Each year, National Geographic highlights a collection of the most compelling images captured by Nat Geo photographers over the past 12 months in their "Pictures of the Year."

For 2025, Nat Geo compiled 25 extraordinary pictures from the past year, which Editor in Chief Nathan Lump writes, "encode a sense of urgency, a call to preserve what's in danger of being lost, as well as a reminder of the poetic beauty to be found in carrying on, in daring to dream of a better future."

The photos are diverse in their storytelling, including intimate wildlife portraits, sweeping landscapes, groundbreaking scientific discoveries and intimate human narratives.

We have a preview of the collection below.

A sperm whale floats amid shards of polar pack ice, dead and decomposing, mouth hanging open. Whe

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