Thousands of heavy-duty trucks loaded with coal are lined up for up to 130 kilometres from the Mongolia-China border on a sole road in the Gobi desert, Mongolia, October 29, 2017. The journey can take more than a week. (Photo by Bazarsukh Rentsendorj/Reuters)

In one of the planet’s most desolate and harsh terrains, the Altai Mountains which run from Siberia in Russia down to Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, hunting with eagles is currently only practiced by a handful of Kyrgyz and Kazakhs. This form of falconry, the practice of hunting with the aid of birds of prey, can be traced back as far as 4,000 years in Central Asia. Here: after a successful hunt, a proud hunter rewards his eagle by feeding it the lungs of the prey, which is considered the most highly prized part of the animal. (Photo by Tariq Zaidi/The Washington Post)

A staff member demonstrates how she puts on the helmet of a mock space suit at the C-Space Project Mars simulation base in the Gobi Desert outside Jinchang, Gansu Province, China, April 17, 2019. The facility – comprising several interconnected modules including a greenhouse and a mock decompression chamber – opened its doors to the public. (Photo by Thomas Peter/Reuters)

People sit on a cart with a camel tied to it during “Temeenii bayar”, the Camel Festival, in Dalanzadgad, Umnugobi aimag, Mongolia, March 6, 2016. On the steppes of the Gobi Desert, the crowd urges on Bactrian camels laden down with all that's needed to build and live in a traditional Mongolian tent. Guinness World Records classes the 15 km race thatÕs part of the two-day festival as the largest camel race in the world, drawing 1,108 participants. The winning camel romped home in 35 minutes and 12 seconds, according to the records website. (Photo by B. Rentsendorj/Reuters)

Machu Picchu, Peru. A llama’s-eye view of the legendary Inca settlement at Machu Picchu, isolated high in the Peruvian Andes. (Photo by Jim Turner/National Geographic)

Ace Wu searches the deep to photograph stunning underwater creatures. Against their predominantly black backdrops, Wu’s breathtaking subjects glow with sublime vibrancy. In one, a fearsome fish glares at the camera with rows of sharp teeth showing, while in another, a translucent octopus looks like an extraterrestrial. Here: Wunderpus larva. (Photo by Ace Wu/Caters News Agency)

British underwater photographer of the year 2021, British waters wide angle category winner and My Backyard category winner. While You Sleep by Mark Kirkland (United Kingdom), common frog taken in Malls Mire, Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Mark Kirkland/Underwater Photographer of the Year 2021)

Underwater photographer of the year 2020 and wide angle category winner: Frozen Mobile Home by Greg Lecoeur (France) in the Antarctic peninsula, Antarctica. Crabeater seals swim around an iceberg. These massive and mysterious habitats are dynamic kingdoms that support marine life. As they swing and rotate slowly through polar currents, icebergs fertilise the oceans by carrying nutrients from land that spark blooms of phytoplankton, fundamental to the carbon cycle. (Photo by Greg Lecoeur/Underwater Photographer of the Year 2020)