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)

A model falls while displaying a design from Wu Xuewei and Wu Xuekai, winners of the Asahi Kasei China Fashion Designer Award during China Fashion Week held in Beijing, China, Friday, October 29, 2010. (Photo by Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)

An Iraq fan poses before the World Cup 2022 Qualifier 2nd round Group C football match between Iraq and Iran at Amman International Stadium in Amman, Jordan on November 14, 2019. (Photo by Muhammad Hamed/Reuters)

A hare runs on a small road as the sun rises in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, June 12, 2023. (Photo by Michael Probst/AP Photo)

A woman carries an umbrella during a heat wave in Rome, Italy, 16 July 2023. Italy is facing the third heatwave of the summer on 16 July bringing record temperatures. The new heatwave is forecast to peak on 18 July, when temperatures in areas of southern Sardinian may reach 48 degrees Celsius, according to forecasts. On 15 July, the health ministry has put on red alert major Italian cities. (Photo by Massimo Percossi/EPA)

People run along a street as rain caused by tropical storm Alberto, the first named storm of 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, falls, in Monterrey, Mexico. on June 19, 2024. (Photo by Daniel Becerril/Reuters)

Two F-15E Strike Eagles wait to receive fuel from a KC-135R Stratotanker during exercise Red Flag 15-1 on their way to Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Jauary 23, 2015. The F-15s are assigned to the 4th Fighter Wing. U.S. (Photo by Airman 1st Class Aaron J. Jenne/Reuters)

Yuandudu, a camera-shy panda cub, covers her eyes in Beauval ZooParc in France in November 2021. The three-month-old and her twin are fed once each by their mother every day, taking 150-200g of milk per feed. In between they have one bottle feed per day from the specially trained keepers who were sent from China to supervise their birth and early care. (Photo by Eric Baccega/Naturepl.com/LDY Agency)