This Sunday, September 7, 2014 photo provided by Rachel Kirk shows smoke from a fire rising above Little Yosemite Valley near Yosemite National Park, Calif. (Photo by Rachel Kirk/AP Photo)

Every year National Parks Week gives visitors a chance to celebrate the incredible woodland spaces around the UK. This year the National Parks Week runs from 28 July – 3 August and there are 10 national parks across England to explore. Each one has created a special event to celebrate the National Parks Week, from picnics and treasure hunt in the park to cycle rides, safari or outdoor art exhibition. (Photo by Diana Jarvis/VisitEngland)

In this handout from the Ministry of Defence, Royal Air Force VC10 and Tristar air-to-air refuelling aircraft support the first UK air combat mission in support of UN Resolution 1973 in flight on March 19, 2011. Col Muammar Gaddafi has vowed a “long war” against the “crusader aggression” after over 100 missiles were fired by the US and UK, during multi-national action aimed at enforcing a UN-mandated no-fly zone. (Photo by SAC Neil Chapman/MoD via Getty Images)

Last weekend, the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., opened a 10,000 square-foot ball pit to the general public, and everyone cheered that, finally, someone made their childhood dreams come true.

The National September 11 Memorial & Museum (branded as 9/11 Memorial and 9/11 Memorial Museum) is the principal memorial and museum commemorating the September 11 attacks of 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people, and the World Trade Center bombing of 1993, which killed six. The memorial is located at the World Trade Center site, on the former location of the Twin Towers, which were destroyed during the attacks. The World Trade Center Memorial Foundation was renamed the National September 11 Memorial & Museum at the World Trade Center in 2007.

Keith Haubrich of Seattle, Wash., reacts to the crowd while competing in the Dali Moustache division during the fourth annual Just For Men National Beard and Moustache Championships Saturday, September 7, 2013 in New Orleans. Haubrich went on to win the gold medal for the Dali division.Contestants competed in 18 different categories including Dali, full beard natural and sideburns.(Photo by Susan Poag/AP Photo)

This outrageous display of facial hair configurations made an appearance at the 4th Annual National Beard and Mustache Championships in New Orleans. Luckily Las Vegas-based photographer Greg Anderson was on-hand to give us a front-row seat as the bizarre spectacle of facial hair paraded in front of his camera lens. The championships involved some 150 contestants from the U.S., U.K., and Canada who competed in 17 different categories.

“Honorable Mention”. An Indian rhinoceros, far from home and stuck inside with late-winter blues at the Toronto zoo. Photo location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo and caption by Stephen De Lisle/National Geographic Photo Contest)