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National Geographic has a reputation for delivering stunning images, and its latest edition of Images of the Year shows why.
the convincing December 2024 issue includes the “most impressive” images taken by Nat Geo photographers this year: “photos that capture the wonder of our world.”
A staggering 2.3 million photographs were whittled down to 21 thought-provoking and jaw-dropping images.
Here we present seven of the final selection, and our picks include a fascinating image of the explosion of Guatemala’s Fuego Volcano and a magnificent dune in EgyptThe vast desert.
We also include a photo of a beautiful black tiger patrolling the Similipal Tiger Reserve in the east. India and an incredible image of a young emperor penguin in Antarctica jumping off a 50-foot cliff to swim for the first time.
Scroll down for a visual spectacle like no other.
A young emperor penguin jumps from a 50-foot cliff to swim for the first time. Nat Geo adds: “The species normally breeds on low sea ice, but some colonies have been found on higher, more permanent ice shelves, a behavior that is likely to become increasingly common with climate change.” Abandoned by their parents a month earlier, the chicks must fend for themselves and find food by hunting in the sea.
A fascinating photo of Guatemala’s Fuego volcano, which has been erupting continuously since 2002. Nat Geo reveals: ‘A day hike up its dormant twin, Acatenango, and through a valley rewards adventurers with a view from the Fire Crest Rashes may occur several times a day’
A fascinating image of a black tiger, known for its fused stripes, patrolling the Similipal Tiger Reserve in eastern India.
This is the Siwa Oasis in the Western Desert of Egypt. Its dunes are a great attraction for tourists, says Nat Geo
This image captured a rare moment in the world of cicadas. Nat Geo explains: ‘Periodic cicadas spend 13 or 17 years on the ground and emerge only to reproduce. Last May and June, for the first time in 221 years, Brood XIII, with a 17-year cycle, and Brood XIX, with a 13-year cycle, emerged simultaneously in the Midwest and Southeastern United States, respectively, filling the air with Vibrations as they called to mate.
A scientist holds the 70-day-old fetus of a rhinoceros conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF). The surrogate mother sadly died from a bacterial infection.
This thought-provoking image shows a shrine in an area with a rich history of Animism, Zoroastrianism and Buddhism maintained by the local Wakhi people, who are Ismaili Muslims. Nat Geo explains that a tree that fell years ago on the shrine’s grave, adorned with ibex and sheep horns, was left in its place as custom dictates.
Visual feast: the cover of National Geographic’s Images of the Year 2024 issue