A Russian air force technician reports to a pilot that a bomber is ready for a combat mission at Hemeimeem air base in Syria Wednesday January 20, 2016. Russian warplanes have flown over 5,700 combat missions since Moscow launched its air campaign in Syria on September 30, 2015. (Photo by Vladimir Isachenkov/AP Photo)

“A magician has spent the last 12 months creating a different amazing balloon model every day – including cartoon characters and even a life-sized balloon bike. Magician Rob Driscoll, or Robbie the Wizard as he is known in his magic act, from Portsmouth, Hampshire, has fashioned balloons into various shapes for the past year. He has spent time creating famous cartoon characters such as Gru from Despicable Me, Spongebob Squarepants and Sonic the Hedgehog, which he gives away to children at his shows”. – Caters News Agency. Photo: “Scorpian”. (Photo by Rob Driscoll/Caters News Agency)

Kieron Connolly’s new book of photographs of more than 100 once-busy and often elegant buildings gives an idea of how the world might look if humankind disappeared. Here: Bodie, Mono County, California. Gold was discovered at Bodie in 1859 (just after the initial California gold rush) and it went from mining camp to boomtown. Its decline began in 1880, when word spread of new boomtowns elsewhere. The Standard Consolidated Mine closed in 1913, and four years later the Bodie Railway was abandoned. By 1940 the population was down to 40. Today, Bodie is maintained in a state of arrested decay as a visitor attraction. (Photo by Alamy Stock Photo)

“These are the stunning shots of one photographer who is putting everyday “selfies” to shame. Paul Zizka, 34, began experimenting with night photography just two years ago and immediately became fascinated with the spectacular scenes he discovered. To create something more unique he started adding himself into the shot – as well as showing others the beautiful surroundings he had been exploring. Using lengthy exposure, the photographer felt that featuring himself in some of his shots – the night sky illuminating the mountains around him – created a relationship between the central figure in the image and the nature around him”. – Caters News. Photo: Paul Zizka in “Galactic Gateway”, Bow Lake, Banff National Park, May 11, 2013. (Photo by Paul Zizka/Caters News)

The happy egg co. has released its annual cockerel pin-up calendar: “Nice Pecks” – with an egg-streme sports edition. Taking inspiration from upcoming sporting events and the world of extreme sports, the 2015 calendar stars 12 rad roosters with a penchant for adrenaline highs in a range of high octane sporting scenarios including jumping off slopes, riding gnarly waves and snowboarding. Here: “Nice Pecks” calendar: Snowboarding. (Photo by The happy egg co.)

“These eerie formations in the sky may look like alien ships. But as the Daily Mail points out, they’re actually a natural occurrence called lenticular clouds”. – Claudine Zap. Photo: Lenticular clouds hover of the mountains of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. (Photos by Denis Budkov/Caters News)

“Titanoboa is a genus of snake that lived approximately 58–60 million years ago, during the Paleocene epoch, a 10-million-year period immediately following the dinosaur extinction event. The only known species is the Titanoboa cerrejonensis, the largest snake ever discovered, which supplanted the previous record holder, Gigantophis”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Leah Del Rio views a replica of the prehistoric Titanoboa, the largest snake to ever live, on display at Grand Central Terminal on March 23, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)

A visitor looks at a Morris Mini-Minor Car on display at the Victoria and Albert museums' new major exhibition, “British Design 1948-2012: Innovation In The Modern Age” on March 28, 2012 in London, England. This car, which was designed by Alec Issigonis, was the first one off the production line. The exhibition showcases some of the most iconic product design, fashion, furniture, graphics, architecture and fine art from the last 60 years, and opens to the public from March 31, 2012. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)