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Jerte Valley in bloom
Jerte Valley in bloom
As winter turns to spring in the Jerte Valley, all eyes are on the cherry blossoms. This tiny region in the province of Cáceres, Spain, has the perfect microclimate for cherry trees, and there are more than 1.5 million of them here in 23 square miles. The cherry blossoms last just two weeks before the petals rain down, covering the entire valley. About 40 days later, the first cherries are ready to be picked. Locals make wine, beer, and various foods with them. Cherries are also used for spa and beauty treatments, since they have antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, in addition to vitamins and ellagic acid.Desktop Version
Arrr! Can you talk like a pirate?
Arrr! Can you talk like a pirate?
Ahoy matey! Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day so we present to you a fortress that was really used to defend against pirates. Arrr! This is Le Castella, a magnificent fortification on the Calabrian coast of Italy. For centuries it served as a defense against warring nations and rampaging pirates from the Ottoman Empire.Desktop Version
An underwater rainbow
An underwater rainbow
You might look twice if you passed by this Technicolor sea creature gliding through the ocean water. In celebration of World Octopus Day, we"re marveling at a photograph of the rarely seen blanket octopus, near Palm Beach, Florida. The blanket octopus gets its common name from the sheets of webbing that stretch between some arms of the female, like the one pictured here. When threatened, it spreads out its arms, creating a blanketlike silhouette to intimidate would-be attackers.Desktop Version
Let the games (finally) begin!
Let the games (finally) begin!
Shining like an incandescent Olympic torch, the Tokyo Tower is our cue to finally say, "Let the games begin!" Along with so much else, the 2020 Summer Olympics were postponed last year (as you probably heard). Despite the long delay, the Summer Olympic Games begin in Tokyo today, almost exactly one year after the games were originally due to start. But these Olympics will look a little different from past games. A recent spike in coronavirus cases has led to a state of emergency in Tokyo, so Olympic organizers have barred spectators from most events. Nevertheless, officials are determined that the Tokyo Olympics will be a demonstration of fortitude in the face of adversity.Desktop Version
Ready. Set. Snow.
Ready. Set. Snow.
Far above the clouds, an adrenaline-seeking skier glides past the jagged Crater Rock on Oregon"s Mount Hood. He"s practicing a relatively young sport known as speed riding—similar to paragliding but with more emphasis on high velocity than altitude. Skiers with parachute-like "wings" launch downslope at high speed, navigating runs partly on skis and partly in the air.Desktop Version
What s better than a smile?
What s better than a smile?
How about two smiles? Some would say there"s plenty to be glum about these days, but to help you grin and bear it, we"re sharing this pic of a pair of hyacinth macaws in Brazil"s Pantanal region as they say "cheese" for the camera.Desktop Version
Engineering an artificial harbor in Normandy
Engineering an artificial harbor in Normandy
For the 75th anniversary of D-Day, the beginning of the end of WWII, we’re focusing on the remains of a Mulberry harbour—one of the most impressive military engineering feats of the war. Knowing that the ability to land huge numbers of men, vehicles, and supplies would be crucial to the Allies’ success in the invasion of Normandy, Winston Churchill challenged his forces to come up with artificial harbors that could be towed into place and operational within days of the initial landings.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
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
Feeling chic on Fashion Week
Feeling chic on Fashion Week
This northern rockhopper penguin might just be our spirit animal–especially for New York Fashion Week. The feisty bird is clearly feeling confident: Just look at that windswept hair! But while fashion models walk the runways in Manhattan this week, this rockhopper will be chilling in the South Atlantic. The rocky terrain on Gough Island, where northern rockhopper penguins live, prevents them from sliding on their bellies–a typical form of land-based penguin transportation. They tend to hop around on the uneven turf of Gough, hence their name.Desktop Version
A meerkat stands alone
A meerkat stands alone
Meerkats, also called suricates, are members of the mongoose family native to the southern African plains. They live in mobs (yes, that"s what a group of meerkats is called) of 20 to 50 animals that work together and share extensive networks of underground burrows. Our friend today, photographed in Namibia, appears to be on sentry duty, which is when a meerkat stands lookout for predators as the rest of the group forages for food, such as insects, small reptiles, and other delicacies. A sentry shift usually lasts about an hour, after which another meerkat takes over and the now-relieved sentry gets to focus on filling its belly.Desktop Version
Pearl of the Adriatic
Pearl of the Adriatic
Jutting out into the sparkling Adriatic Sea, the medieval city of Dubrovnik in southern Croatia displays its centuries-old charm. Here at the heart of the city is the Old Town, paved with limestone and surrounded by medieval walls that encircle its historic core. Visitors can walk along the walls, which stretch over 6,000 feet and were built to defend Dubrovnik from pirates and other unwelcome guests during the Middle Ages. Dotted by fortifications, bastions, and towers, the walls offer breathtaking views of the brilliant blue waters of the Adriatic on one side, and the Old Town"s distinctive terra-cotta roofs on the other.Desktop Version
Happy World Meteorological Day
Happy World Meteorological Day
On this World Meteorological Day, celebrated each year on March 23, we climb far above the Earth for a view of the southern Peruvian coast courtesy of the Landsat 8 satellite. Below the clouds, at the bottom of those canyons, are the Yauca and Acarí Rivers, which drain into the Pacific. As any good meteorologist taking a break from today’s celebrations will tell you, warm air from the equator forms a layer over the cool coastal air here, pushing the clouds into the deep river canyons and covering the Pacific Ocean shore.Desktop Version
Santorini, Greece
Santorini, Greece
Officially known as Thira, Santorini is perhaps the most famous of all the Greek islands. Located at the southern end of the Aegean Sea, Santorini is part of the Cyclades group of islands and receives about 2 million visitors a year. That"s a lot of adoring attention for a small island (only 28 square miles) of 15,000 residents, and it"s no wonder why. The whitewashed, clifftop villages of Santorini, like Oia featured in this image, are postcard-perfect. And so are the unlimited panoramic views of the azure Mediterranean Sea.Desktop Version
The moth wonderful time of the year
The moth wonderful time of the year
You"re forgiven if this is the first you"re hearing of National Moth Week, even though it"s been going strong for eight years as a global call to learn about and observe the fuzzy little insects. All too often dismissed as pesky, drab counterparts to our brightly fluttering friends the butterflies, moths seem to hog every light but the spotlight. But they don"t need flashy marketing to win the numbers game: With an estimated 160,000 moth species (though some estimates go up to half a million), they vastly outnumber their swaggering butterfly cousins in the Lepidoptera order.Desktop Version
Mardi Gras flower power
Mardi Gras flower power
While the purple flowers and green ironwork may not look overly festive to the untrained eye, residents of New Orleans will no doubt spot the significance of both, especially today, on Mardi Gras, the final day of Carnival. Purple and green are two of the three official colors of Mardi Gras, together with gold, and in a normal year the streets would be full of revelers decked out in all three colors as they dance and parade down the streets of the city. Due to COVID-19, there won"t be any parades this year, but the colors will still be on full display in the city"s famous French Quarter and elsewhere, including as colorful icing atop king cakes, a beloved treat that"s associated with the Carnival season.Desktop Version
It s only Wednesday
It s only Wednesday
After looking at this adorable gray seal pup you may be surprised to learn that its Latin name translates to hooked-nose sea pig (or piglet, in this pup"s case). Over 110,000 gray seals, more than 35% of the world"s population, make their home in and around the coastal waters of the British Isles. As autumn approaches, pupping season begins, and fuzzy pups—like the one photographed here—can be spotted on the coasts and beaches of the eastern Atlantic. About a month after the seal pups are born, they"re abruptly weaned when their mothers return to the sea to hunt for food and find a new mate. The older pups then congregate for protection in groups called weaner pods. Within weeks they shed their thick pup fur and take to the sea to learn how to catch their own fish.Desktop Version
Fog above the forest
Fog above the forest
Today we"re looking out over Pisgah National Forest, which was established on this day in 1916. One of the first national forests established in the eastern United States, it comprises more than 500,000 acres of mountainous peaks, cascading waterfalls, and heavily forested slopes. With hundreds of miles of trails, Pisgah is a popular place for hiking, backpacking, road biking, mountain biking, fishing, and rock climbing.Desktop Version
Is that a face in the sand?
Is that a face in the sand?
Though the coastal Namib Desert begins in the southwest of Angola, and creeps into South Africa, the largest stretch of the Namib makes up the coastline of Namibia. Parts of the Namib rise in steep elevation, while the northern portion is often shrouded in thick fog rolling off the Atlantic. The fog over the region called the Skeleton Coast is responsible for numerous shipwrecks, but the moisture it brings into the harsh desert landscape is crucial to the flora and fauna that thrive here.Desktop Version
Feel the spray in Monterey
Feel the spray in Monterey
Fantasizing about warm, sandy beaches with gently lapping waves? Well, we decided you could use a shake-up—so here we are on California"s Monterey Peninsula for a glimpse at the ocean"s raw, unadulterated power. Asilomar State Beach"s mile-long coastline trail offers views like this one of seas crashing on jagged shores. Below the frothy surface swim innumerable ocean organisms protected by the massive Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the largest marine preserve in the contiguous United States. Behind us, a rich dune habitat supporting its own delicate flora and fauna can be explored via a boardwalk trail.Desktop Version
Aw shucks, It s Oyster Day
Aw shucks, It s Oyster Day
It may look like we"ve led you into a squishy green minefield, but don"t worry, these clustered oysters will only explode with flavor. In honor of Oyster Day, August 5 of each year, we"re getting a glimpse of just one method of oyster mariculture, or farming in open seawater. The briny bivalves may be grown on beds, rods, racks, or—in this case—ropes, but the basic process is simple: Growing surfaces are "seeded" with whole or ground oyster shells before oyster larvae are introduced. The shells attract the larvae, which attach themselves and soon grow into a new layer of mature oysters. Humans have been doing this at least since the days of ancient Rome, but wild-picked oysters have been an important food source to many cultures since prehistory.Desktop Version
Who left the tub running?
Who left the tub running?
"Sound II," this sculpture by Antony Gormley, has stood here in the oft-flooded crypt of Winchester Cathedral in the south of England since 1986—not trying to get a plumber on the horn, but quietly standing guard and studying the water in its cupped hands. Elsewhere in the cathedral you"ll find another notable statue: The likeness of William "Diver Bill" Walker, a local hero who—for six years starting in 1906—worked alone in a heavy diving suit to shore up the increasingly flooded structure as it threatened to sink into the boggy soil beneath. Nowadays it"s stable, but the lowest level still sees its share of standing water during rainy periods.Desktop Version
Corfe gets creepy
Corfe gets creepy
Spying the crooked silhouette of Corfe Castle above the rolling, foggy hills of Dorset, England, you might not guess at the ruin"s former palatial beauty—you"ll more likely sense its long history of intrigue, and maybe feel a chill down your spine.Desktop Version
Is that a smile?
Is that a smile?
For World Smile Day, we bring you one animal that can’t really smile, at least not in a way that humans recognize. The common octopus, seen in this photo, has a mouth with a beak-like exterior which it uses to crack the shells of the crabs and shellfish it eats. That opening you can see in this photo, below the octopus’ eye, is an aperture, part of its breathing mechanism. Still, if you let your imagination run with it, the octopus does look like he just heard a really good joke. And really, isn’t a ‘grinning’ octopus enough to make you feel good on World Smile Day?Desktop Version
Aw shucks, it’s oyster season in Galway
Aw shucks, it’s oyster season in Galway
When you think of Ireland, do you think of oysters? The proud oyster farmers here in Galway Bay think you should. This weekend, fans of the bivalve have poured into the Galway International Oyster and Seafood Festival, an event that claims to be the oldest oyster festival in the world--and the most recognized Irish festival outside of St. Patrick’s Day. Visit Galway yourself and you can sample the native oysters, which have been harvested here for centuries, and also try the Pacific varieties that were brought in during the 1970s. Fans of native Galway oysters tout their meaty texture and subtle flavor. They pair well with Guinness, we presume.Desktop Version