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Nature Photography

Photojournalist Christopher Michel captured this mesmerizing scene just a half mile from the South Pole.

Art Meets Science

How the Antarctic Sun Creates Breathtaking Optical Effects

A fine haze of ice particles transformed this landscape into an otherworldly scene

Cool Finds

Sea Foam Delights Visitors of Lebanese Beach

Last week, thick white layers of bubbles washed ashore Naqoura Beach

Camera trap image of Javan warty pig.

Watch Rare Footage of the Elusive Javan Warty Pig in the Wild

Habitat destruction and hunting are rapidly driving the “world’s ugliest pig” to extinction

Emerald Bay and Mount Tallac, Lake Tahoe, 1935.

Cool Finds

Cache of Newly Digitized Travel Photographs Will Transport You to 1900s California

Travelers William and Grace McCarthy really got around, and in nearly 3,000 photos, they captured a unique view of San Francisco, Tahoe and Yosemite

Elyse Butler got up close and personal to capture this fiery scene of lava flowing dramatically into the Pacific Ocean from Kilauea volcano.

Smithsonian Magazine’s Most Powerful Photos of the Year

Our photography editors select their favorites from a year full of stunning photojournalism

A Tense Encounter Becomes a Perfect Polar Bear Photo Op

A local guide from Churchill, Manitoba, is on a late night walk, hoping to spot a polar bear. He strikes gold when a large male appears

This laughing doormouse chuckled its way into the winning spot of the "On the Land" category.

Award Winning Images Capture the Goofiness of the Animal Kingdom

Enjoy these masterpieces in animal silliness

Grizzly bears are a common sight in the park.

Photos Offer a Glimpse Into the Wild Corners of America’s Northernmost National Park

In his upcoming book, author Joe Wilkins gives an insider’s perspective of Gates of the Arctic

Bentley found "each snowflake is as different from its fellows as human beings are from each other."

The Man Who Revealed the Hidden Structure of Falling Snowflakes

Beginning in the 1880s, amateur photographer Wilson A. Bentley considered the endlessly varied crystals “miracles of beauty”

Capturing a Photo of a Swimming Polar Bear is Risky Work

A wildlife photographer spots a swimming polar bear, completing the last lap of its summer migration. It’s the perfect photo op

Europe

Color-Soaked Photographs Capture Norway’s Watery Wonderlands

“One Eye Project” explores liquid landscapes and reflections of Norway’s greatest sites

African Lionesses by Lakshitha Karunarathna, 2017 Grand Prize

These Breathtaking Images Are the Cat’s Meow in Nature Photography

Sixty incredible outdoor scenes are now on view at the National Museum of Natural History

Of the roughly 900,000 Rocky Mountain elk in North America, some 20,000 migrate through the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Photos Document Dramatic Wildlife Migrations Across Yellowstone

A new book documents the growing challenges faced by wildlife as they migrate across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

This Brave Student Captured the Mount St. Helens Blast

Some of the most breathtaking photos of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens were taken by a graduate student camped nearby

Memorial to a species, Brent Stirton, South Africa, Grand title winner 2017

Art Meets Science

Tragedy and Beauty of Nature on Display in This Year’s Best Wildlife Photos

The 16 award-winning images range from whimsical birds to the tragic aftermath of a poaching raid

Google Trekker in Quttinirpaaq National Park

Cool Finds

Now You Can Virtually Visit Quttinirpaaq National Park, One of the Most Remote Places on Earth

Google Street Views records the wonders of the northerly jewel

Cool Finds

Watch First Video of Sand Cat Kittens Romping in the Wild

The elusive kittens were documented sitting under a bush in the Moroccan Sahara last April

When the conditions are right in Roebuck Bay, Australia, the landscape resembles a set of stairs leading to the moon.

Family Travel

Natural Phenomena (Other Than Foliage) You Can Glimpse This Fall

Where to look beyond the leaves for a taste of the season’s wonders

Vibrant pink flamingos feed their fluffy grey chicks in Rio Lagartos, Mexico. This image was the winner for the Best Portrait category.

Art Meets Science

Prize-Winning Images Capture Birds in All Their Feathered Glory

The Best Bird Photographer of the Year Awards displays the dynamic lives of the amazing avian

The Queen's Head, Yehliu Geological Park

Taiwan’s Yehliu Geopark Is Like Disneyland for Rock Lovers

These mushroom-like mounds are some of the country’s greatest geological treasures

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