Darren Whiteside / Reuters
A Palestinian youth pushes a burning garbage bin during clashes between Palestinian stone throwers and Israeli security forces in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya, Dec. 3. The clashes broke out after Palestinian protests against Israel's house demolitions in Issawiya.
Read more on the situation in the Middle East here.
Jim Young / Reuters
U.S. President Barack Obama meets with troops at Bagram Air Base, Dec. 3, 2010.
Presidential visits to troops in the field, like this one today, often produce memorable pictures. More images from Afghanistan.
John H. White / Chicago Sun-Times / AP
Chicago firefighters battle an extra-alarm blaze on Chicago's North Side, Friday, Dec. 3, that engulfed three buildings. About 130 firefighters responded to the scene. Chicago Fire Department spokesman Richard Rosado said the fire began Friday morning in a vacant commercial building. No injuries were reported.
What I initially thought was snow in this picture is high-expansion foam used to extinguish fires. Read more about the blaze at the Peerless Rugs warehouse here.
Jon Nazca / Reuters
A man carries a "cabezudo" (big head) during a traditional medieval market on a street in Ronda, southern Spain, on Dec. 3.
The expression on the big head's face cracks me up in this context. According to Wikipedia, "The person dressed as cabezudo will use one hand to hold his head, while the other hand carries a whip or pig bladder, used to frighten children or young women. Seeing through the 'mouth' of the head, he will chase after these people, though he might pause to calm a frightened child."
NASA / Reuters
A night-time photograph snapped from the International Space Station on Oct. 28 shows the bright lights of Cairo and Alexandria as well as Egypt's Nile River and its delta.
The River Nile lights up the night in a photographic view captured from the International Space Station, sailing in orbit about 220 miles above. You can also see lights ringing the Red Sea, as well as Israel's lights along the Mediterranean coast toward upper right. I love the airglow effect visible at the edge of Earth's disc.
This picture, taken Oct. 28, was one of a series highlighted by my colleague John Brecher last month, but I can't resist coming back to it as today's treat for the Cosmic Log Space Advent Calendar. Maybe that's because we're in the midst of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights. Or maybe it's because of today's story about the geology behind the ancient "Gift of the Nile" floods. This glittering view from space can be seen as a gift of the Nile for the 21st century.
Come back every day leading up to Christmas for another Advent calendar view of Earth from space. You can see the entire series of pictures, as well as other space-themed Advent calendars, by clicking on the links below:
Read more here.
Gregory Bull / AP
A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent walks in a tunnel which authorities found Nov. 25, and say was used to carry drugs into the United States to an Otay Mesa warehouse Thursday, Dec. 2, in San Diego, Calif. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are seeking help from Otay Mesa warehouse owners and tenants after the discovery of two major cross-border drug tunnels last month that resulted in seizueres of about 50 tons of marijuana.
Gregory Bull / AP
An ICE agent looks into the entrance of a tunnel Thursday, Dec. 2, in San Diego, Calif., which authorities found Nov. 25, and say was used to carry drugs into the United States. At right are bags of dirt from the tunnel.
Alfonso Rochin / EPA
A member of the Mexican Army guards the tunnel discovered by Mexican and U.S. authorities, the second found this month, in Tijuana, Mexico, Nov. 26. The tunnel goes from a house in Tijuana to a store in the industrial area in Otay Mesa, Calif., and is about 800 meters long, according to first reports.
Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune/ Pool / Reuters
An ICE agent stands guard in front of blocks of marijuana in an industrial building near the Mexican border in Otay Mesa, Calif.. U.S. border police have found a sophisticated smuggler's tunnel the length of six football fields linking Southern California with Mexico and believed to have been used by drug traffickers.
Manuel Silvestri / Reuters
A man wearing scuba diving gear operates an underwater scooter amid floodwaters in Saint Mark's Square in Venice on Dec. 3. Floodwaters rose to 136 centimetres above sea level and covered over fifty percent of St. Mark's Square, Reuters TV recorded on Friday.
Wow. I've seen pictures of people cross-country skiing in a park after a snowfall, but I think this may be the first scuba-after-a-flood picutre I've run across.
Chris Hondros / Getty Images
A man looks at "Custer's Last Flag" at Sotheby's auction house Dec. 3, in New York City. The flag, one of the few remnants of the famous 1876 battle in which General George Custer and his men were slaughtered by a band of Native American warriors after he staged a misgiuded attack, is billed as "the most significant and symbolic artefact recovered from the Little Bighorn battlefield" and is scheduled to be auctioned on December 10.
Thinking about what this flag witnessed makes me shudder, as the auction catalogue describes the tattered flag as having "some fraying, splits, and tears; some running of color; staining, including, evidently, blood stains; with losses from both battle and souvenir-takers." Sotheby's expects this piece to fetch $2-$5 million. If you'd like to read more about the lot, or have the cash to place a bid, check out Sotheby's page on the item.
Mohammad Sajjad / AP
Pakistani cleric Maulana Yousef Qureshi, center, addresses a rally against Asia Bibi in Peshawar, Pakistan, Dec. 3, 2010. Qureshi offered a reward of $6,000 to anyone who kills Asia Bibi. Pakistan's president will not immediately pardon the Christian woman sentenced to die for insulting Islam but may do so later if an appeals court delays her case too long, an official said.
Adrees Latif / Reuters
The daughters of Asia Bibi pose with an image of their mother while standing outside their residence in Sheikhupura, Pakistan on Nov. 13. Asia Bibi, a Christian mother, has been sentenced to death for blasphemy, the first such conviction of a woman, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported. Bibi, 45, was handed down the death sentence by a court in Nankana district in central Punjab, the newspaper reported. Standing left to right is Esha, 12, Sidra, 18 and Eshum, 10.
Mohsin Raza / Reuters
Protesters hold placards while demanding the release of Asia Bibi at a rally in Lahore, Nov. 21, 2010.
Msnbc.com story: Cleric offers reward to kill Christian woman
Luke MacGregor / Reuters
A sledger's boots are visible in an explosion of snow during an attempt to jump a ramp at the Queen Elizabeth country park near Petersfield in southern England, on Friday, Dec. 3.
I think this could quite possibly be the perfect picture of sledging, or sledding, if you prefer. Visions of Chevy Chase as Clark W. Griswold, Jr., in "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" on his waxed saucer sled came to mind. In fact, this picture nearly perfectly matches a frame from the classic holiday flick. Enjoy the movie clip and then let us know if you've had your own sledding adventure, or misadventure, as the case may be.
JENS KALAENE / EPA
Model Magneto poses for a photograph during the 20th International Tattoo Convention at the Tempelhof Airport building in Berlin, Germany, December 3, 2010. Tattoo artists from the whole world present the newest techniques, designs and color creations.
Wow. You can't hide this tattoo.
Logan Mock-Bunting / Getty Images
A utility worker looks underground while inspecting the scene where a sinkhole collapsed part of Friendship Blvd. in Chevy Chase, Md. on Friday, Dec. 3. No one was reported injured in the accident which was caused by a broken water main.
When I first published this image I declined to insert any of my banter and let the image speak for itself. But after reading several of your comments on our facebook page, I was compelled to post a sampling of your responses that bring a little light to an unfortunate situation where, thankfully, nobody was hurt.
Feel free to leave your own creative response in the comment section below.
Jeff Gettle: That should buff out.
Tim Quinlan: I wonder if Geico covers that...
Owen Phelps: They're playing hide and seek. The car's winning.
Jeff Gettle (again): The hydraulics on that car are sick.
If you haven't already 'liked' msnbc.com on Facebook, you should. We're constantly updating our feed with breaking news and our most popular stories. You can also follow us on twitter HERE.
Margarito Perez / Reuters
A soldier escorts Edgar Jimenez Lugo alias "El Ponchis" as he is presented to the media in Cuernavaca on Dec. 3. Soldiers arrested late on Thursday the 14-year-old suspected drug gang hitman Jimenez in central Mexico as he attempted to travel to the United States. Jimenez, a U.S. citizen, is believed to work for the South Pacific cartel in Morelos state, outside Mexico City, part of a gang of teenagers committing brutal murders to eliminate rivals.
For more on this story click here.
Roni Sofer / Polaris
Haifa, Israel: At least 36 Israeli guards trying to rescue prisoners, mostly Palestinians, threatened by a forest fire died when their bus became trapped. As they raced toward the prison a lone tree fell across the road. With no way out, many of them were burned alive in the bus. Here, trainee guards attempt to flee the burning bus. Photographer shot this image through the rear window of his car while racing out of the flames.
Roni Sofer / Polaris
Haifa, Israel: At least 36 Israeli guards trying to rescue prisoners, mostly Palestinians, threatened by a forest fire died when their bus became trapped. As they raced toward the prison a lone tree fell across the road. With no way out, many of them were burned alive in the bus. Others perished while trying to flee. The flames forced 12,000 people from their homes, leveled a village and threatened to cause irreparable harm to one of Israel's few forests. The fire was still burning Friday. Turkey, Greece, Spain, Cyprus and other countries agreed to send firefighting helicopters. The blaze blackened some 1,600 acres.
This top image is just haunting. Tragedy can happen instantly in a wildfire.
To see more images from the fire click here.
NBC's John Ray explains how the population near Haifa is paying the price for a natural disaster that may have caught the Israeli government unprepared.
Reuters
A firefighting aircraft flies over a forest fire on Mount Carmel near the northern city of Haifa on December 3. Firefighting aircraft from four countries flew into Israel on Friday to help battle a huge forest fire close to the northern city of Haifa that has killed at least 40 people and forced mass evacuations.
For more images of the fire click here
Christopher Furlong / Getty Images
Hoar frost clings to a spider's web around Pickmere Lake in the Cheshire countryside on Dec. 3 in Knutsford, United Kingdom. After heavy snowfall across the country resulting in severe disruption to Britain's infrastructure the country is now gripped by freezing temperatures.
A beautiful image.
Ferry Latif / Reuters
Orangutans are tied to the ground as villagers look on in Sungai Pinyuh, Indonesia's West Kalimantan province, November 22, 2010. The primates were captured as they came to the village to look for food and were beaten, resulting to the death of one orangutan, according to a villager. Rainforests cover 60 percent of Indonesia, and yet the country is one of the world's leading emitters of the greenhouse gas blamed for global warming. The reason is that Indonesia also has one of the planet's fastest rates of deforestation. Deforestation is destroying the natural habitats of the primate and driving them out of forests.
First, their forest is cut down. Then when the hungry orangutans come searching for food in the village they are beaten?
Prakash Mathema / AFP - Getty Images
Nepalese Mahouts bathe their elephants in the Rapati river at Chitwan, some 200kms southwest of Kathmandu on December 2, 2010, before heading to a polo ground. The world may be lurching into recession, but in the jungles of southern Nepal, it's business as usual for the eclectic bunch of jetsetters gathered for their annual festival of Pimm's and elephant polo.
Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images
An Israeli woman holds the keys of her house in her left hand while taking a photo of a raging forest fire in the Carmel mountain from a residential house in the hills above the coastal Israeli city of Haifa, December 2, 2010. Police said at least 40 people died in the inferno, which officials said was the worst blaze in Israel's 62-year history.
Tsafrir Abayov / AP
Firefighters rest on the road at sunrise after participating overnight in the efforts to gain control over a massive wildfire, still raging near by, in Tirat Hacarmel, northern Israel, Friday, Dec. 3. The worst forest fire in Israel's history devastated one of the country's few forested areas, killing dozens of people as guards raced to rescue inmates at a prison in the fire zone, destroying homes and forcing the evacuation of thousands.
Miguel Gutierrez / AFP - Getty Images
A teenager jumps into an overflowing river in Barlovento, Miranda state, 150 Km northeast of Caracas, on December 2, 2010. Torrential rains have killed at least 31 people in recent days as Venezuela grapples with its worst flooding in 40 years, officials said Thursday. Authorities have set up 319 shelters across the country for those left homeless by rains that have impacted nearly 72,000 people.
Miguel Gutierrez / AFP - Getty Images
Aerial view of a flooded cemetery in Barlovento, Miranda state, 150 Km northeast of Caracas, on December 2, 2010.
Read more about the flooding here.
Enrique Castro-mendivil / Reuters
A tourist jumps from a terrace at the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, often referred to as "The Lost City of the Incas", in Cuzco Dec. 2, 2010.
What a beautiful site.
From AP: In July 2011, Peru will celebrate the first centenary of the discovery of Machu Picchu with a huge exhibition after an agreement with Yale University to return thousands of artifacts taken from the archaeological site in the early 1900s, the Ministry of Culture said on Thursday.
Read more about Yale's agreement to return Inca artifacts here.
Aaron Josefczyk / Reuters
Cleveland Cavaliers fans hold signs for LeBron James before a NBA basketball game in Cleveland, Ohio, Dec. 2, 2010, where he played for seven years before leaving to play for the Miami Heat. Extra security, hostile fans and plenty of jeers will greet James as he returns to Cleveland to face his former team for the first time since taking his talents to South Beach to join the Miami Heat.
Left: Hulton Archive via Getty Images; Right:Hudspeth Country Sheriff's Department via Getty Images
Left: American country singer Willie Nelson takes a drag off a joint while relaxing at his home in Texas, 2000s. Marijuana is spread out on the table before him.
Right: Booking photo provided by the Hudspeth Country Sheriff's Department of Willie Nelson, Nov. 26, 2010, in Sierra Blanca, Texas. Nelson was arrested for possession of marijuana and released on $2,500 bond.
When I look at this recent booking photo of Willie Nelson I hear the chorus of his haunting cover of "Pancho & Lefty" :
All the Federales say, we could've had him any day
We only let him slip away out of kindness I suppose
"Tax it, regulate it and legalize it," Willie told CelebStoner on Sunday.
You can check out more celebrity mugshots here.
NASA
California's Mono Lake lies along the western edge of the Great Basin. A series of plug volcanoes known as the Mono Craters can be seen running along an expanse south of the lake.
Eastern California's Mono Lake is where scientists conducted experiments aimed at determining whether a particular kind of salt-loving microbe could consume arsenic rather than phosphorus to keep life's machinery going. The results suggested that life is more adaptable than we thought -- and that's good news for astrobiologists looking for places where life could exist beyond Earth. Even though the microbe is totally terrestrial, Mono Lake is an alien-looking place, as my colleague Robert Hood pointed out in an earlier posting. Mono Lake also has an unusual chemistry: It ranks as one of the most arsenic-rich bodies of water on Earth (although the lake's fans emphasize that the water isn't as toxic as you might think.) It's also more than twice as salty as the ocean. The lake, which has no outlet, is thought to have existed for at least 760,000 years and possibly much longer.
This image of Mono Lake was captured in 1999 by NASA's Landsat 7 satellite, and it serves as the second offering in our Cosmic Log Space Advent Calendar. Come back every day from now until Christmas for another image of Earth as seen from space. By the time Advent is over, we'll have all 25 images stacked up right here.
You can also check out these other Advent calendars with space themes:
Here’s wishing you a happy holiday season, with true peace on Earth and goodwill toward all.
This clever "green" mobile home solves several problems at once: Dai Haifei has eliminated his commute, cut energy costs by going solar, and eliminated his rent payment. The only problem? No toilet.
AFP - Getty Images
Dai Haifei, 24, from China's Hunan province, looks out from his egg-shaped mobile house where he has been living for the last two months, located near his office in Beijing on Dec. 1, 2010. The house cost about $1,000 to build, and is made of bamboo strips and mattress, covered by a layer of heat preservation and water-proof material, with patches of bags stuffed with processed wood peels and grass seeds that could grow grass when spring comes, covering the house like a quilt.
AFP - Getty Images
Dai Haifei, 24, from China's Hunan province, rests in his egg-shaped mobile house where he has been living for the last two months, located near his office in Beijing on Dec. 1, 2010. The house cost about $1,000 USD to build, and is made of bamboo strips and mattress, covered by a layer of heat preservation and water-proof material, with patches of bags stuffed with processed wood peels and grass seeds that could grow grass when spring comes, covering the house like a quilt.
AFP - Getty Images
Dai Haifei, 24, from China's Hunan province, waters the patches of grass on his egg-shaped mobile house where he has been living for the last two months, located near his office in Beijing on December 1, 2010. The house cost about $1,000 to build, and is made of bamboo strips and mattress, covered by a layer of heat preservation and water-proof material, with patches of bags stuffed with processed wood peels and grass seeds that could grow grass when spring comes, covering the house like a quilt.
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