This is the moment a diver appears to shake hands with a giant 52ft whale. The divers were just metres away when one humpback whale – which weighs 36,000kg – extends its giant flipper in a peaceful manner. (Photo by Masa Ushioda/SeaPics/Solent News & Photo Agency)

A 40-tonne humpback launching out of the water in an incredible breach in New South Wales, Australia on October 2022 in front of a sunset. The humpback whale can grow up to 56 feet long and typically covers 9,900 miles a year as it travels through the oceans of the world. Humpback whales are a species of Baleen whale, meaning they don't have teeth. Instead, they have baleen which helps them to filter feed. Their main source of food is krill or tiny bait fish. (Photo by Jodie Lowe/Media Drum Images)

The tail of a stranded whale is pictured on the beach of De Haan, Belgium on October 25, 2018. (Photo by Francois Lenoi/Reuters)

Gray whale feeding at the surface and showing it's baleen. (Photo by Christopher Swann/Biosphoto)

Juno, a Beluga whale, greets a young viewer at the Mystic aquarium in Connecticut, USA on December 5, 2015. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis)

A white whale wears a wreath at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium-amusement park complex in Yokohama, Japan, on October 3, 2012. (Photo by Associated Press)

Some dozens of long-finned pilot whales lay dead on a remote beach in Iceland after they were discovered by tourists sightseeing in the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in western Iceland aboard a helicopter, Thursday July 18, 2019. The whales were concentrated in one spot on the beach, many partially covered by sand. (Photo by David Schwarzhans via AP Photo)

A new book published by the UK Natural History Museum showcases some of the most memorable underwater photographs taken over the last few decades in its annual wildlife photographer of the year competition. Here: Giant gathering by Tony Wu. “The first indication that something extraordinary was going on were the blows, huge numbers of them – the exhalations of huge numbers of whales. Entering the water, the photographer witnessed an extraordinary scene”. (Photo by Tony Wu/Unforgettable Underwater Photography/NHM)