2022年12月 - 星空迷

佛罗伦萨大教堂, 意大利 The Cathedral of Florence, Italy (© Alexander Baert/Amazing Aerial Agency)

文艺复兴的诞生地 Birthplace of the Renaissance

意大利佛罗伦萨大教堂

佛罗伦萨被认为是文艺复兴的发源地，它帮助欧洲走出了中世纪，成为政治、金融、艺术和文化的中心。七个多世纪后，鸟瞰那个时代的奇迹，如圣玛利亚·德尔·菲奥雷大教堂（更简单地称为佛罗伦萨大教堂），简直是小菜一碟。在一座成就卓著的城市里，这座建筑群是一座辉煌的成就，除了大教堂及其宏伟的圆顶外，它还包括一座钟楼和一座白色屋顶的洗礼室。

The Cathedral of Florence, Italy

Considered the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence helped lead Europe out of the Middle Ages as a center of politics, finance, art, and culture. Seven-odd centuries later, it's a snap to get aerial views of that era's marvels, like the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (known more simply as the Cathedral of Florence). A crowning achievement in a city of crowning achievements, the complex includes a campanile, or bell tower, and a white-roofed baptistery in addition to the cathedral with its grand dome.

威斯特曼森林，达特穆尔国家公园，英格兰德文郡 (© Richard Garvey-Williams/Alamy)

一片迷人的森林

贾斯珀国家公园纠结溪瀑布，阿尔伯塔省，加拿大 Tangle Creek Falls in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada (© Jeff Foott/Minden Pictures)

落基山脉的径流 Rocky Mountain runoff

加拿大阿尔伯塔省贾斯珀国家公园

贾斯珀国家公园拥有众多令人惊叹的瀑布，但唐格尔溪瀑布的多层瀑布构成了必看的奇观。瀑布位于阿尔伯塔省93冰原公园道附近，很容易到达。坦格尔溪瀑布（Tangle Creek Falls）的水雾在高速公路上也能感受到。如果你想拍一些令人惊叹的照片，那么下了高速公路，走近瀑布，真正沉浸在瀑布的美景中可能是值得的。

Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada

Jasper National Park boasts numerous breathtaking waterfalls, but the multi-tiered cascade of Tangle Creek Falls makes for a must-see spectacle. Located off the 93 Icefields Parkway in Alberta, the falls are easily accessed. Tangle Creek Falls' misty spray can be felt out on the highway itself. If you're looking to capture some breathtaking shots, it may be worth getting off the highway and going closer to the falls to truly soak in its beauty.

圣尼古拉斯日, 瑞士韦尔比耶 Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland (© Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

圣诞滑雪 Santa slalom

瑞士韦尔比耶圣尼古拉斯日

我们习惯了圣诞老人从烟囱里滑下来，但谁知道他会滑雪呢？每年都有数千名圣诞老人在瑞士韦尔比耶举行一场令人惊叹的下坡滑雪表演，拉开滑雪季的序幕。为什么是服装？每年的12月5日，他们都会在这里庆祝圣尼古拉斯节。

圣尼古拉斯在历史上鲜为人知，但他被认为是在罗马帝国统治下长大的，在现在土耳其南部的一个富裕的希腊家庭。当他的父母去世时，他用自己的遗产帮助那些需要帮助的人、病人和受苦的人，甚至时不时地把礼物扔到陌生人打开的窗户（而不是烟囱）里。尼古拉斯以主教的身份加入了早期的基督教神职人员，将毕生精力奉献给慷慨地服务他人。据说他特别爱和帮助孩子们，这当然是圣诞老人传说的根源。

Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland

We're used to Santa Claus sliding down chimneys, but who knew he could ski? Thousands of Santa Clauses make a stunning downhill display to open the ski season in Verbier, Switzerland, each year. Why the costumes? Their annual descent also celebrates the feast day of Saint Nicholas, observed here each December 5.

Little is known historically of Saint Nicholas, but he's thought to have grown up under the Roman Empire, in a wealthy Greek family in what's now southern Turkey. When his parents died, he used his inheritance to help those in need, the sick, and the suffering—even tossing gifts through strangers' open windows (not chimneys) now and then. Nicholas joined the early Christian clergy as a bishop, dedicating his life to serving others generously. It's said he loved and helped children especially, and that, of course, is at the root of the legend of Santa Claus.

古瓦哈提的竹子，印度阿萨姆邦 (© Page Bazar/500px/Getty Images)

绿意盎然

迈阿密海滩海洋大道，美国佛罗里达州 Miami, Florida (© Matteo Colombo/Getty Images)

在艺术天堂追逐夏天 Chasing summer in the art world

迈阿密海滩巴塞尔艺术展

每年12月，艺术世界的中心不是在纽约、东京或伦敦，而是在一个以宽阔的沙滩、古巴咖啡馆和刚果节奏而闻名的小镇。迈阿密巴塞尔艺术博览会（Art Basel Miami Beach）于今天结束了为期三天的展览，是在瑞士巴塞尔（该艺术节于1970年开始）、香港和巴黎举办的国际艺术博览会的美国站。该活动已有20年的历史，是北美最全面的当代艺术博览会，吸引了数千名艺术家、经销商、收藏家、欣赏者，以及寻求乐趣的游客，参加一年一度的创意盛会。

Art Basel Miami Beach

Every December the center of the art world convenes not in New York, Tokyo, or London, but in a town known more for its wide sandy beaches, café Cubano, and conga rhythms. Art Basel Miami Beach, which wraps up its three-day run today, is the American leg of an international art fair also staged in Basel, Switzerland (where the festival started in 1970), Hong Kong, and Paris. The event, now 20 years old, is the most comprehensive contemporary art fair in North America, attracting thousands of artists, dealers, collectors, appreciators, and just fun-seeking tourists for this annual burst of creativity steps from the sand.

特里卡基拉河三角洲，阿拉斯加州克拉克湖国家公园，美国 Tlikakila River Delta in Lake Clark National Park, Alaska (© Dawn Wilson Photography/Getty Images)

保护阿拉斯加的自然之美 Preserving Alaska's natural beauty

特里卡基拉河三角洲

1980年的这一天，历史上最大规模的保护地扩张使美国国家公园系统的规模扩大了一倍。在那之前，阿拉斯加没有国家公园，但现在该州有八个，加上众多的纪念碑和保护区，保护着超过1.57亿英亩的土地。当卡特总统签署《阿拉斯加国家利益土地保护法案》时，公众有权欣赏像今天照片中这样令人惊叹的地方：克拉克湖国家公园51英里长的特利卡基拉河的辫状河三角洲。

在当地的阿萨巴斯坎语中，Tlikakila字面意思是“鲑鱼在那里。”该公园以盛产鲑鱼的水道而闻名，因此，鱼类对当地经济和生态系统至关重要。当地的熊群从过量的鲑鱼中受益，在克拉克湖看熊很受欢迎。丰富的三文鱼也让公园里的狼群受益匪浅，这是世界上唯一一只只依赖三文鱼的狼群。

Tlikakila River Delta

On this day in 1980, the single largest expansion of protected lands in history doubled the size of the US National Park System. Prior to that day, Alaska had no national parks, but now the state has eight, plus numerous monuments and preserves that protect more than 157 million total acres. When President Carter signed the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, the public was granted the right to appreciate stunning locations like the one in today's photo: the braided river delta of the 51-mile long Tlikakila River in Lake Clark National Park.

In the native Athabaskan language, Tlikakila literally means 'salmon are there river.' The park is known for its salmon-laden waterways and, as such, the fish is of major importance to the local economy and ecosystem. Local bear populations benefit from the excess salmon, and bear watching is very popular at Lake Clark. The abundance of salmon has also benefited a wolf pack within the park—the only one in the world known to be solely dependent on salmon.

下面的另一块大陆 The other continent down under

南极日

世界上最孤立的大陆是南极洲这片极地沙漠，这是地球上最冷、最干燥、风力最大的大陆。听起来像是不可居住的，几乎完全位于南极圈之下的南极洲也是一个美丽的地方，这张照片就是南极洲半岛顶端附近的天堂港，也就是天堂湾。南极洲也极易受到气候变化的影响，值得今天纪念1959年南极条约签署周年的南极日。国际协定保护南极洲作为科学保护区。

南极半岛是南极洲的最北端，也是最接近南美洲的地区，因此相对容易到达。天堂港是大陆上游客最多的地方之一，也是民用游轮的常规停靠站。该地区是一个繁荣的企鹅群体的家园，也是一个观察冰川崩解的绝佳地点。虽然冰川冰的流失是正常的，但由于全球变暖，这一过程以惊人的速度加速。覆盖南极洲的一英里厚的冰盖占了地球淡水供应的70%。从长远来看，如果全部融化，海平面将上升200英尺。如果没有这片冰原之地，世界将大不相同。

Antarctica Day

The most isolated continent in the world is hands down the polar desert that is Antarctica, the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on Earth. Inhospitable as it sounds, Antarctica, which lies almost completely below the Antarctic Circle, is also a place of stunning beauty as evidenced by this image of Paradise Harbour, aka Paradise Bay, near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Antarctica is also extraordinarily vulnerable to the effects of climate change, worth remembering today on Antarctica Day, which marks the anniversary of the signing of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty. The international agreement protects Antarctica as a scientific preserve.

The Antarctic Peninsula is the northernmost part of Antarctica and the closest to South America, making it relatively accessible. Paradise Harbour is one of the most visited places on the continent, and a regular stop for civilian cruises. The area is home to a thriving colony of penguins and is an excellent place to see glacial calving. While the loss of glacial ice is normal, the process has accelerated at an alarming rate due to global warming. The mile-thick ice sheet that covers Antarctica accounts for 70 percent of the planet's supply of fresh water. To put that in perspective, if it all melted, sea levels would rise by 200 feet. Without this land of ice, the world would look a lot different.