Mudbrick Houses, Shibam, Yemen, 2005 Photograph by George Steinmetz
The city of Shibam, Yemen, rises from the Rub al Khali, or Empty Quarter, a sea of sand that occupies one-fifth of the Arabian Peninsula. The distinctive mud-brick skyscrapers that house Shibam’s 5,000 residents have earned the city its nickname: “Manhattan of the Desert.”
(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Empty Quarter: Exploring Arabia’s Legendary Sea of Sand,” February 2005, National Geographic magazine)
Red-and-Green Macaws, Bolivia, 2000 Photograph by Joel Sartore
A mated pair of red-and-green macaws soars above the forest in Bolivia’s Madidi National Park. These long-lived birds mate for life, and couples spend nearly every minute together.
(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Madidi: Will Bolivia Drown Its New National Park?” March 2000, National Geographic magazine)
Cars Passing the Colosseum, Rome, Italy, 1981 Photograph by O. Louis Mazzatenta
Nearly 2,000 years ago, the Colosseum was built to host gladiator duels, battle reenactments, and other public spectacles. Now, the 50,000-seat stone-and-concrete amphitheater serves Rome in another capacity: as a traffic circle.
(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Down the Ancient Appian Way,” June 1981, National Geographic magazine)
Women Carrying Firewood, Sudan, 2003 Photograph by Randy Olson
Women carry bundles of firewood on their heads in the Sudanese desert. In rural African cultures, the responsibility of foraging for firewood usually falls to the women. In Sudan’s brutally dry desert, where little vegetation grows, it can take several hours each day to collect enough wood to cook with.
(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Shattered Sudan: Drilling for Oil, Hoping for Peace,” February 2003, National Geographic magazine)
Cloudy Sky, Location Unknown, 2004 Photograph by Peter Essick
Piles of cotton-like cumulus clouds fill the sky on a clear day. Mid-level cumulus clouds form between 6,500 feet (2,000 meters) and about 20,000 feet (6,000 meters). They form when humid air cools enough for water vapor to condense into droplets or ice crystals. A single cloud can hold billions of pounds of water, but may not always produce rain.
Earth Day, celebrated annually on April 22, marks the anniversary of the 1970 birth of the environmental movement. Scientists warn that rising temperatures worldwide could fuel extreme weather-just one of many damaging effects of global warming.
(Photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, “Signs From Earth: Heating Up, Melting Down,” September 2004, National Geographic magazine)
