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The Guardian
01-06-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
Milky Way photographer of the year 2025
The annual lupine bloom in New Zealand is spectacular, with fields of colourful flowers stretching across the Mackenzie Basin. This region in the heart of the South Island is renowned for its dark skies, making the scene even more surreal at night. Above the flowers, you can see the band of the outer Milky Way, alongside the constellations Orion, Gemini, and the Pleiades. Joining them are the bright planets Jupiter and Mars, with a strong display of green airglow visible along the horizon Photograph: Max Inwood/Milky Way photographer of the year Easter Island had been on my bucket list for a long time, and it once seemed almost impossible to reach. On our first night there, the weather forecast looked promising, so we decided to go ahead with the tour our group had booked months earlier. However, Rapa Nui sits in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, where the weather is unpredictable. An hour later, we were frantically photographing the statues at Rano Raraku, when the sky suddenly began to clear. By 5am, it was completely clear, and we had less than two hours to capture all the shots we wanted. Photograph: Rositsa Dimitrova/Milky Way photographer of the year A panoramic shot of the Milky Way in a remote area of the Atacama cactus valley, known for its large concentration of cactus plants. I love this place with its countless possibilities. The panorama was taken just as the galactic centre began to rise, with the spectacular Gum Nebula visible on the right. It was an especially bright night with a breathtaking sky. The valley isn't easy to navigate, but it's always worth trying to find new compositions in such stunning locations beneath the night sky Photograph: Pablo Ruiz/Milky Way photographer of the year The Perseid meteor shower occurs every August. In 2024, I had planned to photograph it from the Canadian Rockies, but wildfires forced me to change my plans. I found a safe haven in the Eastern Sierra Nevada. Sitting on the rock is my friend Arne, gazing up at the magnificent core of our galaxy. Each meteor is painstakingly aligned to its true location in the night sky. The final depiction shows all the meteors I captured, combined into one frame – as if the Earth hadn't been rotating and all the meteors had fallen at once Photograph: Mike Abramyan/Milky Way photographer of the year This image captures the rare double arch Milky Way, where both the winter Milky Way (with Orion rising) and the summer Milky Way (with the galactic centre) appear in the same night – a seamless transition between seasons. Taken at 3,200 metres, in the heart of winter, the night was brutally cold, testing both my endurance and equipment. This is a time blend, preserving the real positions of both arches by combining frames taken hours apart, with the foreground captured at dawn for the best detail Photograph: Angel Fux/Milky Way photographer of the year Undoubtedly my wildest location this winter: Austria's Dobratsch mountain. After a two-hour hike through the snow with a 22kg backpack and sled, the stunning views kept me energised. I spent the evening exploring compositions, and this is my favourite: a panorama of the winter Milky Way with reddish nebulae, stretching above Dobratsch. The sky was magnificent, with Jupiter and Mars shining brightly. In the foreground is the cabin, where I spent three freezing hours, waiting for the perfect shot of the Milky Way's core Photograph: Uroš Fink/Milky Way photographer of the year After three years of waiting, the Yushan alpine rhododendrons are finally in bloom once again on Taiwan's 3,000-metre-high Hehuan mountain. On this special night, distant clouds helped block city light pollution, revealing an exceptionally clear view of the Milky Way. A solar flare from active region AR3664 reached Earth that evening, intensifying the airglow and adding an otherworldly touch to the sky. Together, these rare natural events created a breathtaking scene – vivid blooms glowing softly beneath a star-filled sky Photograph: Ethan Su/Milky Way photographer of the year With a clear night forecast and the Milky Way core returning for 2025, I set out to explore the Great Ocean Road. After a few setbacks – such as getting the car stuck on a sandy track – I almost gave up. However, I pushed on and found a great spot above the beach to capture the scene. The night was full of colour, with comet C/2024 G3 Atlas and a pink aurora in the early hours, followed by the Milky Way rising amid intense green airglow. Despite the challenges, the reward of this stunning image and the memory of the view made it all worthwhile Photograph: Brent Martin/Milky Way photographer of the year Socotra is one of my favourite places, but when it comes to a specific location, this one stands out. It doesn't have an official name, as it's not a destination for the few fortunate tourists who visit Socotra. After shooting there for the past four years and scouting the island, I've discovered hidden gems like this one, which I call Bottle Tree Paradise. Bottle trees are unique to Socotra, a result of the island's long isolation from the mainland. This separation allowed them to evolve distinctive features, such as their bottle-shaped trunks Photograph: Benjamin Barakat/Milky Way photographer of the year On the early morning of 2 June 2024, I summited Acatenango Volcano for the first time, hoping to witness the fiery beauty of the neighbouring Volcan de Fuego against the Milky Way's backdrop. That night, the volcano was incredibly active. Above, the Milky Way stretched diagonally across the sky. As the volcano erupted, the ash plume rose vertically, forming an acute angle of about 45 degrees with the galaxy's diagonal path, creating a stunning visual contrast between Earth's fury and the cosmos' serenity Photograph: Sergio Montúfar/Milky Way photographer of the year Capturing this image was a race against time, light and distance. With comet Tsuchinshan–Atlas (C/2023 A3) making its approach, I knew I had a rare opportunity to see it with the naked eye before it faded into the cosmos. I embarked on a five-hour round trip to McWay Falls in Big Sur. My window was narrow – just six precious minutes of true darkness before the Moon rose and washed out the night sky. But those six minutes were unforgettable. It was one of the most vivid and humbling naked-eye comet sightings I've ever experienced Photograph: Xingyang Cai/Milky Way photographer of the year When one Googles information about visiting Chad, the results aren't very encouraging from a safety perspective. Nevertheless, the intrepid astrophotographer in me decided to take the chance and visit this landlocked country, specifically the Ennedi Massif in the north. Sparsely populated and devoid of light pollution, the three-day drive from the capital, N'Djamena, was well worth the risks involved. The region is filled with rock formations, shapes, and arches, offering an abundance of options for foreground elements to frame the dramatic night skies Photograph: Vikas Chander/Milky Way photographer of the year On 14 March 2025, a total lunar eclipse occurred, especially visible over the Americas and the Pacific Ocean. I was fortunate to observe this particular eclipse from the NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. You can see how epic the sky was during totality, as the moon darkened enough for the majestic Milky Way, the faint belt of zodiacal light, and prominent airglow to stand out Photograph: Petr Horálek/Milky Way photographer of the year The first image I captured from this spot in Otago, New Zealand, is the one I feel kick-started my astrophotography journey. The set of sea stacks provided a foreground subject facing the right direction, and being a local spot relatively free of light pollution, it was the perfect location to capture the Milky Way core. It felt fitting to try again with a few extra years of experience and an astro-modified camera, which allows for easier capture of hydrogen-alpha-rich regions of the sky. The years of experience made panoramic shooting and editing easier Photograph: Kavan Chay/Milky Way photographer of the year I float in the cupola, looking out the seven windows composing this faceted transparent jewel. While my mind is submerged in contemplation, my eyes gorge on the dim reflections from a night-time Earth. There are more than 8 billion people who call this planet home. There are seven of us who can say the same for the space station. What a privilege it is to be here. I used an orbital star tracker to take out the star streak motion from orbit Photograph: Don Pettit/Milky Way photographer of the year
Skift
09-05-2025
- Business
- Skift
Bucket List Experiences are Everywhere. How is the Incentive Industry Adapting?
Is the definition of an incentive trip — an experience that attendees could not create on their own — still valid, when anyone who can afford it can buy a bucket list experience? The old model of incentive travel that prized inaccessibility — the kind of luxury you couldn't buy for yourself — is changing. The global marketplace for travel experiences has grown to more than $1 trillion, according to McKinsey & Company. Anyone who can afford it can purchase the chance to explore the Giza pyramids with the Egyptian Minister of Antiquities or try their hand at Polynesian rowing in Easter Island with Chile's Olympic team. Instagram feeds are lined with individual travelers having the same exact experiences that were once the purview of incentive groups. Today's incentive winners are more sophisticated than previous generations, said Michelle Castady Orlando, who has spent her entire career curating experiences, forming her own company, Elevoque, in 2021. 'They're well-traveled. They're experience-savvy. They aren't moved by velvet ropes; they're moved by moments that feel like they're truly for them.' It Depends on the Budget Talk to many incentive travel firms, and they still have clients hosting those eye-popping group incentive experiences that are beyond the reach of most people. However, they admit it's just a small percentage of companies that have the budgets to support these types of programs, and they are almost always from the insurance, financial, automotive, and energy sectors. At Land O' Lakes, which holds a number of different types of incentive programs for customers and internal employees, Chris Johnson, director-global travel, enterprise meetings and experiences and sports partnerships, says his team puts a great deal of thought and planning into the creation of once-in-a-lifetime experiences. A recent incentive on a chartered cruise ship, for example, allowed the group to choose their stops at various ports along the Mediterranean. The final evening, the ship was docked in Barcelona, and the closing event was a cultural immersion through entertainment and food. 'Guests experienced a journey through the Spanish culinary traditions, culminating in a breathtaking drone show over the Barcelona skyline,' he said. 'The custom performance traced each stop along the trip, with illuminated images and music reflecting the local flavor. It was a one-of-a-kind finale that no individual traveler could recreate, and the attendees were absolutely captivated.' Layered Experiences Planners like Orlando believe that the future of incentive travel isn't defined by extravagance — it's defined by intentionality. 'Incentive travel is absolutely still rooted in the idea of providing something irreplicable, but the currency of exclusivity has changed,' she said. The incentive industry's answer is 'layered experiences,' those which extend beyond a single wow moment to create 'layers of surprise + delight.' Attendees want to spend meaningful time with real people (even better if they're famous), like the private cocktail event and culinary experience hosted by a Food Network celebrity chef at her personal estate, curated by One10. 'These personalized itineraries go beyond, focusing on meaningful engagement, cultural authenticity, and surprise elements that align with our clients' goals,' said Kandice Watson, director, purchasing & design. During another experience, the well-known Neo-Pop artist Peter Tunney not only gave the group a personal tour of his Wynwood Walls gallery and shared stories about his life and art, he then took them on a guided tour of the entire Wynwood Walls complex. 'Peter's personality is so unique, and his stories are captivating,' said Jennifer Gruebner, director of sales at Just Right! Destination Management. 'They could have stayed there with him for days.' Elevoque recently designed an incentive program for a wellness brand that brought 200 top performers out into the fields and farms where their product line is grown. They got a chance to speak directly with the farmers and food scientists, followed by a lunch served outside at the farm, which was broadcast to a global audience. 'Every detail was designed not only to impress, but to connect,' said Orlando. 'The future of incentive travel isn't defined by extravagance — it's defined by intentionality. It's no longer about the most luxurious destination or the flashiest five-star dinner. It's about the stories we tell through place, the emotional clarity we deliver through design, and lasting meaning.'
The Guardian
05-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
For the age of Amorim, this Manchester derby feels like a decisive moment
This brave overhanging firmament, this majestical roof fretted with golden fire, this collection of generic spires with a massive plastic handkerchief chucked over the top. Three weeks on from first sight of the conceptual drawings for Sir Jim Ratcliffe's stately pleasure dome, also known as the proposed Manchester United Stadium Soccer Product Hub, there is still a sense of double-take about the whole thing. Early impressions of the new ground ranged from a defunct Venusian mercury mine, to Dubai Butlin's, to a pointed corporate monument to our divided world. Welcome to the Staff Lunch Arena, embodiment of the 21st-century conviction that if you just stopped buying so many sandwiches and also fired the tea lady you could probably afford a vast and unattainable house. The stadium project has at least brought into sharper focus the transient world in which Manchester United must now exist, shadowed not just by ghosts of the past but the ghost of the future too. This is already an entity engaged in a constant struggle with itself. For now the new development will remain just another zone of conflict, another front on which the club must lobby and balance competing interests, confirmation that the state of unresolvable civil war has now spread to the ground beneath its feet. And that there is, as ever, something rotten in the state of Denmark. With this in mind it feels appropriate the first home Premier League game of the post-plans era should be a derby visit from Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. Who are Manchester United's biggest rivals these days anyway? For so long the answer to this was Liverpool. City have inserted themselves into this dynamic by sheer weight of success. Otherwise the real enemies at Manchester United are now within, a roster of internecine battles that have tracked the past decade. So much so that trying to understand the current tensions at Manchester United is like being asked to provide a complete structural read-out of the causes of the Syldavian war of independence, a blur of factions, ancestral claims, popular dissent, moustachioed emperors in exile. Everyone has a side here. Supporters against Glazers. Supporters against Ratcliffe. Glazers against Ratcliffe (dormant but watch this space). And beyond this an endless arm-wrestle of stadium fans against internet fans, MUFC plc legal dept against the planning authorities, dissident squad members versus incumbent manager, exiled loanees with a grudge, agents, hangers-on, parasites. Step further out and you're into the drowned world of online fanaticism, Ronaldo loyalists, Ole ultras, Sheikh Jassim stock photo nostalgists, Nemanja Matic truthers, and every other strain of grudge and unscabbed wound. All of it soundtracked by the wailing Easter Island heads of the United legends punditry lineup, constantly reasserting their own relevance by saying things on podcasts, trotting out the Great Roy Keane Of History theory, a self-fuelling industry in themselves. At the end of which those noises off are so persistent that the arrival of some people in sky blue shirts from down the road wanting an actual game of football almost feels like an interruption. Do you mind? There's an unceasing battle for local supremacy going on here. But there are also some handy things about civil wars. First, not everyone can lose, or at least not at the same time. And this has so far been a good thing for Ruben Amorim. United's latest manager may have overseen an appalling run of form, driven by the obvious mismatch of evangelically stubborn tactics and an ill-tailored squad, but he is in effect bulletproof right now. For a start he can lose himself in the fog of other people's failure. Nobody is actually ready to blame the last man in through the door for any of this. It may have been illogical to hire a tactical ideologue in mid-season, then ask him to fudge something up out of your existing bits and bobs. But this is hardly his fault. When someone comes through the door wearing a hat that says I really like wing-backs, there's a chance they might just really like wing-backs. For now Amorim's greatest attribute is his easy, sleepy charisma, the ability to laugh and seem a little detached, the smile, jawline, wardrobe, the cinematic qualities. United in this state really don't need another hollow-eyed prisoner, another sad dad. They need a cool uncle. How long can that last? The answer to this is of course: probably not much longer. The sense of a derby happening by default won't come again for Amorim. And there are at least three good reasons why this isn't actually a dead game. First it's a chance to lob a grenade into City's season, which has now narrowed to the unlikely but still slightly jaw-dropping prospect of missing out on Champions League football next year. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion With this in mind it seems significant that Amorim's record against Pep Guardiola is relatively good. This may mean very little on Sunday. That record spans two different clubs and City teams in various states of convulsion. But there is also perhaps a tactical element. Three years ago Amorim's Sporting Lisbon were thrashed 5-0 by City, having set up in a defensively pitched 5-3-2. In three meetings since Amorim has fielded a 3-4-3 with slightly more advanced flank players. This has coincided with a second leg 0-0 and victories this season by 4-1 and 2-1. City were in a swoon against Sporting in the first of these. The second was the Miracle of Amad. But there is perhaps evidence that shape is well tailored to finding spaces behind City's full-backs. Guardiola will clearly react to this. But making Guardiola react is also a note of honour. This is the second thing Sunday offers, a chance to show some kind of actual progress beneath the results, because at some point Amorim will have to barter for his future. Right now there is only a vague sense of what a Ruben-shaped team might look like. United look better with Leny Yoro and Patrick Dorgu in the team. The loss at Nottingham Forest in midweek followed seven games without defeat. If there is a positive underlying metric here it is that United have been at their best against the better teams. Some might suggest this is a function of the players dusting off their best efforts for the big day. There is perhaps a tactical element here too. Amorim's rigid shape is more effective as a reactive way of playing. When the shirt weighs you down like a Victorian diving suit it is a little easier to play if you don't have extra pressure to keep the ball, define the game, to be Manchester United in the abstract. This is the final key note before Sunday. Everything United do now is basically prep for the only live element in their season, the Europa League and the possibility of a gateway back to the big stage. Winning the competition isn't impossible. It will require passage past Lyon, then two more rounds, with Athletic Bilbao, Eintracht Frankfurt and Lazio the stronger teams still in the draw. It is hard to overstate the importance of this opportunity, not just to Amorim, but to the club generally. In the new Champions League format teams can make £80m just for reaching the quarter-finals. This is money this unstoppable cash-sluicing machine actually needs. The brand needs it, the brand which is, despite evidence to the contrary, far from indestructible. For the age of Amorim this feels like a potential Mark Robins FA Cup moment, the thing that might still generate momentum, budget, a restraightening of the ship. Manchester United has always been a saga of collapse and rebuild, right back to the first big stadium rebuild after the Luftwaffe had bombed Old Trafford into the ground. The next few weeks are, if nothing else, an opportunity; one that starts on Sunday.
