At 10,582 square kilometres, the Bolivian salt flats – otherwise known as Salar de Uyuni – are the largest on the planet and contain between 50 and 70% of the world’s lithium reserves. After exploring Chile and Argentina, photographer Joel Santos decided to travel to Bolivia in January 2017 to check the salt flats off his bucket list. With an electrical storm rolling in, Joel and his two travelling companions were the only souls left on the vast flats and captured the eerie flats without a person in sight. (Photo by Joel Santos/Barcroft Images)

A woman jumps on a giant fried egg art installation as part of “Hecho en Casa” (Made at home) urban artwork festival in downtown Santiago, Chile, November 8, 2016. (Photo by Pablo Sanhueza/Reuters)

Performers wearing traditional Zulu attire take part in the parade during the 112th African National Congress (ANC) Anniversary rally in Mbombela on January 13, 2024. (Photo by Phill Magakoe/AFP Photo)

An explosion at a petrochemical plant is seen in Rizhao, Shandong province, July 16, 2015. According to Xinhua News Agency, a fire broke out after the explosion, which was caused by a liquified hydrocarbon leak at the plant, on Thursday morning. There was no report of casualties yet. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

ESA astronaut Tim Peake posted this stunning image on his social media channels, commenting: “Station passed through magnificent aurora Australis last night”. Tim is set to return to Earth on 18 June 2016, bringing his six-month Principia mission to the ISS to an end. During his stay he performed more than 30 scientific experiments for ESA and taking part in numerous others from ESA's international partners. ESA and the UK Space Agency have partnered to develop many exciting educational activities around the Principia mission, aimed at sparking the interest of young children in science and space. (Photo by Tim Peake/ESA/NASA)

Inbar Regev, an eight-year-old Israeli girl, holds her pet python while swimming in her backyard pool in Ge'a, southern Israel on October 7, 2020. (Photo by Amir Cohen/Reuters)

In this July 23, 2013 photo, sand fills an abandoned house in Kolmanskop, Namibia. Kolmanskop, was a diamond mining town south of Namibia, build in 1908 and deserted in 1956. SInce then, the desert slowly reclaims its territory, with sand invading the buildings where 350 German colonists and more than 800 local workers lived during its hay-days of the 1920s. (Photo by Jerome Delay/AP Photo)

A boy collects drinking water from a hand pump in Kutubdia, Bangladesh on March 30, 2016. Kutubdia is one of many islands affected by some of the fastest recorded sea-level rises in the world. The island has halved in size in 20 years. (Photo by SIipa/Rex Features/Shutterstock)