A person walks through the Brooklyn Bridge during a snow storm, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in New York City, New York, U.S., February 1, 2021. (Photo by Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

Merit Prize Winner: “A Well Earned Rest in the Sahara”. This photo of Moussa Macher, our Tuareg guide, was taken at the summit of Tin-Merzouga, the largest dune (or erg) in the Tadrat region of the Sahara desert in southern Algeria. Moussa rested while waiting for us to finish our 45-minute struggle to the top. It only took ten minutes of rolling, running, and jumping to get back down. The Tadrat is part of the Tassili N'Ajjer National Park World Heritage area, famous for its red sand and engravings and rock paintings of cattle, elephants, giraffes, and rhinos that lived there when the climate was milder. Photo location: Summit of Tin-Merzouga, Tadrat, Tassili N'Ajjer National Park, Algeria. (Photo and caption by Evan Cole/National Geographic Photo Contest)

American model Emily Ratajkowski wore a cut out red dress while taking her dog Colombo for a stroll in New York City on Friday, July 25, 2023. (Photo by Santi/Splash News and Pictures)

(L-R) Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, Miss USA 2015 Olivia Jordan and Miss Teen USA 2015 Katherine Haik attend the 2016 Miss USA pageant at T-Mobile Arena on June 5, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

This aerial image shows autumn leaves at their peak as they surround Tsutenkyo Bridge amongst the grounds of Tofukuji Temple, in the city of Kyoto on November 27, 2024. (Photo by JIJI Press/AFP Photo)

A dog wears fake eyes while riding a motorcycle in Samut Sakhon, Thailand June 23, 2016. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

A wedding couple poses for a photographer during a wedding photo shoot March 9, 2011 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Its is traditional for middle and upper class Vietnamese couples do a wedding fashion shoot posing for wedding portraits a few weeks before the wedding so that a wedding photo book is produced. (Photo by Paula Bronstein /Getty Images)

Giant pandas eat at Chongqing Zoo in Chongqing, China on September 23, 2023. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)