The official name for this tiny speck of land – the size of 12 football pitches – is Hashima, but few call it that. In English, its most commonly used name means “Battleship Island” and, viewed from a certain angle offshore, its silhouette is uncannily dreadnought in nature. It was a mining facility until 1974, when it was abandoned to the elements, before partially reopening as a tourist attraction in 2009. Photo: A decades-old television. (Photo by Mark C. O'Flaherty)

“Scott Linstead is an internationally published, freelance wildlife photographer/writer. His clients include Natural History Magazine, Hewlett Packard, Ranger Rick Magazine and a number of wildlife publications in North America and Europe. Scott's column on the techniques of bird photography appears in every issue of Outdoor Photography Canada”.

Photo: A veiled chameleon extends its tongue to catch a cricket. Canadian wildlife photographer Scott Linstead, formerly an aerospace engineer and high school teacher, uses a device called Phototrap “to not only photograph the elusive, but also the unimaginably quick”. (Photo by Scott Linstead)

“A small British company with a dream of building a re-usable space plane has won an important endorsement from the European Space Agency (ESA) after completing key tests on its novel engine technology. Reaction Engines Ltd believes its Sabre engine, which would operate like a jet engine in the atmosphere and a rocket in space, could displace rockets for space access and transform air travel by bringing any destination on Earth to no more than four hours away”. – Chris Wickham via Reuters. Photo: Artist's impression of Skylon. (Photo by Reaction Engines Ltd)

A penguin swims in its enclosure during a photocall to promote London Zoo's annual stock take of animals on January 4, 2012 in London, England. The zoo's stocktake takes place annually, and gives keepers a chance to check on the numbers of every one of the animals from stick insects and frogs to tigers and camels. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Drinkers celebrated on the last Friday before Christmas in York, United Kingdom on December 18, 2020. Black Eye Friday, affectionately named for its tendency to prompt drink-fuelled punch ups as the Christmas cheer spills over, has been dampened this year by the global coronavirus pandemic shutting bars and banning socialising. (Photo by Nb press ltd)

Swimmers known as the Lido Ladies pose by the pool during sunrise at Charlton Lido in Hornfair Park, London on December 2, 2020, on its first day of reopening after the second national lockdown ended and England enters a strengthened tiered system of regional coronavirus restrictions. (Photo by Victoria Jones/PA Images via Getty Images)

The cruise ship Viking Sky as it drifts after sending a Mayday signal because of engine failure in windy conditions near Hustadvika, off the west coast of Norway, Saturday March 23, 2019. The Viking Sky is forced to evacuate its estimated 1,300 passengers. (Photo by Odd Roar Lange/NTB Scanpix via AP Photo)

A man tries to extinguish an advertisement board set on fire during a demonstration of French labour union members and workers, as France faces its 38th consecutive day of strike against French government's pensions reform plans, in Paris, France on January 11, 2020. (Photo by Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters)