Lake in the Jasper National Park, Canada

PD Photo: scenery from Jasper National Park, Canada, wallpaper image size 1024x768

Jasper, the commercial centre of Jasper National Park which is located in the Canadian Rockies, is in western Alberta, Canada. The park is in the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountain ranges. Located in in the Athabasca River valley, Jasper is 362 kilometers west of Edmonton and 290 kilometers north of Banff, Alberta.

Jasper National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the other national and provincial parks of the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks. It is a cogglomeration of typical mountain landscapes consisting of mountain peaks, limestone caves, canyons, waterfalls, glaciers, lakes and other breathtaking toursit attractions.

One of the most visited tourist attractions in the Jasper National Park is Mount Edith Cavell in the Athabasca River and Astoria River valleys. The north face of Mt. Edith Cavell can be seen after a short hike to the Cavell Meadows.

The Tonquin Valley trails are located about one kilometer before the Mt. Edith Cavell road end. the north end of Cavell Lake is located at a short distance down the gravel path, and a small bridge across a stream that flows to the lake. Scenic views of the Cavell Lake in the foreground and the Mt. Edith Cavell massif in the background can be seen from here.

Tora Bora Mountains in Afghanistan

Photo 1: Tora Bora Mountains in Afghanistan

Photo 2: US air strikes on Tora Bora

Tora Bora is a cave complex situated in the White Mountains, sometimes called Tora Bora Mountains, in eastern Afghanistan, in the Pachir Wa Agam District of Nangarhar province, approximately 50 km (31 miles) west of the Khyber Pass and 10 km north of the border of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan. During the US invasion of Afghanistan it was one of the strongholds of the Taliban and its Arab Al Qaeda allies. As the suspected hide-out of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, it was the location of the December 2001 Battle of Tora Bora.

Jerusalem Mountains, Israel

Photo: The Central Judean Hills, commonly known in Israel as Jerusalem Mountains.

Photo: The urban landscape area around Jerusalem, view from Jerusalem's entrance.

The Jerusalem Mountains is a mountain range spread across Israel and the West Bank. It is also known by names such as Judean Mountains, Judean Hills, Hebron Hills and Jibal al-Khalil. The mountain range has several religious and historical places which are sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims. Some of the holiest places of Judaism, such as the Temple Mount and the Tomb of the Patriarchs, are located in this mountain range. Also, Jerusalem and several other cities such as Hebron, Bethlehem and Ramallah are located here.

The Judean Mountains is a natural division between the Shephelah coastal plains in the west and the Jordan Rift Valley to the east, and rain shadow region responsible for the formation of the Judean desert is because of this mountain range.

The mountain range spans from north to south, and extends to west and east of Jerusalem and at the southern end is Mount Hebron. In prehistoric times, Judean Mountains was home to animals such as elephants, rhinoceros, giraffes and Wild Asian Water Buffalo, which were not found in the Levant region. The range has Karst topography, typified by landscape shaped by the dissolution of layers of soluble bedrock, including a stalactite cave in Nahal Sorek National Park between Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh and the area surrounding Ofra, where fossils of prehistoric flora and fauna were excavated.

Grand Tetons Barns at the base of the Tetons

The Teton Range of the Rocky Mountains is on the Wyoming side of the state's border with Idaho, just south of Yellowstone National Park. The principal summits of the central massif are the Grand Teton (13,770 ft), Mount Owen (12,928 ft), Teewinot (12,325 ft), Middle Teton (12,804 ft) and South Teton (12,514 ft). Most of the range is in Grand Teton National Park. The early French voyageurs used the name ‘les Trois Tétons’ (the three breasts) for this range that the Shoshone people once called the Teewinot, meaning ‘many pinnacles’.

Meteora Complex of Greek Orthodox Monasteries

Meteora is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece, second to Mount Athos. The now-existing six monasteries were built on natural sandstone rock pillars, at the northwestern edge of the Plain of Thessaly near the Pineios River and Pindus Mountains in central Greece. The nearest town is Kalambaka. The Metéora is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The exact date of the establishment of the monasteries is unknown. It is believed, in the 9th century, an ascetic group of hermit monks moved up to the ancient pinnacles. They were the first people to inhabit Meteora. They lived in the hollows and fissures in the rock towers, as high as 1800 feet (550 meters) above the plains.

By the end of the 14th century, the Byzantine Empire's reign over northern Greece was being threatened by Turkish invaders who wanted control over the fertile plain of Thessaly. The hermit monks, seeking a retreat from the expanding Turkish occupation, found the inaccessible rock pillars of Meteora to be an ideal refuge and built more than 20 monasteries, out of which only six exist today; five are inhabited by men, one by women, with fewer than 10 inhabitants in each.

The six monasteries are The Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron (the largest of the monasteries at Metéora), The Holy Monastery of Varlaam (the second largest), The Holy Monastery of Rousanou/St. Barbara, The Holy Monastery of St. Nicholas Anapausas, The Holy Monastery of St. Stephen, and The Monastery of Holy Trinity.

In the 1920s there was an improvement in the arrangements. Steps were cut into the rock, making the complex accessible via a bridge from the nearby plateau. During World War II the site was bombed and many art treasures were stolen.

Click on the photo for an enlarged view. Photo size: 1600 x 1200 pixels, 174 KB.

Fryxellsee, Antarctic blue ice covering Lake Fryxell

The blue ice covering Lake Fryxell, in the Transantarctic Mountains, comes from glacial melt-water from the Canada Glacier and other smaller glaciers. The freshwater stays on top of the lake and freezes, sealing in briny water below.

Français: Antarctique: La glace bleue couvrant le Lac Fryxell, dans la Chaîne Transantarctique, vient des eaux de fonte du Glacier Canada et d'autres glaciers plus petits. L'eau fraîche se trouve au sommet du lac et gèle, scellant une eau saumâtre située en-dessous.

Source Date: 10.12.2002

Source Author: Joe Mastroianni, National Science Foundation

Permission for reusing this image: This image is a work of a National Science Foundation employee, taken or made during the course of the person's official duties. As a work of the U.S. Federal Government, the image is in the public domain images and can be copied from here and used by any person.