分类必应美图下的文章

摇篮山-圣克莱尔湖国家公园，澳大利亚塔斯马尼亚州 Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park, Tasmania, Australia (© Paparwin Tanupatarachai/Getty Images)

The wild heart of Tasmania

This boardwalk leads to one of the many lakes that dot Tasmania's Cradle Mountain–Lake St. Clair National Park, one of the crown jewels of the island's Wilderness World Heritage area. Covering over 623 square miles in the interior of the island, the park is home to an incredible diversity of flora and fauna. Marsupials like Bennett's wallabies, quolls, Tasmanian pademelon, and the legendary Tasmanian devils, as well as short-beaked echidnas, platypuses, wombats, and Tasmanian pygmy possums can be found in its ancient forests and lakes.

In late April and into May, locals and visitors delight in the 'Turning of the Fagus' when the leaves of the deciduous Tasmanian beech trees turn brilliantly yellow, orange, and red. The Overland Track, as 65-mile-long circuit of the park is a popular route for visitors, whether exploring a portion of it over a day or taking a week to complete the entire route. Overnight hikers can stay in warming huts built along the way and spend the night dazzled by the stars and the aurora australis (aka the southern lights) in one of island's best stargazing locations.

塔斯马尼亚的野心

这条木板路通往点缀塔斯马尼亚摇篮山的众多湖泊之一——圣克莱尔湖国家公园，是该岛荒野世界遗产区的王冠明珠之一。这个公园占地623平方英里，是岛上动植物多样性令人难以置信的家园。像贝内特的小袋鼠、小袋鼠、塔斯马尼亚的帕德梅隆和传说中的塔斯马尼亚魔鬼，以及短嘴针鼹、鸭嘴兽、袋熊和塔斯马尼亚侏儒负鼠等有袋动物都可以在其古老的森林和湖泊中找到。

在4月下旬到5月，当地人和游客都喜欢“水青冈的转变”，因为每年落叶的塔斯马尼亚山毛榉树的叶子都会变成明亮的黄色、橙色和红色。陆上赛道，作为公园65英里长的赛道，是游客的热门路线，无论是探索一天的一部分，还是花一周的时间完成整个路线。夜间徒步旅行者可以住在沿途建造的温暖小屋里，在岛上最好的观星地点之一度过被星星和南极光（又名南极光）所眩目的夜晚。

温尼伯湖沿岸的春日冰雪，曼尼托巴 Spring ice along the shore of Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba (© Mike Grandmaison/Jaynes Gallery/DanitaDelimont.com)

A hub for fishing

Located in central Manitoba, Lake Winnipeg is the sixth largest freshwater lake in Canada. It is 435 kilometres long and at least 109 kilometres wide. With an area of approximately 24,400 square kilometres, Lake Winnipeg boasts a shoreline consisting of pristine white sand beaches, limestone cliffs and boreal forests. Hence, this area sits as a huge nesting ground for birds like pelicans, gulls and cormorants. Additionally, abundant fish species can be found here as well. As a matter of fact, Lake Winnipeg is a commercial fishing hub and contributes significantly to Manitoba’s fishing industry revenue. So, whatever the season may be, professional anglers and general fans of fishing can be spotted here all year-round.

钓鱼的中心

温尼伯湖位于马尼托巴省中部，是加拿大第六大淡水湖。它长435公里，宽至少109公里。温尼伯湖面积约24400平方公里，拥有由原始的白色沙滩、石灰岩悬崖和北方森林组成的海岸线。因此，这个地区是鹈鹕、海鸥和鸬鹚等鸟类的巨大筑巢地。此外，这里还有丰富的鱼类。事实上，温尼伯湖是一个商业渔业中心，为马尼托巴省渔业收入做出了重大贡献。因此，无论季节如何，这里终年都可以看到专业钓鱼者和钓鱼爱好者。

座头鲸妈妈将她熟睡的幼鲸推到水面，夏威夷毛伊岛 Humpback whale mother pushes her sleeping calf to surface, Maui, Hawaii (© Ralph Pace/Minden Pictures)

A whale of a picture

The family drama you see playing out here in the Pacific Ocean near Maui, Hawaii, is a humpback whale calf getting a little nudge from its mom. She presumably wants the sleepy youngster to practice surfacing, something these amazing marine mammals are famous for doing in dramatic fashion. Winter is calving season, when thousands of humpbacks swim to the warm waters off Hawaii, making them a common sight from November until April. Because they're known to hang around near the ocean's surface, breaching or slapping the water with their tails, humpbacks are a favorite of whale watchers everywhere.

Most humpbacks are nomadic and can be found in all the oceans of the world, with some populations migrating distances of up to 5,000 miles as they move from breeding grounds in warmer, tropical waters, to colder areas where food is more plentiful. And when they eat, they don't mess around, consuming up to 2,000 pounds of food each day. They eat tiny crustaceans called krill, as well as small fish. Once on the verge of extinction because of commercial whaling, legislative protections in the US and around the world have helped the humpback population to rebound to somewhere around 80,000 worldwide.

像鲸鱼一样的图片

你在夏威夷毛伊岛附近的太平洋上看到的家庭剧，是一头座头鲸幼崽被它妈妈轻轻推了一下。她大概是想让这个昏昏欲睡的年轻人练习浮出水面，这些神奇的海洋哺乳动物以戏剧化的方式出名。冬季是产犊季节，成千上万的座头鲸游到夏威夷附近温暖的水域，使它们从11月到4月成为常见的景象。因为众所周知，座头鲸在海面附近游荡，用尾巴冲破水面或拍打水面，所以座头鲸是各地鲸鱼观察者的最爱。

大多数座头鲸都是游牧民族，分布在世界上所有的海洋中，当它们从温暖的热带水域的繁殖地迁徙到食物更丰富的寒冷地区时，有些座头鲸的迁徙距离可达5000英里。当他们吃东西的时候，他们不会乱来，每天消耗多达2000磅的食物。它们吃被称为磷虾的微小甲壳类动物，以及小鱼。由于商业捕鲸一度濒临灭绝，美国和世界各地的立法保护帮助座头鲸数量反弹至全球约8万头。

马尼亚河的卫星图像，马达加斯加 Satellite image of the Mania River in Madagascar (© NASA Earth Observatory image by Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the US Geological Survey)

Uncommon clouds are gathering

A satellite view of the Mania River in Madagascar allows us to see a curious cloud pattern. It's common for cool, moist marine air to rise and form dense clouds over bodies of water, then for the clouds to evaporate as they drift over warmer, drier land. The opposite is happening here: Puffs of clouds are forming over land, but not over water. That's because Madagascar's tropical rainforests are warm and wet enough that evaporating moisture rises as the day heats up. When it rises high enough, the moisture encounters cooler air, which condenses the water into clouds. Generally speaking, clouds will form where the air is rising, which in this case is only over the land. Above the river, the air is cooler and descending, so no clouds are forming there.

If learning about an unusual weather pattern puts you on cloud nine, then join the United Nations in celebrating World Meteorological Day today. The UN created the annual observance back in 1950 as a day to recognize the contributions of meteorologists to our safety and well-being. We may not all know our cirrus from our cumulus, but we can at least thank meteorologists for letting us know if we should pack an umbrella or sunscreen.

不寻常的云彩正在聚集

马达加斯加马尼亚河的卫星图像让我们看到了一个奇怪的云层模式。很常见的情况是，凉爽潮湿的海洋空气上升，在水体上方形成浓密的云层，然后云层在温暖干燥的陆地上飘浮时蒸发。相反的情况正在这里发生：云层在陆地上形成，但在水面上没有。这是因为马达加斯加的热带雨林足够温暖和潮湿，随着天气变暖，蒸发的水分会上升。当它上升到足够高的位置时，湿气会遇到较冷的空气，从而将水凝结成云。一般来说，在空气上升的地方会形成云，在这种情况下，云只在陆地上形成。在河的上方，空气是凉爽的和下降的，所以那里没有云层形成。

如果你了解到一个不寻常的天气模式，你会感到非常沮丧，那么今天就加入联合国庆祝世界气象日吧。早在1950年，联合国就设立了一年一度的纪念日，以此来表彰气象学家对我们安全和福祉的贡献。我们可能不都知道我们的卷云来自我们的积云，但我们至少可以感谢气象学家让我们知道我们是否应该带伞或防晒霜。

汝拉山中的Chateau de Joux堡，法国 Château de Joux in the Jura mountains of France (© Ivoha/Alamy)

Military art

Overlooking the valley linking France to Switzerland (the Cluse de Pontarlier), Joux castle – with its keep, towers, drawbridges, surrounding walls and fort – offers fantastic evidence of the way fortifications have developed over the years. Built in the 11th century, then modified by Vauban in the 17th century, people will discover 10 centuries of history there.

军事艺术

俯瞰连接法国和瑞士的山谷（Cluse de Pontarlier），Joux castle及其要塞、塔楼、吊桥、围墙和堡垒为多年来防御工事的发展提供了极好的证据。建于11世纪，17世纪被沃邦修缮，人们将在那里发现10个世纪的历史。

覆盖了Hallerbos森林地面的蓝铃花，比利时佛兰德 Bluebell flowers carpet the Hallerbos forest floor, Flanders, Belgium (© Jason Langley/plainpicture)

A glimpse of the 'Blue Forest'

What color do you normally associate with a forest? Well, in the Hallerbos forest of Belgium, that would be blue, for reasons you can clearly see here. For about 10 days every year, usually in late April or early May, this very old forest floor is transformed as bluebell hyacinths wake up from their winter slumber and carpet the forest floor in blue.

Even though it's a bit early for the fleeting blooms, today would be a good day to visit the 'Blue Forest,' for this is the day that the United Nations recognizes the International Day of Forests. The theme of this year's observance is reforestation, another thing that Hallerbos is known for. Large swaths of the ancient forest were destroyed by occupying forces during World War I, which prompted the Belgian government to roll out an extensive reforestation project starting in the 1930s. Within 20 years, Hallerbos was well on its way to being a healthy forest again, as the depleted native beech and oak trees were restocked.

“蓝色森林”一瞥

你通常认为森林是什么颜色的？好吧，在比利时的哈勒博斯森林，那将是蓝色的，因为你可以清楚地看到这里的原因。每年大约有10天，通常是在4月底或5月初，当风信子从冬眠中醒来，用蓝色地毯铺在森林地板上时，这片古老的森林地板就发生了变化。

尽管现在花开得有点早，但今天是参观“蓝林”的好日子，因为今天是联合国承认国际森林日的日子。今年纪念活动的主题是植树造林，这是哈勒博斯另一个著名的活动。在第一次世界大战期间，大片的古老森林被占领军摧毁，这促使比利时政府从20世纪30年代开始实施大规模的重新造林项目。20年内，随着耗尽的本地山毛榉和橡树重新进货，哈勒波斯又一次成为一片健康的森林。

帕尼迪斯沙丘上的日晷，立陶宛库尔斯沙嘴 Sundial on Parnidis Dune, Curonian Spit, in Lithuania (© amoklv/Getty Images)

It's time for spring

This 40-foot sundial stands atop the Parnidis Dune, one of the scenic highlights of Curonian Spit, a UNESCO World Heritage Site shared by Lithuania and Russia. Built in 1995, the sundial was damaged by a hurricane a few years later and rebuilt in 2011. It accurately tells time by creating shadows on the steps, with notches for hours and half hours, as well as months, equinoxes, and solstices.

March 20 marks the spring (or vernal) equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, meaning that for the next six months daylight hours will outlast nighttime darkness. When it's winter in the Northern Hemisphere, those of us above the equator are tilted away from the sun, giving us shorter days and longer nights. In summer, we're tilted toward the sun, but the equinox is right in between. It's the moment during Earth's annual revolution around the sun when its axis is neither tilting away nor tilting toward the sun, giving everyone on the planet an equal split of day and night. This phenomenon happens twice a year—in March and again in September. In the Southern Hemisphere, everything's flipped. There, it's the autumnal equinox today—and, yes, winter is coming.

春天到了

这座40英尺高的日晷矗立在帕尼迪斯沙丘上，这座沙丘是立陶宛和俄罗斯共同拥有的联合国教科文组织世界遗产库伦吐谷（Curonian Spit）的一大亮点。日晷建于1995年，几年后被飓风破坏，2011年重建。它通过在台阶上创建阴影来准确地显示时间，刻痕为小时和半小时，以及月份、分点和至点。

3月20日是北半球的春分（或春分），这意味着在接下来的六个月里，白天的时间将比夜间的黑暗时间还要长。当北半球是冬天的时候，我们这些在赤道以上的人会远离太阳，使我们白天变短，夜晚变长。在夏天，我们向太阳倾斜，但春分正好在两者之间。这是地球每年绕太阳公转的一个时刻，它的轴既不向太阳倾斜，也不向太阳倾斜，使地球上的每个人都有一个平等的日夜之分。这种现象每年3月发生两次，9月又发生一次。在南半球，一切都在翻转。在那里，今天是秋分，是的，冬天来了。

航拍生长着树木的遇难船“阿德莱德市”残骸，澳大利亚磁岛 Aerial view of the 'City of Adelaide' shipwreck with trees growing on it, Magnetic Island, Queensland, Australia (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)

Life carries on, rising from a ship's skeleton

We're on the northeastern coast of Australia in a small bay of Magnetic Island, looking down upon the sunken hull of the steamship, SS City of Adelaide. The vessel got its start in 1863 as a passenger steamship ferrying travelers and cargo between ports in Melbourne, Sydney, Honolulu, and San Francisco. Under sail, it was likened to a graceful bird in flight. In 1912, the City of Adelaide was gutted by fire, and in 1916, its burned hulk ran aground here in Cockle Bay while being transported after sale. Now it serves as an artificial island of sorts to a flock of cockatoos who live in the mangroves that have sprouted from the ship's rusted deck.

生命在继续，从船的骨架中升起

我们在澳大利亚东北海岸的一个小海湾的磁岛上，俯瞰沉没的船体，SS城市阿德莱德。这艘船开始于1863年，是一艘客轮，在墨尔本、悉尼、檀香山和旧金山的港口之间运送旅客和货物。在帆下，它被比作一只优雅的飞翔的鸟。1912年，阿德莱德市被大火夷为平地，1916年，被烧毁的绿巨人在出售后的运输途中在科克湾搁浅。现在，它就像一个人工岛，生活在红树林中的凤头鹦鹉成群，这些红树林是从船生锈的甲板上长出来的。

A sizzling summit hides in the clouds

Seen here with its explosive summit socked away in the clouds, Mount Etna towers over the Italian isle of Sicily as the tallest volcano in Europe—and maybe the crankiest, given its near-constant eruptions. The island peak has been highly active for perhaps half a million years and can still be counted on for a spectacular eruption every few years. This photograph shows Etna erupting in 2013.

云层中隐藏着一座炙热的山峰

埃特纳火山在意大利西西里岛上空耸立，是欧洲最高的火山，可能是最古怪的火山，因为它几乎一直在喷发。岛上的山峰已经高度活跃了大约50万年，仍然可以指望每隔几年就有一次壮观的喷发。这张照片显示埃特纳火山在2013年喷发。

阿伦群岛三座岛中最小的伊尼希尔岛，爱尔兰戈尔韦湾 Inisheer, the smallest of the three Aran Islands in Galway Bay, Ireland (© Chris Hill/Minden Pictures)

An emerald isle of the Emerald Isle

If you were to find yourself wandering across the tiny island of Inisheer on March 17, you'd almost certainly hear someone greet you with a hearty 'Lá fhéile Pádraig sona dhuit!' That's because nearly all the island's 260 residents would want to wish you a happy Saint Patrick's Day in their native Irish tongue. The smallest of the three Aran Islands that are strung across the mouth of Galway Bay in western Ireland has been inhabited from prehistory, with artifacts of Bronze Age, Pagan, Celtic, Early Christian, Norman-Irish, Pastoral, Maritime Navigational, and more recent settlements scattered around its 1,400 acres. The tiny drystone wall subdivisions of the fields are a result of a long tradition of splitting family farms between all the children. After a few generations, farms were reduced to the garden-size patches you can see here.

These days, the islanders are best-known for keeping the traditional language, music, art, and stories alive, so you can be sure that they're celebrating the day in style. And if you can't make it there today (or next year), you could always come back on June 14, when residents celebrate the island's patron saint, Saint Caomhán. Bonus: It's likely to be a little warmer and drier then, too.

翡翠岛中的翡翠岛

如果你发现自己在3月17日漫步在伊尼舍尔的小岛上，你几乎肯定会听到有人用一个丰盛的"莱菲勒·佩德拉格·索纳·德胡特"来问候你！这是因为岛上260名居民几乎都想用他们的爱尔兰语祝你圣帕特里克节快乐。在爱尔兰西部戈尔韦湾口的三个阿兰群岛中，最小的一个从史前就有人居住，青铜时代、异教徒、凯尔特人、早期基督教、诺曼-爱尔兰、牧区、海洋导航以及最近的定居点散落在其1，400英亩的土地上。田地中微小的干石墙部分是将家庭农场拆分给所有儿童的悠久传统的结果。几代人之后，农场被缩小到花园大小的补丁，你可以看到这里。

如今，岛民最出名的是保持传统语言、音乐、艺术和故事的活力，因此您可以确信他们正在以时尚方式庆祝这一天。如果你今天（或明年）不能到那里，你总是可以在6月14日回来，届时居民们会庆祝岛上的守护神圣卡曼。奖金：那时可能更暖和一些，更干燥一些。

星空迷