A person holds a portrait of Alexander Lukashenko during an opposition rally in Independence Avenue in Minsk, Belarus on August 23, 2020. The political crisis continues in Belarus, which arose in connection with the presidential election held on August 9, the results of which are not recognized by the opposition. (Photo by Valery Sharifulin/TASS/Sipa USA)

A young fan plays a virtual reality game during the first round of the US Open tennis championships, Monday, August 29, 2022, in New York. (Photo by Julia Nikhinson/AP Photo)

A Pug sleeps during the American Kennel Club's (AKC) Meet the Breeds event in New York, U.S., January 29, 2023. (Photo by Jeenah Moon/Reuters)

Natalia Grossman of the USA competes during the women's finals of the IFSC Climbing World Cup Meiringen on April 09, 2022 in Meiringen, Switzerland. (Photo by Marco Kost/Getty Images)

Soldiers are reflected in a puddle during a military parade during the celebrations for Romania's National Day in Bucharest December 1, 2014. (Photo by Radu Sigheti/Reuters)

Tens of thousands of HIV positive prostitutes in the slums of Lagos to ensure a rapid spread of the epidemic. “If you arrive by car, you can smell the HIV virus outside”, joked my driver as we are on track to Badia a criminal slums of Lagos. Badia is a corruption of “Bad Area”. Nigerians have a lack of everything, except black humor. The poor West African country Nigeria, with a population of 140 million people, after India and South Africa the highest number of people with HIV / AIDS. (Photo by Ton Koene/Exclusivepix Media)

Malawian Saw-wa, 33, (L) and Yupin Saw-wa, 28 who lost their daughters, cry near a burnt building at the Pitakkiat Wittaya School in the northern province of Chiang Rai, Thailand, May 23, 2016. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

Aurorae category runner-up: Lone Tree under a Scandinavian Aurora by Tom Archer (UK). The photographer decided to explore the area around the hotel on a very crisp -35C evening in Finnish Lapland. When he found this tree, he decided to wait for the misty conditions to change and could not believe his luck when the sky cleared and the aurora came out in the perfect spot. Archer spent about an hour photographing it before his camera started to lock up because of the harsh conditions, but by then he was happy to call it a night. (Photo by Tom Archer/2020 Astronomy Photographer of the Year)