising and setting suns align with the east-west streets of Manhattan. It’s a phenomenon commonly referred to as "Manhattanhenge." While the exact timing varies slightly from one year to the next, it usually occurs a few weeks before and after the summer and winter solstices. Tonight’s sunset will find the full sun’s golden rays streaming directly through Manhattan"s major cross streets.Desktop Version
In the Garden of Europe
In the Garden of Europe
Welcome to the ‘Garden of Europe’—a nickname given to this public flower garden in Lisse, Netherlands. The literal translation of "keukenhof"—from Dutch to English—is "kitchen court," since the original grounds for the park and flower garden began as a vegetable garden for the royal residents of Keuken Castle during the 15th century. This prompted another nickname for the pastoral spot: "kitchen garden."Desktop Version
Sanxiantai Dragon Bridge in Taitung, Taiwan
Sanxiantai Dragon Bridge in Taitung, Taiwan
This unique footbridge on the east coast of Taiwan connects visitors to the ‘Island of the Three Immortals,’ a small uninhabited island known for dramatic rock formations and ocean views. According to legend, the rocks were left behind by immortal saints who took a reprieve here centuries ago. The bridge itself was built in 1987 and was designed to resemble the mythical dragons of Chinese folklore.Desktop Version
Sounds of Bach come to Bath
Sounds of Bach come to Bath
The ancient baths that lent this city its name have for centuries drawn visitors here to Somerset, in South West England. Archeological evidence suggests that when the Romans first built a temple over the bubbling natural hot springs here between 60-70 CE, they may have been adapting a previous center of worship established by ancient Celts. In any case, the Romans built up a complex of bathhouses over the course of 300 years or so, until the Roman withdrawal from Britain in 410. The baths gradually fell into disrepair, but were rebuilt several times, culminating in the elaborate 18th-century bathhouses that still stand today. Designed by the father-and-son team of John Wood, the Elder and John Wood, the Younger, the luxurious baths made Bath a fashionable spa town by the late 1700s.Desktop Version
A bohemian feline
A bohemian feline
This young lynx will grow up to be the third largest predator in Europe. (The brown bear and wolf hold the first and second spots, respectively.) The lynx is a crepuscular creature, meaning it hunts mainly in the hours just before dawn and just after dusk. With an adult male lynx growing taller than 2 feet at the shoulder, and weighing more than 60 pounds, it’s capable of hunting roe deer and sheep. And while the Eurasian lynx is a ‘least concern’ status species, habitat loss is affecting how widely dispersed they are across Europe, Russia, and Central Asia. But protected locations, like the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands in the Czech Republic, where our lynx was photographed, help preserve habitat to keep this vital predator thriving.Desktop Version
A long winter’s nap, perhaps?
A long winter’s nap, perhaps?
Situated in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, Yosemite gets a heavy dose of snow every winter. This makes for lovely scenes like the one in our image today, with icy branches framing the Stoneman Bridge, one of eight Yosemite Valley Bridges, each made with local stones.Desktop Version
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
With a higher elevation than other nearby parks, Bryce Canyon’s climate is a little cooler, so fog drifting across the park’s forests is not uncommon. Bryce Canyon has many unusual geologic features, not the least of which are the hoodoos—tall spires of stone—that form a large portion of the landscape. In fact, there are more hoodoos here than in any other spot on the planet. #hoodoopartyDesktop Version
Winter in Old Nuuk
Winter in Old Nuuk
It may not look like a bustling metropolis, but Nuuk is Greenland’s largest city and capital. Fewer than 56,000 people live in Greenland, and nearly a third of them reside in the modern comfort of Nuuk. Greenland is a constituent country of Denmark, and in Nuuk, the Danes have been a modernizing influence on the city, even here in Old Nuuk, a part of town established in the 1740s. Despite the Danish presence, the majority of Greenland’s population is Greenlandic Inuit. Nuuk began as a coastal fishing settlement, and much of Greenland’s commercial fishing fleet is still based out of the city’s harbor, which is also used as a shipping port.Desktop Version
A wonder in winter
A wonder in winter
Chichibu, Japan, attracts many visitors during the winter by capitalizing on the cold temperatures that bring unusually large icicles to the terraced banks of the Arakawa River. The attraction, called ‘Misotsuchi no Tsurara,’ is only open from mid-January through mid-February, and includes colored lights after dark, to enhance the otherworldly feel of the scene. Since much of Chichibu sits in or near the Chichibu Tama Kai National Park, there’s abundant nature to see after you’ve witnessed the illuminated icicles on the Arakawa’s banks.Desktop Version
Wayag Islands in the Raja Ampat Islands of Indonesia
Wayag Islands in the Raja Ampat Islands of Indonesia
The Wayags are part of the larger Raja Ampat Islands off the coast of Indonesia’s West Papua Province. These small, uninhabited islands are popular with divers and snorkelers eager to explore the vast and diverse reef system surrounding them. The Wayags are part of the Coral Triangle, which covers only 1.6 percent of Earth’s oceanic region, but contains 76 percent of every known coral species on the planet.Desktop Version
Cue up the tango music
Cue up the tango music
Happy Valentine’s Day to all you lovebirds out there! Our featured birds today are grey crowned cranes that live in the savannas and marshlands of East and Southern Africa. Both males and females of this species will dance to attract a mate, but the dancing behavior has also been observed outside of mating season, and in juveniles as well as adults. Even two males may pose like this, while they size each other up as competition.Desktop Version
On the hunt
On the hunt
Historians believe that falconry may have begun in Mesopotamia as long as 4,000 years ago, but this particular style of hunting with eagles on horseback dates back roughly 1,000 years. Various nomadic tribes from the Middle East and Western Asia trained golden eagles, falcons, and hawks to ride out to the mountains with them, and when the bird spotted a hare or fox, it flew out, caught the animal, and brought it back to the rider on the horse. Many people in Mongolia continue to hunt in this traditional fashion today. Our photo of an eagle hunter was taken in the Altai Mountains of western Mongolia, where many ethnic Kazakh eagle hunters fled during the communist era of Kazakhstan.Desktop Version
Eastern grey kangaroos in Australia’s Kosciuszko National Park
Eastern grey kangaroos in Australia’s Kosciuszko National Park
These eastern grey kangaroos taking a break on the grasslands of Kosciuszko National Park may look like hares or rabbits from a distance. But up close, a 6-foot-tall male eastern grey could look a person in the eye. Perhaps only koala bears rank higher as wildlife symbols of Australia, but we couldn’t resist featuring a photo of kangaroos to celebrate Australia Day today. Perhaps these ‘roos are waiting for the fireworks show?Desktop Version
Tesla, the visionary
Tesla, the visionary
We approach today’s observance of National Science Fiction Day through a route of science fact. Our photo shows Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla with his magnifying transmitter—an experimental power generator that used his Tesla coils to demonstrate the possibility of a safe, wireless electrical grid. While Tesla’s vision for an electrical system never materialized, many of his concepts and designs would shape various technologies to come, including radio transmission, and even some fundamentals of the internet.Desktop Version
Ancient groves in Australia
Ancient groves in Australia
Like mainland Australia, the island state of Tasmania is home to many distinct landscapes and ecosystems, and Mount Field National Park is a spectacular showcase of the island’s diversity. Tall swamp gum forests and massive tree ferns distinguish the base of the mountain, but climbing to higher elevations leads to the temperate rainforests of pencil pine, leatherwood, and other trees endemic to Tasmania along the shores of Lake Dobson, shown here. While rare species of plants and animals call the park home, perhaps the park’s greatest diversity lies with its fungi—the tremendous variety of mushrooms found here is still not fully cataloged, but fungi are increasingly understood to underpin the general health of the park’s ecosystems as a whole. And if all that natural diversity here isn’t enough to draw you to Tasmania’s Mount Field, some of the hills and mountains in the park have ski runs during snowy winters.Desktop Version