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Pretty poetic for a pit
Pretty poetic for a pit
Taking a bird"s-eye view along the coast of Italy"s bootheel, you"ll spot many coves and caves like this one, the Grotta della Poesia. In English that"s Poetry"s Cave, a sea-flooded sinkhole so named for the ancient poets who—legend has it—were charmed by a beautiful princess who often came here for a dip.Desktop Version
Acadia transformed
Acadia transformed
Historically, mid-October is peak fall foliage season in Maine"s Acadia National Park. The forest canopy is aflame with autumn color, and here, the highbush blueberries on the forest floor provide an additional splash of color. Acadia has six marked coastal trails, and our photo today was taken on one of the most popular: Wonderland Trail. It’s just 1.4 miles round-trip, an easy trek for families and casual hikers. Acadia is Maine’s only national park, and it’s easy to see why this landscape was preserved—look at that beautiful fall color, and that’s just at ground level.Desktop Version
Penn Station
Penn Station
If this image of New York City"s Pennsylvania Station seems straight out of a classic film noir, it"s for good reason. The photo was taken in the 1950s, just a few years before the city"s beloved Beaux-Arts style masterpiece was dismantled and then demolished so that Madison Square Garden could be built atop its warren of walkways and train lines.Desktop Version
Aprils full moon
Aprils full moon
The full moon has inspired folklore, myths, writers, and artists throughout history and has been given many names, depending on the time of year it appears. April"s first full moon is known as the pink moon, but that doesn’t mean it will appear pink against the night sky. Native Americans named it for the pink wildflowers, moss pink or creeping phlox, that bloom in the eastern US in the spring.Desktop Version
Mountain hare hopping into Lunar New Year
Mountain hare hopping into Lunar New Year
Today is the start of the Lunar New Year, which ushers in the Year of the Rabbit. Those born under the sign of the rabbit are believed to be ingenious, sweet, happy, quiet, and persistent. Famous rabbits include Albert Einstein, Frank Sinatra, Lionel Messi, and Ingrid Bergman. The Lunar New Year celebration starts with the first new moon in January and goes for the next 15 days, until the year"s first full moon lights up the night sky. Historically it has been an occasion for feasting and honoring deities as well as ancestors. We"re doing our part by sharing this lovely winter image of a mountain hare in Derbyshire, England.Desktop Version
The lights of Paris
The lights of Paris
As twilight turns to night, the city of Paris lights up. Streets and buildings are bathed in light, alongside grand monuments such as the Hôtel National des Invalides, whose famous dome shines out in our homepage image. It was built during the 17th century under Louis XIV, as a hospital and home for army veterans. It was also Louis XIV, known as the Sun King, who ordered streetlights to be erected throughout the city to light up dark alleys where lawbreakers might lurk. Parisians were also asked to put up lanterns and oil lamps, and place lit candles in their windows.Desktop Version
A little blue
A little blue
If you want to see a little blue heron in its natural habitat, head to the swamps, tidal flats, and lake marshes of the US Gulf Coast, the Caribbean Islands, and Central America—and bring your patience. These herons keep a low profile, and often sit so still while hunting, they can be hard to spot. The adults develop deep blue plumage, sometimes sporting purple feathers on their heads, and tiptoe around the shoreline on green legs. The chicks are born snowy white, which scientists suggest is a survival adaptation to help them blend in with cattle egrets and snowy egrets—both species with bright white feathers—to enjoy the added safety of being in a large group.Desktop Version
Cranborne Chase, England
Cranborne Chase, England
If this looks to you like the setting of a fairy tale, you"re not alone. England"s Cranborne Chase has long inspired writers and painters, and it"s been designated a national protected area because of its natural beauty. It may be especially beautiful in winter, when the trees and shrubs can be coated with hoarfrost, an uncommon type of frost that forms when water vapor turns directly into ice, skipping the liquid stage.Desktop Version
Mount Segla, Senja Island, Norway
Mount Segla, Senja Island, Norway
A beautiful island popularly known as "Norway in miniature," Senja"s diverse landscape boasts mountainous terrain as well as lush greenery. At 600 square miles, it is Norway"s second-largest island, connected to the mainland by the Gisund Bridge. The most notable spot on Senja is pictured today, Mount Segla, a magnificent peak that is visited frequently in summer, with a trail starting in Fjordgård, a fishing village in the north of Senja. It"s a tough hike to the top, more than 2,000 feet above sea level. Other tourist attractions include Ånderdalen National Park and Tranøya, an island off the south coast of Senja known for its tranquility.Desktop Version
National Mushroom Month
National Mushroom Month
Oh, to be a squirrel with a feast such as this! It"s National Mushroom Month, and it seems our red squirrel friend here in Alaska got a literal jump on celebrating. It might surprise you, but squirrels don"t only eat nuts. They"ll eat just about whatever"s around and that includes big mushrooms. Though a small percentage of wild mushrooms can be poisonous to humans, squirrels can eat many of these frightening fungi without worry, thanks to special proteins in their guts. Nice to know someone"s enjoying them.Desktop Version
Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
Behold the rugged grandeur of Utah"s red rock country. This hidden gem of the American Southwest is Capitol Reef National Park, a tapestry of towering cliffs, twisting canyons, colorful sandstone buttes, and sweeping desert landscapes. Less popular than Zion and Bryce Canyon, the park offers a pleasantly uncrowded experience for visitors keen to enjoy this spectacular landscape. It is also home to a wide variety of plants and animals, including the elusive desert bighorn sheep and more than 230 bird species. But its crown jewel is the nearly 100-mile long Waterpocket Fold, a 7,000-foot-high step in the rock layers, officially known as a monocline. This massive wrinkle on the surface of the planet was formed around 50 to 70 million years ago.Desktop Version
Computer Science Education Week
Computer Science Education Week
Computer science is a dynamically developing discipline that has revolutionized our lives within a few decades. For Computer Science Education Week, we celebrate information systems and their power to connect the world, 24 hours a day. Where better to mark the occasion than the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN—birthplace of the World Wide Web? The 89-foot ball seen on today’s homepage is CERN"s Globe of Science and Innovation in Switzerland, in which visitors can learn more about the organization"s research work on particle physics. Quiet observers can wander around exhibitions and follow guided tours, and curious minds can take part in lab workshops and science shows for a first-hand experience.Desktop Version
Wheels up in Beijing
Wheels up in Beijing
Last Wednesday, September 25, China officially opened the world’s largest airplane terminal, Beijing Daxing International Airport. Constructed to alleviate pressure on the city"s existing airport, Beijing Capital International, the bright orange starfish look-alike took more than four years to construct. And travelers, hold on to your hats, because Daxing International will connect to China"s capital city—about 30 miles away—with a high-speed train that travels at top speeds of more than 200 mph.Desktop Version
Rainbow Mountain
Rainbow Mountain
Even to the huge bummer that is glacial melting, there are bright sides: The radiant colors of Vinicunca (aka Rainbow Mountain) might have gone unseen had rising temps not melted the peak"s glacial caps beginning in the 1990s. Rainbow Mountain"s streaky sediment layers, multicolored like a wildflower bloom, were revealed by the 2010s. Since then, it"s become the most visited natural attraction in the lofty Peruvian Andes of the Cusco region. At more than 17,000 feet above sea level, Rainbow Mountain isn’t the tallest peak in the area—towering Ausangate is nearly 21,000 feet in elevation—but most visitors will need time to acclimatize before attempting the trek to the summit.Desktop Version
Dark Sky Week
Dark Sky Week
During International Dark Sky Week, we"re counting ourselves lucky to have this spectacular nighttime view, considering the astonishing fact that 83% of the global population lives under a light-polluted sky. Unneeded artificial light is classified as a pollutant and has been proven to have harmful side effects. Not only does it waste money and energy, it also disrupts plants and animals, is believed to impact the climate, and blocks our view of the universe.Desktop Version
Let the Highland games begin
Let the Highland games begin
Cue the bagpipes–today’s homepage brings us to Scotland for the Braemar Gathering, an annual celebration of Scottish culture that takes place today in the village of Braemar. These Highland games include traditional dance, music, and athletic competitions–and tartan, lots and lots of tartan (part of Scotland’s national dress). Since 1848, Braemar has regularly been attended by Britain’s Royal Family. Queen Elizabeth II, the official patron of the games, has come to Braemar every year since 1952, when she ascended the throne. It’s worth noting that she likes tartan too, and even has her own personal style of tartan—a pattern called the ‘Royal Stewart.’Desktop Version
Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia
Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia
In a country more famous for its coastline, about a million visitors each year venture inland to amble along these boardwalks and marvel at spectacular lakes and mountains. Plitvice Lakes National Park is the oldest and largest of Croatia"s national parks. The big attraction is the series of 16 descending, turquoise-colored lakes, connected by subterranean karst rivers, and above ground by streams and waterfalls. The lakes are separated by natural dams of travertine, which is created by the interplay of water, plant material, and bacteria. The water changes color from green to azure to gray depending on the angle of the light and the density of minerals and organisms in the water. About 11 miles of wooden boardwalk make it easy for people to wander among the lakes, falls, and caves that are open to visitors year-round.Desktop Version
A Latino art exhibition in Denver
A Latino art exhibition in Denver
National Hispanic Heritage Month begins today in the United States. To explore the breadth of the Latino experience in the US, one might start with art—especially work from contemporary artists such as Gabriel Dawe, whose work is shown here. This is "no. 36" from Dawe’s Plexus series, a collection of art installations constructed from embroidery thread. The Plexus series is named for the networks of blood vessels and nerves that run through the human body. Dawe writes that his work–centered on textiles–seeks to examine gender and identity in his native Mexico and to subvert notions of masculinity and machismo. "Plexus no. 36," was on display at the Denver Art Museum in 2017.Desktop Version
Pont Rouge
Pont Rouge
When the Pont Rouge (Red Bridge) of Sainte-Agathe-de-Lotbinière was built over the Palmer River in 1928, covered bridges were already commonplace here in Quebec. Simple designs imported from the United States allowed relatively untrained workers to quickly construct crossings like this. "Ponts rouges" (often called this whether or not they were painted red) popped up wherever rural French Canadians required a convenient river crossing—as many as 1,500 were built between the late 1800s and the 1950s. Today fewer than 100 still stand, and some—like this one—are protected by local and provincial agencies for historic preservation.Desktop Version
World Population Day
World Population Day
On July 11, 1987, the world is thought to have welcomed its 5-billionth person. Thirty-six years later, our population has reached 8 billion and is still rising. World Population Day, established by the UN, is a day to reflect on how much life Earth can sustain, and how our lives impact our environment.Desktop Version
I ll call for pen and ink
I ll call for pen and ink
"…and write my mind." It"s Shakespeare Week in schools across the UK, so we"re field-tripping to the British Library for a peek at the only surviving specimen of what"s thought to be playwright William Shakespeare"s handwriting (if you don"t count legal documents). The scratchy cursive is inked within the script of Anthony Munday"s "Sir Thomas More," a then-controversial play about a king-defying statesman. In 1603, the censorial Royal Office of the Revels brought in Shakespeare among a team of writers to retool the script. But if Shakespeare"s task was to tone things down, he may have had other ideas: His three-page addition includes an impassioned speech by the title character to a mob that"s rioting over immigration policy.Desktop Version
Jane’s Carousel delights
Jane’s Carousel delights
National Merry-Go-Round Day brings us to the Brooklyn waterfront, home of Jane’s Carousel, a merry-go-round that’s been delighting riders for nearly a century. Its story starts in 1922, an era of speakeasies and flappers and a booming time in carousel history, when the rides were a symbol of a community’s prosperity. Jane’s Carousel was built in Idora Park in Youngstown, Ohio, a steel city.Desktop Version
Monarch butterflies, Pismo Beach, California
Monarch butterflies, Pismo Beach, California
Today we"re in Pismo Beach, California, to celebrate one of the best-known species of butterflies—the monarch. Western Monarch Day marks their seasonal migration to California"s Central Coast from cold northern locations west of the Rocky Mountains.Desktop Version
Great hornbill, Thailand
Great hornbill, Thailand
The great hornbill is a remarkable bird found in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. Despite weighing as much as 9 pounds and growing up to 4 feet long, it is an agile flyer capable of maneuvering through dense forests. Alongside its striking black and yellow plumage, the great hornbill has a unique helmet-like casque on its bill, which amplifies its calls. The bird primarily feeds on fruit but also eats small mammals, reptiles, and insects. While incubating her eggs, the female great hornbill seals herself inside a tree cavity, leaving a small opening through which the male inserts food. This magnificent bird holds cultural and spiritual significance in many Southeast Asian cultures as a sacred animal and the subject of festivals.Desktop Version
Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day is a North American tradition with roots in the February 2 Candlemas observance practiced by German immigrants. The most well-known Groundhog Day celebration, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, was first promoted by a local newspaper editor in 1886. Thousands of people gather in Punxsutawney each year to witness the groundhog emerge from its burrow, and more importantly, to see if the critter spots its shadow. If it does, winter will go on for six weeks, according to tradition. If it does not, spring-like conditions are said to be coming. Studies have yet to prove any link between the two events, but that hasn’t cast a shadow over this unusual tradition, which remains as popular as ever in the 21st century.Desktop Version