The Wave, an area of fantastic eroded sandstone featuring beautiful swirls, wild colors, countless striations, and bizarre shapes set amidst the dramatic surrounding North Coyote Buttes of Arizona and Utah. The sandstone formations of the North Coyote Buttes, including the Wave, date from the Jurassic period. Managed by the Bureau of Land Management, the Wave is located in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness and is accessible on foot by permit only.
Location: North Coyote Buttes, Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona
Image ID: 20605
The Second Wave at Sunset, North Coyote Buttes. The Second Wave, a curiously-shaped sandstone swirl, takes on rich warm tones and dramatic shadowed textures at sunset. Set in the North Coyote Buttes of Arizona and Utah, the Second Wave is characterized by striations revealing layers of sedimentary deposits, a visible historical record depicting eons of submarine geology.
Location: North Coyote Buttes, Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona
Image ID: 20606
Vernal Falls at peak flow in late spring, with a rainbow appearing in the spray of the falls, viewed from the Mist Trail.
Location: Vernal Falls, Yosemite National Park, California
Image ID: 12634
A rainbow appears in the mist of the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River. At 308 feet, the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River is the tallest fall in the park. This view is from Lookout Point on the North side of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. When conditions are perfect in midsummer, a midmorning rainbow briefly appears in the falls.
Location: Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 13319
Grand Prismatic Spring (left) and Excelsior Geyser (right). Grand Prismatic Spring displays a stunning rainbow of colors created by species of thermophilac (heat-loving) bacteria that thrive in narrow temperature ranges. The blue water in the center is too hot to support any bacterial life, while the outer orange rings are the coolest water. Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest spring in the United States and the third-largest in the world. Midway Geyser Basin.
Location: Midway Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 13571
Extended High Mountain pose, Utthita Tadasana, sunrise on Mesa Arch, Utah. An exuberant hiker greets the dawning sun from atop Mesa Arch.
Location: Island in the Sky, Canyonlands National Park, Utah
Image ID: 18036
Old Faithful geyser, sunrise. Reaching up to 185' in height and lasting up to 5 minutes, Old Faithful geyser is the most famous geyser in the world and the first geyser in Yellowstone to be named.
Location: Upper Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 26939
A kelp forest, with sunbeams passing through kelp fronds. Giant kelp, the fastest growing plant on Earth, reaches from the rocky bottom to the ocean's surface like a submarine forest.
Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera
Location: San Clemente Island, California
Image ID: 02411
Yosemite Valley Tunnel View, Storm clouds at sunset, Yosemite National Park.
Location: Yosemite National Park, California
Image ID: 34542
Panorama dimensions: 7653 x 12541
Milky Way and Shooting Star over Delicate Arch, as stars cover the night sky.
Location: Arches National Park, Utah
Image ID: 27854
Tiny hikers atop Sand Dunes in Death Valley National Park, California. Near Stovepipe Wells lies a region of sand dunes, some of them hundreds of feet tall.
Location: Stovepipe Wells, Death Valley National Park, California
Image ID: 15577
Hiker in North Window, sunset, western face. North Window is a natural sandstone arch 90 feet wide and 48 feet high.
Location: North Window, Arches National Park, Utah
Image ID: 18159
A SCUBA diver swims through a giant kelp forest which is tilted back by strong ocean currents. Giant kelp, the fastest plant on Earth, reaches from the rocky bottom to the ocean's surface like a submarine forest.
Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera
Location: San Clemente Island, California
Image ID: 01107
Ocean sunfish recruiting fish near drift kelp to clean parasites, open ocean, Baja California.
Species: Ocean sunfish, Mola mola
Image ID: 03267
Milky Way over the Watchman, Zion National Park. The Milky Way galaxy rises in the night sky above the the Watchman.
Location: Zion National Park, Utah
Image ID: 28586