Staff of a boat restaurant on the Taedong River line up at the entrance as they wait to greet customers Sunday, June 18, 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea. The boat is berthed along the river, which is the fifth longest river on the Korean Peninsula and runs through the country's capital, Pyongyang. (Photo by Wong Maye-E/AP Photo)

A Japanese woman and her daughter leave Daikichi kimono rental shop Wednesday, June 22, 2022, in Tokyo's Asakusa area famous for sightseeing, before attending their family friend's wedding. Japan is bracing for a return of tourists from abroad, as border controls to curb the spread of coronavirus infections are gradually loosened. Yusuke Otomo, who owns the kimono rental shop, can barely contain his excitement. (Photo by Hiro Komae/AP Photo)

Buddhist believers wearing faces masks to help protect against the spread of the new coronavirus wait to attend a service to pray for overcoming the COVID-19 outbreak and to celebrate Buddha's birthday at the Chogyesa temple in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 30, 2020. (Photo by Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo)

School children celebrate after being rewarded for their dance performance during India's Independence Day celebrations in Chandigarh, India, August 15, 2015. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's independence day speech focused on measures his “Team India” had rolled out to include millions of poor Indians in the banking and insurance systems, policies for workers and farmers and successes in the fights against inflation and corruption. (Photo by Ajay Verma/Reuters)

Lush green rice terraces sprawl over 2,200 hectares of mountainside ready to be harvested. These stunning images, captured by photographer Saravut Whanset, show the incredible terraces throughout the course of the day, including at sunrise and sunset. Workers tend to the fields, with each terrace between 1 and 1.5 metres wide, while wooden huts stand on stilts on the mountainside. The beautiful panoramic pictures were taken in Mu Cang Chai, Vietnam, with the fields located at the foot of the Hoang Lien Son mountain range, 1,000 metres above sea level. (Photo by Saravut Whanset/Solent News and Photo Agency)

Honorable Mention: “The Storm”. During I was taking photo with my nephew, the storm came and I caught this beautiful moment. Photo location: Kocaeli, Turkey. (Photo and caption by Aytül Akbaş/National Geographic Photo Contest)

“Don't Leave Any Food On Your Plate”. The giraffes at Nairobi's Giraffe Manor are totally at home with humans. They will eat out of your hand, or even off your plate. Photo location: Giraffe Manor, Nairobi, Kenya. (Photo and caption by Gavin Werbeloff/National Geographic Photo Contest)

Katie Handler, veterinary technician with the New England Wildlife Center, reaches to try to capture an oil-covered goose along the Muddy River, Monday, December 9, 2024, in Brookline, Mass., as wildlife rescuers tended to dozens of birds that were soaked in oil after an apparent spill. (Photo by Charles Krupa/AP Photo)