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Jan 11, 2021At the gates of the ksar

At the eastern edge of the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, Aït Benhaddou stands suspended in time. The mud-brick "ksar" (fortified city) was first built roughly 1,000 years ago, catering to travelers along the former caravan route between the Sahara desert and the city of Marrakesh. As a prime example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture, Aït Benhaddou has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. It"s no longer teeming with the large numbers of people who once lived there. But there are small markets and a few families within the city who cater to the visitors who come to walk its historic streets. As a symbol of Morocco"s enduring history, Aït Benhaddou would be a fine place to reflect upon the events of January 11, 1944, when Moroccan nationalists issued a public proclamation calling for the independence of their country, an audacious action that sparked the movement that would end colonialism by 1956.Desktop Version

Apr 21, 2020Where do those colors come from?

As National Park Week continues, we"re turning our attention to the vivid colors of the Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park. Its intense rainbow hues are formed by cycles of hot water rising, cooling, and falling—creating rings of distinct temperatures inside the spring. The clear, blue center is the hottest part, with almost nothing living in it. But the other rings are home to various microorganisms that produce bands of distinct colors ranging from green to orange to red.Desktop Version

Sep 2, 2020A rock in a wild place

Here in the high desert of Central Oregon, Smith Rock beckons rock climbers from around the world with its cliffs of tuff and basalt. Considered by many to be the birthplace of American sport climbing, it"s home to nearly 2,000 climbing routes of all levels of difficulty. For those happier with their feet firmly planted on the ground, Smith Rock State Park offers the usual range of outdoor activities, including biking, hiking, and watching for wildlife like prairie falcons, golden eagles, and mule deer.Desktop Version

Mar 11, 2022We stand with Ukraine

Ukraine grows so many sunflowers they"ve become regarded as the country"s national flower—and recently, as a symbol of resistance. Just like sunflowers standing tall against a blue sky, the people of Ukraine are holding strong while an unlawful invasion threatens their democracy. As Ukrainians battle for their nation"s existence, millions of people have been forced to flee their homes to an uncertain future.Desktop Version

Jul 10, 2021Celestial Spain

Today we"re in the Extremadura region of western Spain, in the beautiful Monfragüe National Park near the border with Portugal. This 18-mile long, 4-mile wide stretch of nature in the province of Cáceres is framed by the Tagus and Tietar Rivers (it"s the Tagus that"s in our image today). The mountainous Peña Falcon rock face defines its western side. Much of the park is covered by a thick Mediterranean forest full of wildlife, making this place a destination for outdoor lovers of all sorts. It"s especially notable for the many birds: Over 280 species are found here, including storks, kingfishers, cormorants, and eagles, as well as one of the world"s largest reserves of black vultures and their tawny vulture cousins. Other wildlife routinely spotted in Monfragüe include otters, deer, wild boar, and Iberian lynx.Desktop Version

Oct 7, 2020The circular castle of Cornwall

Many generations watched fog roll over this countryside long before the bellicose Norman visitors who built this fortress got the chance. The peninsula of Cornwall has been populated since the Mesolithic period 10,000 years ago, and is one of the traditional Celtic nations—areas of the British Isles and France where the Celts" culture survived Roman, Norman, and other outside influences despite repeated attempts at incursion.Desktop Version

Feb 16, 2018Dragon dance performed in Chenzhou, Hunan Province, China

This bird’s-eye view of a traditional Chinese dragon dance shows how teams of performers use poles to manipulate the long figure of a dragon, weaving its body in different positions in time with music and loud drumming. Dragons are associated with good luck in China, and dragon dance performances like this are common during Lunar (aka Chinese) New Year festivities, which begin on the first day of the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar, or February 16 this year. This will be the Year of the Dog, according to the Chinese zodiac.Desktop Version

May 8, 2021World Migratory Bird Day

For World Migratory Bird Day, we"re looking at a flock of black-tailed godwits in the Netherlands. These shorebirds breed in parts of Europe and Russia, and then migrate to areas in Western Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. A large percentage of the godwit population breeds in the Netherlands, which is why the country voted to make it the national bird in 2015. It"s also captured in paintings by Dutch artists Vermeer and Rembrandt, making the black-tailed godwit as "Dutch as they come," according to the Dutch newspaper Trouw.Desktop Version

Feb 18, 2020Too awesome to be a planet

Pluto was first spotted on this day in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, a 23-year-old astronomer at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Because it"s so far away—about 40 times as far from the sun as Earth is—scientists knew relatively little about Pluto until the New Horizons spacecraft reached it in 2015. In a flyby study, the craft spent more than five months gathering detailed information about Pluto and its moons. What did they find out? There’s a heart-shaped glacier, blue skies, spinning moons, mountains as high as the Rockies, and it snows—but the snow is red.Desktop Version

May 31, 2020Welcome to the pack

This fuzzy pup is a young gray wolf, the largest member of the dog family (Canidae). Gray wolf pups are born between March and May, blind and deaf, but after about three weeks they"re ready to leave the den and begin exploring their surroundings for the first time. It doesn"t take long–around six months–before they"ve grown enough to join their pack on hunts.Desktop Version

Dec 31, 20193, 2, 1 … Happy New Year!

Backnang, the city celebrating the new year in this photo, is in Germany"s Baden region. Thanks to the Rhine River on the west, and the Black Forest to the east, the soil in Baden is ideal for vineyards. Among the varieties of wine produced here, Spätburgunder is popular, which you may know by its more common French name, Pinot noir. It seems likely that the people of Backnang would be celebrating with a glass of Pinot or something else this evening. However you choose to celebrate, here"s wishing you a very happy and healthy new year!Desktop Version

Apr 25, 2020Rockin with the rockhoppers

For World Penguin Day, we"re featuring a jaunty group of southern rockhopper penguins on a Falkland Islands beach. Most penguins slide over ice on their bellies, but these small penguins opt for more aerobic locomotion—they hop. Of all penguin species, rockhoppers are among the most numerous. But pollution, overfishing, and climate change have taken a toll: Their population has declined by about 30% over the last 30 years. Today, there"s an estimated 1.5 million breeding pairs of rockhoppers. About 1 million of those are southern rockhopper couples, like these, with the northern and eastern subspecies accounting for the rest.Desktop Version

Mar 5, 2020The desert blooms

It"s getting to be wildflower season in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. That means it won"t be long before we see blooms from the big daddy of the cactus world—the saguaro. Our homepage pic shows just a glimpse of this amazing succulent. The saguaro is the largest of them all, with some of the oldest specimens reaching more than 50 feet tall. It can hold huge amounts of water—after plentiful rains when it"s fully hydrated, a saguaro can weigh between 3,200 and 4,800 pounds. In the right conditions, it will live more than 100 years, growing arms as it ages, creating that classic cactus profile that"s associated with the desert and Old West.Desktop Version

Jun 23, 2020Flowers by the sea

It might be hard to believe that this breathtaking stretch of coastline near Bull Point on the northern coast of Devon, England, was once notorious for smugglers and wreckers. Today, it"s a respite from the crowds, boasting views of dramatic cliffs, rocky headlands, and sandy bays. Along these shores in summertime you can spot colorful patches of wildflowers, which have become a less common sight in the UK over the last hundred years or so. In fact, the country has lost 97% of its wildflower meadows since the 1930s as land has been turned over to grow food crops. Some once-common species like the crested-cow-wheat, spiked rampion, and man orchid are so rare they can only be found at the edges of rural roadsides and small, family-owned farms.Desktop Version

Mar 15, 2021Every day is Napping Day for this screech owl

We can think of no better way to celebrate National Napping Day than with this furry fellow, a screech owl asleep in a tree trunk in the Massapequa Preserve on Long Island, New York. Found in wilderness areas and near human settlements from the Atlantic Seaboard to West Texas and up into Montana, Eastern screech owls like this one are well established in the US. They"re nocturnal creatures, so they sleep during the day and become active after dusk. But don"t worry about you or your pet getting attacked by these owls. While it"s not apparent from this picture, screech owls are tiny–smaller than a pint glass–and prefer to feast on insects, worms, and small rodents.Desktop Version

May 12, 2019The 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

Mar 27, 2018Macro photograph of a migrant hawker dragonfly

Adult migrant hawkers like this one are usually found near water, where they’ll look for a mate and find plenty of mosquitos and midges to eat. This photo was taken using macro photography techniques—the camera’s macro lenses get clear images of small subjects like insects and flowers.Desktop Version

Mar 28, 2023The Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Italy

This trio of peaks, known as the Tre Cime di Lavaredo, is located in the Sexten Dolomites of South Tyrol, Italy. The mountain group is one of the best-known in the Dolomites and tourists visit from all over the world to hike its trails. You"ll enjoy a breathtaking view of the peaks from all angles and in the summer, you"ll see a beautiful array of wildflowers. Make sure to plan ahead if you want to hike or camp under the moonlit sky and bring plenty of water and snacks. These peaks are part of the Dolomites World Heritage Site, which was designated in 2009.Desktop Version

Apr 8, 2021I m here! Take a look at me!

Spring is lekking season for the black grouse. In the early morning, the male birds, like this fancy fella in Finland, gather on lek sites, often a patch of open ground, to put on a show for the ladies in the audience. The guys flash their white tail feathers, utter cooing and hissing noises, flutter-jump, and pick fights with each other—all to demonstrate their dominance to the watching hens. (Hens are smaller and have gray-brown feathers.) When a hen picks out the male she likes, the two fly off to mate and then go their separate ways. Love connections are brief in the black grouse world.Desktop Version

Jul 23, 2019A state-of-the-art lookout on the Rock of Gibraltar

Make your way up the trails of this monolithic rock promontory to the Skywalk, an 8,000-square-foot glass platform that soars more than 1,100 feet above sea level. On a clear day, you can see three countries and two continents from here. These epic views draw tourists, as does the Rock’s legendary history. A British Overseas Territory since 1713, Gibraltar has long been a strategically important military outpost located near the southern tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Far below the Skywalk, visitors can take in military relics that date back to the first years of British rule here.Desktop Version

Nov 10, 2018The Badlands celebrates a milestone

Badlands National Park was officially designated a national park on this day in 1978, ensuring 244,000 acres of picturesque landscape are protected for all to enjoy. The region first gained the nickname ‘badlands’ from the Lakota people, a nod to the extreme temperatures, lack of water, and rocky terrain. But it’s not all rugged land here. The national park includes prairie as well—home to bison, deer, and the endangered black-footed ferret, nicknamed ‘prairie bandit.’Desktop Version

Sep 5, 2020Beaver achievers

Don"t get distracted by the awesome top half of today"s photo. The postcard appeal of Idaho"s Sawtooth Range is undeniable, but our focus today is on the humble structure at the bottom.Desktop Version

Mar 3, 2020All eyes on sustainability

We don"t need an excuse to highlight and celebrate wildlife, but as it turns out, today is the UN"s World Wildlife Day. This year"s theme is "Sustaining all life on Earth," focusing on biodiversity. The UN and its partners are producing a series of programs and social media activities, including an event at UN Headquarters in New York, a film festival, and an international youth art competition.Desktop Version

Dec 8, 2020A fortress in the sky

Beginning as a lone watchtower high in the Apennines of Italy in the 10th century, the fortress called Rocca Calascio gained more heft over the next few hundred years. A quartet of additional towers and heavy walls were gradually added around the first tower. These fortifications made clear that Rocca Calascio was ready for any military rivals who might scale the slopes from the valley below to attack this garrison. The fight never came. The ruins you see here are not battle scars but the result of a powerful earthquake. By the early 1700s, Rocca Calascio was abandoned, but it can still claim the title of highest fortress in the Apennines—and some of the most spectacular views in all of Italy. In fact, filmmakers have chosen the site for several movies, including "The Name of the Rose" and "Ladyhawke."Desktop Version

Feb 17, 2021The persistence of Perito Moreno

Yes, it"s true that glaciers are shrinking, but not all of them. Perito Moreno, a low-lying glacier in southern Argentina, accumulates ice at about the same rate that it melts into chilly Argentino Lake. This equilibrium makes it one of the few glaciers worldwide that aren"t losing mass to climate change.Desktop Version

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