A woman visits the exhibition “Pop Air” at the Balloon Museum in Madrid, Spain, 22 March 2023. The exhibition, dedicated to balloons and inflatable arts, opened to the public in Madrid on 18 March and runs through 23 July 2023. (Photo by Alejandro Lopez/EPA)

A woman jumps over a puddle as she crosses a street after a torrential downpour in the South Beach part of Miami, July 18, 2014. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

Tank crew standing in front of M-4 tank, Ft. Knox, Kentucky, June, 1942. (Alfred Palmer/OWI/LOC)

The antennas of the European Southern Observatory's Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array, also known as ALMA, are set against the splendor of the Milky Way in this picture by Babak Tafreshi. Construction of the full ALMA array is due to be completed in Chile's Atacama Desert in 2013, but the facility is already making scientific observations with a partial array of antennas. (Photo by ESO/B. Tafreshi/TWAN)

On August 18, 2012 the infection spreads again as the undead hordes shamble through Vancouver in search of brains. The annual Zombie Walk has been going on for years and each year gets bigger and bigger. (Photo by Gord Gallagher)

Runners gather at the start line for the annual “Santa Speedo Run”, a charity race through the streets of the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston. (Photo by Gretchen Ertl/Reuters)

Second Place Winner: “Thunderstorm at False Kiva”. I hiked out to these ruins at night hoping to photograph them with the Milky Way, but instead a thunderstorm rolled through, creating this dramatic image. – Max Seigal. National Geographic Traveler Director of Photography Dan Westergren, one of this year's judges, shares his thoughts on the second place winner: “This photo combines two different scenes into one: the small kiva in a cliff dwelling and the grand vista of Canyonlands National Park across the valley. I really like the two different color palettes – warm inside and purple outside. This two-for-one scene was caused by the lightning storm outside the dwelling, which lit up the landscape like it was a huge electronic flash. Looking at this picture I can imagine what a wonderful sight it must have been for the ancient people who lived here. It doesn't seem too amazing now in our modern world, but might have been mind-blowing for the prehistoric residents”. Location: Utah. (Photo and caption by Max Seigal/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

Girl in newari attire makes a funny face to her friend as she performs a Mass Bel Bibaha (marriage) ceremony in Bhaktapur, Bagmati, Nepal on December 7, 2021. The two-day ceremony, usually held several times a year, sees pre-adolescent “marry” the Hindu deity, Vishnu, symbolised by the local “bael” (wood apple) fruit. Normally Newar girls marry thrice time in there life as first marriage with Bael fruit, second with sun and third with human. (Photo by Amit Machamasi/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live News)