An emperor penguin chick waddles to the edge of a cliff and jumps, plummeting 50 feet to the icy waters below. National Geographic captured the daring penguin plunge via a drone camera, marking the first time the behavior had ever been recorded on film. An image (seen below) documenting the moment also made the final list of the magazine’s Pictures of the Year 2024 honorees.
The annual Pictures of the Year list is narrowed down from 2.3 million photographs and celebrate our spectacularly diverse planet. From the imposing sand dunes of Egypt’s Western Desert to a farmer in Romania dealing with a changing environment, the images bring stories to life in stunning detail. For more, visit NatGeo.com.
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Meredith Lindsay is a news writer at Quilland Arrow Press, where she covers politics, health, business, parenting, and finance. She is also an avid reader and loves to write about books.