A cat sits in the flooding waters from Hurricane Matthew in downtown Nichols, South Carolina, October 10, 2016. (Photo by Randall Hill/Reuters)

Yala national park, Sri Lanka. Category: Action. “The daylight was fading and I was scanning the bush for a leopard. Then, I saw this garden lizard and a common bronzeback snake in the road. When the snake struck, the lizard performed amazing acrobatics to avoid it. The snake didn’t enjoy the extra attention from the crowd of jeeps. The distraction gave the lizard the chance to live another day”. (Photo by Sajith Buddikha Withanage/National Geographic Traveller UK)

A Thai veterinarian takes a picture of a 2-year-old orangutan during a health examination at Kao Pratubchang Conservation Centre in Ratchaburi, Thailand, August 27, 2015. Thai veterinarians from the Department of National Park Wildlife, and Plant Conservation conducted a health check of 14 orangutans for preparation for the repatriation to their country of origin, Indonesia. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

A model has her hair sprayed backstage at the Ukrainian Fashion Week in Kyiv, Ukraine on August 31, 2020. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

Gorgeous galaxies and stunning stars make up this selection of pictures from the shortlisted entries for this year’s Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year award. The winners will be announced on 15 September, and an exhibition of the winning images will be will be displayed in a free exhibition at the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Centre from 17 September. Here: “Seven Magic Points”. The rusty red swirls of the circular, iron sculpture Seven Magic Points in Brattebergan, Norway mirror the rippling aurora above. (Photo by Rune Engebø/Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2016/National Maritime Museum)

The Arizona State Sun Devils cheer team performs during the second half of the NCAAF game at Sun Devil Stadium on September 01, 2022 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Spot the baton: the Dutch athlete Femke Bol falls to the ground as Alexis Holmes of the US runs to victory in the mixed 4x400m relay final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on August 19, 2023. (Photo by Márton Mónus/Reuters)

Riders compete during the NETT sidecarcross championship in Middlesbrough, Britain on April 14, 2024. The daredevil sport is a branch of motocross racing in which bikes are designed to take the weight of two people. (Photo by Lee Smith/Reuters)