Closeup of spectacular ice formations of Eben Ice Caves, Rock River Canyon Wilderness, Hiawatha National Forest, Michigan, USA

Small waterfall along the Dungeness River in, near the Upper Dungeness Trail in Olympic National Forest, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, USA

Quaking Aspen, Populus tremuloides, forest of bare branches along beginning of Wheeler Peak Scenic Trail in Great Basin National Park, Nevada, USA

Sooty Grouse, Dendragapus fuliginosus, foraging in the subalpine of the Paradise area of Mount Rainier National Park, Washington State, USA

Navajo Sandstone shaped like cauliflower, cracked into polygons, at White Pocket, Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona, USA

Surging Pacific Ocean surf viewed from a high vantage point on East Anacapa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA

Oriental Bittersweet, Celastrus orbiculatus, an invasive vine twisting toward forest canopy, Woodland Park and Nature Preserve, Battle Creek, Michigan, USA

Honeycomb Tube Worm, Phragmatopoma californica, colony and the edge of a mussel bed exposed at low tide at Natural Bridges State Beach, Santa Cruz, California, USA

alabama snowflakes

Hamma Hamma Living Legacy Trail dedicated to the accomplishments of the CCC Boys during the Great Depression, Olympic National Forest, Washington State, USA,

This picture gives an impression of a flowing river that has been etched on the canyon sandstone by a sculptor, only in this case the sculptor is Nature. I clicked this one in Lower Antelope canyon, Arizona.

Bubbles, created in winter by the photographer, rapidly form ice crystals on the inside surfaces, Michigan, USA,

Navajo Sandstone shaped like cauliflower, cracked into polygons, at White Pocket, Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona, USA

Saguaro

a small spillway of a lake

what it took: Finding the perfect flower to display pattern and then cropping that image to a square format to best showcase the flower's center.

Parents observe and analyze pill bugs during the interactive STEM keynote workshop conducted by Dr. Diana Wehrell-Grabowski.

Ice cave interior where stream melts snow under a snowfield, near Hogsback Camp below Heliotrope Ridge on the slopes of Mount Baker, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington State, USA

Wind-blasted snow clinging to hardwood trees after a winter storm in Mecosta County, Michigan, USA

Closeup of spectacular ice formations of Eben Ice Caves, Rock River Canyon Wilderness, Hiawatha National Forest, Michigan, USA

Reflections on a Beaver pond of flooded trees, Woodland Park and Nature Preserve in Battle Creek, Michigan, USA

Bubbles, created in winter by the photographer, rapidly form ice crystals on the inside surfaces, Michigan, USA,

Incredible patterns of sand, including heavier black sand particles, on Rialto Beach in Olympic National Park, Washington State, USA

Gray Pine, Pinus sabiniana, needles close up in Pinnacles National Park, California, USA

Shaw's Agave, Agave shawii, in Cabrillo National Monument, San Diego, California, USA

[Iris sibirica] Also known as Fleur-de-Lis

It's amazing how this hardy, autumn plant resembles a snowflake.

Wind rippling the surface of Snow Lake along Snow Lake Trail leading into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Mt. Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington State, USA

Sea urchin test (shell) at Tongue Point in Salt Creek Recreation Area along the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, USA

Hamma Hamma Living Legacy Trail dedicated to the accomplishments of the CCC Boys during the Great Depression, Olympic National Forest, Washington State, USA,

Honeycomb Tube Worm, Phragmatopoma californica, colony adjacent to mussel bed exposed at low tide at Natural Bridges State Beach, Santa Cruz, California, USA

Honeycomb Tube Worm, Phragmatopoma californica, colony adjacent to mussel bed exposed at low tide at Natural Bridges State Beach, Santa Cruz, California, USA

Intricate boxwork in Wind Cave, a cave formation found here more than anywhere else, Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota, USA