Standing in awe. Photos from Norseman1968’s photostream.

Gorgeous night photography by Hossein Zare

Today’s dose of wonder and awe comes from photographer John Colbensen 

Magical imagery by Gusti Yogiswara

Starry skies from SevenElevenStudios

Spectacular stars and skies photographed by Joel Sjaarda

Beautiful views of the night sky captured by photographer Kwon O Chul

Photographer and astronomy enthusiast Alex Cherney captures the star-filled skies of his native Australia.

Dazzling midnight blue skies by AtomicZen

Photographer James Neeley’s night skies are truly awe-inspiring. 

Some of my favorite entries so far in the 2012 National Geographic Photo Contest. The deadline for submissions is November 30. Good luck to all these fantastic participants!

Some beautiful twilight photography by Dr. Akira Takaue. 

Jaw-dropping aurora photos from the Tombstone Range in the Yukon by Marc Adamus

Awe-inspiring photography by Marc Adams.

Adams on his work:

I’d like to introduce you to the natural world I know. Come follow along on my journey. Explore, consider, and take something with you. This is nature through my eyes. These photographs do not arise from any particular desire to see the world through a lens, but rather from my deep passion for this land we call wilderness. It has shaped every aspect of my life. I wish to show you the amazing, beautiful and powerful forces that have created the Earth we live on…

I want you to know just how undeniably precious these lands are in their preservation. We NEED wilderness; now more than ever. The wilderness experience becomes ever more important to balance our lives as we become more industrialized and therefore bound within our own creations. This is because there exists within it a deep connection unlike anything that can be found in today’s intense world of instantly manufactured gratification. There is a certain freedom that comes only when we are immersed in the natural world. I come to the wilderness to experience something much greater than ourselves, and I hope you will too…Never be afraid to explore, to wander, to find a new direction. Share the beauty of this wonderful life and this wonderful Earth so they may be here forever.

Read his whole statement here

Michael Anderson wants his photography to inspire all of the “aspiring vagabonds and wilderness trekkers that hope to travel one day” to get out there and have their own adventures.