Vasco da Gama Bridge, Lisbon Sep 10, 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

Sep 10, 2023Walruses in Svalbard, Norway
Sep 10, 2025Hay bales in North Yorkshire, England

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jun 7, 2024Family of humpback whales, Dutch Harbour, Alaska
Feb 27, 2026Polar bear cub, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, United States
Aug 9, 2025Letters Square Roundabout, Manaus, Brazil
Apr 10, 2025Red fox cubs near their den
Feb 12, 2026Blue-footed booby, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador
Jun 14, 2025Cinque Torri, Dolomites, Italy
Apr 21, 2024Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Apr 15, 2025Castillo de La Calahorra, Granada, Spain
Jul 7, 2024Rice terraces of Mù Cang Chải, Yên Bái province, Vietnam
Dec 17, 2023Bohemian waxwings
Jan 18, 2026White Sands National Park, New Mexico, United States
Oct 10, 2024Ancient town of Sorano, Tuscany, Italy
Feb 15, 2025Icicles of Misotsuchi, Chichibu, Japan
Jul 28, 2025Yurts in Mongolia
Dec 10, 2025Castle of Rocca Calascio, Italy
Feb 8, 2026Corfu, Greece
Feb 19, 2025European river otter
Jul 23, 2024Methoni Castle, Messinia, Greece
Jul 30, 2025Ribadesella, Asturias, Spain
Oct 7, 2024Bora Bora in French Polynesia
Jun 8, 2025Steller sea lions
Oct 3, 2025Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye, Scotland
May 13, 2024Fish River Canyon, Namibia
Sep 30, 2024Walruses in Svalbard, Norway
Sep 13, 2025Point Reyes National Seashore
Nov 12, 2023Mallard ducks
Aug 20, 2025The citadel in Bonifacio, Southern Corsica, France
Sep 14, 2023Przewalskis horses, Hustai National Park, Mongolia
Jan 25, 2024Ynys Llanddwyn, Wales, United Kingdom
Dec 11, 2023Huangshan Mountains, China