Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

20th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Historic Heat Wave

Lounging seals in the sun upon a chunk of glacier ice in Price William Sound, Alaska as a waterfall cascades in the shadows behind them. While not obvious in this photo, Alaska was experiencing record-breaking heat that day, close to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. The floating seals baking in the sun, ice chunks, melt water & heat wave were a comically visual illustration of climate change.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 07.2019
Date Uploaded: 11.2022
Photo Location: Whittier, Alaska, United States of America
Copyright: © Elissa Ebersold