Novice monks line up in front of monastic building at the new Karma Theckhling Monastery, built in traditional Sikkim style, Ravangla (Rabongla), Sikkim, India, Asia

Close up of Balkan sawing cricket (Saga natoliae), the largest predatory insect in Europe, grooming a front foot, Samos, Greece, Europe

Close-up of the equestrian statue of Pedro de Valdivia in front of the Museo Historico Nacional in Plaza de Armas, Santiago, Chile, South America

A trekker in the Everest region on the way up to Everest Base Camp walking in front of Cholatse, Khumbu Region, Himalayas, Nepal, Asia

Close-up of typical window with blue shutters and windowbox full of geraniums, Colmar, Alsace, France, Europe

Close up of buildings in the Financial District at night, Singapore, South East Asia

Close up of stone lantern in front of a blue layered sea, Miyajima, Hiroshima, Japan.

Close up of stupa (chorten) on a mountain slope in front of glaciers, Kyanjin Gompa, Langtang Valley trek, Himalayas, Nepal, Asia

Close up of the guardian Lion statue in front of golden wall at the Hindu Temple of Changu Narayan, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Changunarayan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, Asia

Two young hikers canyoning up a river and standing in a cave in the rainforest, in front of a pristine waterfall, Minas Gerais, Brazil, South America

A close-up of the facade of the Basilica San Marco in St. Mark's Square showing statues called the Horses of St. Mark, Venice, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Veneto, Italy, Europe

A trekker in the Everest region on the way up to Everest Base Camp seen here walking in front of Cholatse, Khumbu Region, Nepal, Himalayas, Asia

Gulls fly up in front of glacier, Spitzsergen, Svalbard, Norway, Scandinavia, Europe

A close-up of the Chain Bridge, Budapest, Hungary, Europe

Close-up of the carved stela in front of the Great Sphinx at Giza, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Egypt, North Africa, Africa

Close-up of a goat in front of an ornate door in the walled city of Shibam, in the Wadi Hadramaut, Yemen, Middle East

Woman sweeping up, in front of the adobe buildings of the north complex, dating from 1450, Taos Pueblo, UNESCO World Heritage Site, New Mexico, United States of America, North America

Close-up, side view of a female nude statuewith gold headdress in front of the building, art nouveau period, Otto Wagner Villa No 26, Penzing, Vienna, Austria, Europe

Close up of two Orthodox priests holding a metal cross in front of St. John monastery during ceremony at Epiphany, Qasr el Yahud, Israel, Middle East

Racehorses and jockeys going over the sticks at Cheltenham Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival of Racing, UK

Racehorses on Derby Day at Epsom Racecourse, Surrey UK

Racehorses and jockeys going over the sticks at Cheltenham Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival of Racing, UK

Alaskan Huskies dog-sledding at Villmarkssenter wilderness centre on Kvaloya Island, Tromso in Arctic Circle, Northern Norway

Racehorses and jockeys going over the sticks at Cheltenham Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival of Racing, UK

Horseracing in Bahrain.

Horseracing in Bahrain.

Racehorses and jockeys going over the sticks at Cheltenham Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival of Racing, UK

Racehorses and jockeys going over the sticks at Cheltenham Racecourse for the National Hunt Festival of Racing, UK

Close-up of a statue in an alcove on the facade of the art nouveau building, Otto Wagner Villa No 26, Penzing, Vienna, Austria, Europe

Close up of the front of three fishing boats in the harbour, Sitia, Crete, Greek Islands, Greece, Europe

Close up of colourful laundry hanging in front of blue traditional house, village of Kalpa, Recong Peo, Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh, India, Asia

National Hunt Festival horseracing at Cheltenham Races, England, United Kingdom.

Close-up of front radiator, number plate and lamps on a Citroen 4CV in France, Europe

Close-up of closed shutters on doors and windows and decorative panels on the front of a house in Singapore, Southeast Asia, Asia

Close-up of buttresses on the south front of the cathedral, dating from between 1194 and 1225 AD, Chartres, Centre, France, Europe

Leopard tortoise (geochelone pardalis), masaii mara, kenya, close, up view from front.

Highly built up beach front areas, just north of Atlantic City that are very vulnerable to sea level rise, USA.

A peasant farmer and his donkey cart in front of nodding donkey oil pumps pumping oil up from the Daqing oil field in Northern China, Asia

An IDP camp (internally displaced people) in Te-Tugu district of Northern Uganda has been created to accommodate the mass of Ugandan refugees fleeing the LRA (Lords Resistance Army) who are fighting the Ugandan government and its people. With all attempts to be self-sufficient in these camps, Yams are an important vegetable for survival. The tubers can be stored up to six months without refrigeration, which makes them a valuable resource for the yearly period of food scarcity at the beginning of the wet season. Te-Tugu, Uganda, East Africa

An IDP camp (internally displaced people) in Te-Tugu district of Northern Uganda has been created to accommodate the mass of Ugandan refugees fleeing the LRA (Lords Resistance Army) who are fighting the Ugandan government and its people. Here, women are filling up water from a deep water well. Te-Tugu, Uganda, East Africa

Whalebone Alley, female tourist standing between bow head whale rib bones, Itygran Island (Bering Sea) Russia, Asia. MORE INFO: Whale Bone Alley was discovered by Soviet archaeologists in 1976, but has remained untouched since and little is known of this place. There is a long double line of bowhead whale bones -- jaws and ribs -- running parallel along the shore for hundreds of yards. Many of the bones, especially the enormous jaw bones, are still standing, propped up by lichen-covered rocks. The location is thought to have been used in about 1300 as a ceremonial site, for a men's secret society or feasting site.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide. .

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide. .

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide. .

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide. .

Orkney Islands Sept 2011 Wave and Tidal Power shoot - The Pelamis Wave Power machine in Orkney - alongside in Lyness - the machine is the P2 . The Pelamis absorbs the energy of ocean waves and converts it into electricity. The machine floats semi-submerged on the surface of the water and is made up of a number of cylindrical sections joined together by hinged joints. As waves pass down the length of the machine these sections flex relative to one another. The motion at each hinged joint is resisted by hydraulic cylinders which pump fluid into high pressure accumulators allowing electrical generation to be smooth and continuous. Control of the resistance applied by the hydraulic cylinders allows generation to be maximised when waves are small, and the machine response to be minimised in storms. All generation systems are sealed and dry inside the machines and power is transmitted to shore using standard subsea cables and equipment.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide. .

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

Mining grit salt is very different to the traditional image of cramped dark areas and men with pickaxes! The nature of grit salt mines mean they resemble vast caverns, up to 20 metres wide.

A beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) pushing the water up in front of it creating a bow wave similar to ships. St. Lawrence estuary, Canada

Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). A close up of the top of a blue whales head. On the front lip can be seen a small fish which live on the whale. Gulf of California.

Bar-Tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) walking while foraging for food on beach, front foot up. Gott Bay, Argyll,. Scotland, UK

Northern (Steller) sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) close-up in Southeastern Alaska, USA

Adult humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) fluke-up dive in front of the charter yacht Safari Spirit in Freshwater Bay on Chichagof Island in Southeast Alaska, USA

Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) flukes-up dive in front of the ship National Geographic Explorer, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica, Southern Ocean

African mother holding dress up in front of daughter

The partial eclipse of the Sun, October 23, 2014, as seen from Jasper, Alberta, in this case shot through thin cloud but that makes for a more interesting photo than one in a clear sky. This is still shot through a mylar filter, on the front of a 66mm f/6 apo refractor using the Canon 60Da for 1/25 sec exposure at ISO 100. The colours are natural, with the mylar filter providing a neutral 'white light' image. With the Sun dimmed a lot by cloud, the longer exposure allowed picking up light and colours in the surrounding clouds.

Electric car plugged into Evolt charge point in Cambridge, England, UK

Electric car plugged into Evolt charge point in Cambridge, England, UK

Woman In Rowing Boat On Lake With Cherry Blossom In Background

Tourists, Airboat Trip, Everglades National Park, Florida, USA

Close up of an alpine ibex, standing in front of the Zugspitze and Karwendel mountains, Bavarian Alps, Bavaria, Germany

Eastern Green Mamba (Dendroaspis angusticeps), portrait, poisonous snake, native to Africa, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Europe

Winged Pitcher Plant (Nepenthes alata), insect trap, Philippines, Asia

Meerkats (Suricata Suricatta), family, one young

Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), portrait, adult in tree feeding on Eucalyptus, Australia

Woman on a sled in the mountains

Semperoper opera, with banners, at Theaterplatz square, fireworks, Dresden, Saxony, Germany, Europe

Chives in a pot

Oriental Bay Owl (Phodilus badius), Asian species, captive, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Europe

Northern White-cheeked Gibbon (Hylobates leucogenys), female adult calling in tree, Asia

Semperoper opera, with banners, at Theaterplatz square, fireworks, Dresden, Saxony, Germany, Europe

Alte Oper, Old Opera House, with Lucae Fountain, front view, brightly lit, during the Luminale 2012, Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany, Europe, PublicGround

Sea Raven (Hemitripterus villosus), Japan Sea, Far East, Primorsky Krai, Russian Federation

Red-eyed Treefrog (Agalychnis callidryas), rainforest, Costa Rica, Central America

Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), portrait, adult in tree feeding on Eucalyptus, Australia

Two women wearing historical costumes in front of a fountain, Rákóczi-Fest festival, Bad Kissingen, Rhoen, Lower Franconia, Bavaria, Germany, Europe

Beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas), Japan Sea, Primorsky Krai, Russian Federation, Far East

Muslim women on the beach in Zanzibar, Tanzania, Africa

Meerkats (Suricata suricatta), family with young

Mercedes-Benz Museum in the evening, illuminated, modern architecture, Daimler, Bad Cannstatt, Stuttgart, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany, Europe

Brandenburg Gate, fireworks, Berlin, Germany, Europe

Siberian Tiger or Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica), portrait, native to Asia, in captivity, Germany, Europe

Brandenburg Gate, fireworks, Berlin, Germany, Europe

Cougar (Felis concolor), adult, lying, portrait, snow, winter, Montana, USA

Northern White-faced Owl or White-faced Scops-Owl (Ptilopsis leucotis, Otus leucotis), portrait, native to Africa, in captivity, Netherlands, Europe

Hyacinth Macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus), portrait, native to South America, in captivity, Germany, Europe

Leopard (Panthera pardus), adult on tree, Sabisabi Private Game Reserve, Kruger National Park, South Africa, Africa

A man dressed up as a soviet army soldier poses in front of the Brandenburger Tor, Berlin

Cuttlefish, drying in the sun in front of a fishing boat, Naoussa, Cyclades, Greece.

Christmas market stalls and people in front of the Cologne Cathedral, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Europe

Ceramic seller, facade decoration, near Sagres, Algarve, Portugal

Promenade at the Malecon, Havana, Cuba, Caribbean

People cheering in front of the big stage at Southside, open-air festival, Neuhausen ob Eck, Bavaria, Germany, Europa

Christmas market stalls and people in front of the Cologne Cathedral, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Europe