Merit: A Night at Deadvlei. The night before returning to Windhoek, we spent several hours at Deadveli. The moon was bright enough to illuminate the sand dunes in the distance, but the skies were still dark enough to clearly see the milky way and magellanic clouds. Deadveli means “dead marsh. The camelthorn trees are believed to be about 900 years old, but have not decomposed because the environment is so dry. (Photo and caption by Beth McCarley/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)
People walk through Manhattan in a snow storm on December 16, 2020 in New York City. New York City is expected to get between 10 inches and a foot of snow on Wednesday and Thursday in what is the first winter storm of the year. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Actress Sophia Loren teases the hair of critic Gene Shalit in New York, Tuesday, February 20, 1979. During the filming of a segment for the NBC television “Today” show. In the background is a large photograph of Miss Loren. The segment is scheduled for airing later this week. (Photo by Dave Pickoff/AP Photo)
Italian swimmer Federica Pellegrini poses with a Barbie doll, in Verona, Italy, in this undated handout image. (Photo by Mattel/Petra Rajnicova/Handout via Reuters)
Yaroslava Mahuchikh, of Ukraine, makes an attempt in the women's high jump qualification at the the European Athletics Championships in Rome, Friday, June 7, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Medichini/AP Photo)