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PETR JOSEK / Reuters
Simon Ammann of Switzerland and Austria's Martin Koch (R) walk down the stairs for their practice jump on the Large Hill HS134 at the Nordic Ski World Championships in Oslo, March 1, 2011. Picture taken at a tilted angle.
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Martial Trezzini / EPA
The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, are seen in the sky above the village of Ersfjordbotn near Tromso in northern Norway, early on Feb. 21. Aurorae are caused by the interaction between energetic charged particles from the Sun and gas molecules in the upper atmosphere of the Earth, about 100 kilometres up. A stream of charged particles, called the solar wind, flows out into space continuously from the Sun at speeds of 400-500 kilometres per second. On reaching Earth, the charged particles are drawn by Earth's magnetic field to the poles, where they collide with gas molecules in the upper atmosphere, causing them to emit light.
The northern lights shine over Norway
I would love to see this with my own eyes one day. Here is the photographer's detailed explanation:
Aurorae are caused by the interaction between energetic charged particles from the Sun and gas molecules in the upper atmosphere of the Earth, about 100 kilometres up. A stream of charged particles, called the solar wind, flows out into space continuously from the Sun at speeds of 400-500 kilometres per second. On reaching Earth, the charged particles are drawn by Earth's magnetic field to the poles, where they collide with gas molecules in the upper atmosphere, causing them to emit light.
Heiko Junge / AP
Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Thorbjoern Jagland poses next to the Nobel diploma and Nobel medal placed on the empty chair during the ceremony in Oslo City Hall Friday Dec. 10, 2010 to honour in absentia this years Nobel Peace Prize winner, jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.
Jailed Chinese dissident awarded Nobel Peace Prize in abstentia
Is the Nobel committee playing politics with the award? For more images of the ceremony and reaction click here.
Odd Andersen / AFP - Getty Images
Chinese dissident and peace prize laureate Liu Xiaobo and his wife are seen on a monitor as workers clean the walls at an exhibition at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, December 9, 2010. With the guest of honor stuck in a Chinese prison, this year's Nobel Peace Prize ceremony will center around an empty chair, as its celebration of dissident Liu Xiaobo continues to split the global community and infuriate Beijing. The head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee said he was surprised at the level of international support for jailed Chinese dissident and peace prize laureate Liu Xiaobo despite pressure from Beijing.
Setting up for the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo
It will be an interesting ceremony this year with the guest of honor being absent. So far, more than a dozen countries are joining China in boycotting the festivities. Full story.
Erlend Aas / EPA
Oslo residents Anne Opsahl (68), Berit Nordli (70) and Turid Degen (71) brave water temperatures of a mere three degrees Celcius as they prepare for their swim in the Oslo fjord, Norway, Dec. Dec. 7. They feel they have found the answer to keeping winter flu and colds at bay, and meet several times a week for a swim, regardless of the plummeting temperatures.