The Malabar Giant squirrel – double the size of their grey relatives and measuring up to 36 inches (91.5 cm) from head to tail – lives deep in the forests of India. The athletic animals can leap an incredible 20 feet (6 m) between trees. Photographer Kaushik Vijayan, 39, snapped the animals in their native habit to produce these stunning images. Kaushik, from Kerala State, India, said: “Up until that point I had never heard about a squirrel like that or seen one. The sight was an absolute feast for my eyes. The squirrels fascinated me and I got excited to capture this beauty on my camera”. (Photo by Kaushik Vijayan/South West News Service)

The competition is run by Royal Observatory Greenwich sponsored by Insight Investment and in association with BBC Sky at Night Magazine. This year astrophotographers from 91 countries sent in more than 4,200 spectacular entries. Here: The Milky Way rises above an isolated lighthouse in Tasmania. Shot by James Stone of Australia. (Photo by James Stone/Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2018)

These are the amazing panoramic photographs that look like little planets. They were taken by photographer Dan Arkle, 34, from Sheffield, UK. He said: “On a sharp summit, you feel literally on top of the world, with dramatic views in all directions, including straight down. I tried using conventional photography to capture this feeling, but even with a wide angle lens I couldnt get all the view in the image”. Here: “Taken at the tiny summit of Cima Piccola in the the Tre Cima group in the Dolomites, Italy. The large peak is Cima Grande Some remote peaks have a summit register, and my climbing partner Steve can be seen signing this in the bottom of the picture”. (“Little Planets” Project. Photo and comment by Dan Arkle)

Corey Arnold is a fine art photographer and a commercial fisherman, working the stormy waters of the Bering Sea by Alaska. His latest work documents life in this remote wilderness, both at sea and on the shore, capturing trawlers, foxes, eagles and the grandeur of the scenery. “Aleutian Dreams” can be seen at Charles A Hartman Fine Art in Portland, Oregon, until 27 May. Here: “Roadside Friend”. (Photo by Corey Arnold/Charles A. Harman Fine Art/The Guardian)

A huge atlas moth, with a wingspan of more than 9in, photographed on an areca nut plantation in Sirsi, India. (Photo by Uday Hegde/Close Up Photographer of the Year)

A wounded Afghan policeman is carried away from the site of an explosion in Kabul May 24, 2013. Several large explosions rocked a busy area in the centre of the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Friday with Reuters witnesses describing shooting in the area. (Photo by Omar Sobhani/Reuters)

P.S. All pictures are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture (if available; this principle works anywhere on the site AvaxNews)

This undated photo provided by NOAA in May 2018 shows aurora australis near the South Pole Atmospheric Research Observatory in Antarctica. When a hole in the ozone formed over Antarctica, countries around the world in 1987 agreed to phase out several types of ozone-depleting chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Production was banned, emissions fell and the hole shriveled. But according to a study released on Wednesday, May 16, 2018, scientists say since 2013, there’s more of a banned CFC going into the atmosphere. (Photo by Patrick Cullis/NOAA via AP Photo)

The Bratz Rock Angels are displayed at the Dream Toys 2005 Pre-Christmas Expo on October 5, 2005 in London. (Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)