
Can you believe this picture from Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park? As water runs into the Halemaʻumaʻu Crater, intense heat from the lava pool quickly turns it into steam, offering a canvas for flames and moonlight to color. It’s an extraordinary sight in a place of natural wonder and cultural importance. The crater’s name translates into “house of eternal flame” and it is known as the home of the goddess Pele, the creator of new land. Photo by Eric Leifer. Tweeted by the US Department of the Interior, 10/3/15.

White Sands National Monument in New Mexico is one of the world’s great natural wonders. Here, great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert, creating the world’s largest gypsum dune field of brilliant snow-white sand. This photo of a double rainbow over the park was taken just at sunset as a rain storm let up. Photo by Raymond Lee. Posted on the US Department of the Interior blog, 10/19/15.

A trip to Yellowstone National Park isn’t complete without seeing Midway Geyser Basin. A boardwalk leads you to the colorful Grand Prismatic Spring. At 370 feet in diameter and over 121 feet deep, Grand Prismatic is Yellowstone’s largest hot spring. This jaw-dropping multi-image panorama shows Grand Prismatic Spring at night with the Milky Way sparkling above it and the stars reflected in the water below. Image courtesy of David Lane. Posted on the US Department of the Interior blog, 10/19/15.
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