Wikipedia:Picture of the day/May 2007

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Picture of the day archives

2004: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2005: January February March April May June July August September October November December
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These featured pictures, as scheduled below, appeared as the picture of the day (POTD) on the English Wikipedia's Main Page in May 2007. Individual sections for each day on this page can be linked to with the day number as the anchor name (e.g. [[Wikipedia:Picture of the day/May 2007#1]] for May 1).

You can add an automatically updating POTD template to your user page using {{Pic of the day}} (version with blurb) or {{POTD}} (version without blurb). For instructions on how to make custom POTD layouts, see Wikipedia:Picture of the day.Purge server cache


May 1

Willet

The

shorebird in the sandpiper family. Adults have gray legs and a long, straight, dark and stout bill. The body is dark gray above and light underneath. The tail is white with a dark band at the end. The distinctive black and white pattern of the wings is a common sight along many North American
coastal beaches.

Photo credit: Mdf

Recently featured:

May 2

Joseph Kittinger jumps

Captain

freefall
for 4.5 minutes at speeds up to 625 mph (1,005 km/h) and temperatures as low as −94°F (−70°C), he opened his parachute at 17,500 feet (5.3 km). The whole descent took 13 minutes and 45 seconds. This is the current world record for the highest parachute jump and was the longest freefall until Adrian Nicholas broke the record in 1998 with a wing suit skydive lasting 4 minutes 55 seconds.

Photo credit: United States Air Force


May 3

Short-beaked Echidna

The

Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus), also known as the Spiny Anteater because of its diet of ants and termites, is one of four living species of echidna. The species is found throughout Australia, where it is the most widespread native mammal, and in coastal and highland regions of southwestern New Guinea
.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 4

Metallic Ringtail

A female

Metallic Ringtail (Austrolestes cingulatus), an Australian damselfly, eating its prey. Each abdominal segment is marked by a pale "ring"; this combined with its glossy metallic coloration give the insect its common name
.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 5

Wright Flyer

The

Orville Wright
is at the controls lying prone on the lower wing with hips in the cradle that operated the wing warping mechanism. Wilbur Wright running alongside, has just released his hold to balance the machine.

Photo credit: John T. Daniels


May 6

Methane lakes

This

false-color radar image taken by the Cassini orbiter provides convincing evidence for large bodies of liquid methane on Titan. Images taken during a fly-by of the moon on July 22, 2006 show more than 75 large bodies of liquid ranging in diameter from three to 70km (1.9 to 43.6 mi) in the moon's northern hemisphere. Intensity in this colorized image is proportional to how much radar brightness is returned. The lakes, darker than the surrounding terrain, are emphasized here by tinting regions of low backscatter in blue. Radar-brighter regions are shown in tan. Smallest details in this image are about 500 m (1,640 ft) across. On January 3, 2007, NASA announced that scientists have "definitive evidence of lakes filled with methane on Saturn
's moon Titan."

Image credit: Cassini orbiter


May 7

Queen meat ant

A queen meat ant burrowing a hole after her nuptial flight, an important phase in the reproduction of most ant and some bee species. Young queens and males stay in their parent colony until conditions are right. During the flight, the queen will usually mate with several males, after which mated queens land and remove their wings. They then attempt to found a new colony.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 8

Thomas Edison

A portrait of Thomas Edison and his early phonograph from 1878. This was the invention that made him famous, giving him the moniker "The Wizard of Menlo Park". It was so unexpected by the public at large as to appear almost magical. His first phonograph recorded on tinfoil around a grooved cylinder and had poor sound quality, and the tinfoil recordings could only be replayed a few times.

Photo credit: Levin Corbin Handy


May 9

Striated Pardalote

An

Eastern Australia. They are more often heard than seen, foraging noisily for lerps
and other small creatures in the treetops.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 10

Polar map of Jupiter

This

polar map of Jupiter, taken by the Cassini orbiter as it neared Jupiter during a flyby on its way to Saturn, is the most detailed global color map of the planet ever produced. The south pole is in the center of the map and the equator is at the edge. The map shows a variety of colorful cloud features, including parallel reddish-brown and white bands, the Great Red Spot
, multi-lobed chaotic regions, white ovals, and many small vortexes. Many clouds appear in streaks and waves due to continual stretching and folding by Jupiter's winds and turbulence.

Photo credit: Cassini orbiter


May 11

L'Hemisferic

L'Hemisferic, an

Valencia, Spain
.

Photo credit: Diliff


May 12

Pāhoehoe lava

An arching fountain of pāhoehoe lava, approximately 10 m (33 ft) high, issuing from a spatter cone of Pu‘u Kahaualea, Hawaii. Pāhoehoe is basaltic lava that has a smooth, billowy, undulating, or ropy surface. These surface features are due to the movement of very fluid lava under a congealing surface crust. Pāhoehoe lavas typically have a temperature of 1100°C–1200°C.

Photo credit: J.D. Griggs,

USGS


May 13

Morteratsch glacier

A

stitched panorama of the Morteratsch Glacier, the largest glacier by area in the Bernina Range, Switzerland. By volume, it is the largest glacier in the Eastern Alps. In spring, depending on the snow conditions, a 10 km (6.25 mi) long ski
-run is marked on the glacier, which takes up to two hours to descend.

Photo credit: Daniel Schwen


May 14

Translational motion

The translational motion of atoms and molecules gives gases their

trillion
–fold). Five atoms are colored red to facilitate following their motions.

Image credit: Greg L


May 15

Hoverfly

A common hoverfly, Simosyrphus grandicornis, approximately 12 mm in size, resting on a stalk. Many hoverfly species, such as this one, mimic the appearance of bees or wasps, which is thought to protect them from falling prey to birds and other insectivores. About 6,000 species of hoverflies in 200 genera have been described.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 16

Blessed milk thistle

The flower of a

Rockstar Energy Drink
.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 17

Alcatraz Island

A

National Recreation Area

Photo credit: David Corby


May 18

Green tent spider

A green tent spider, approximately 15 mm in length, of the

grass. These spiders create tent-like, highly complex non-sticky webs, sometimes considered a precursor of the simplified orb-web
. These webs are aligned horizontally, with a network of supporting threads above them. These spiders often live in colonies.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 19

Aerogel

A 2.38 g piece of

air and with a density
as low as 1 mg per cubic centimetre.

Aerogels hold 15 different

records
for material properties, including best insulator and lowest-density solid.

Photo credit: NASA


May 20

Mark 45 gun

The

five-inch 54-caliber MK45 gun during routine training operations off the coast of Southern California. The gun mount features an automatic loader with a capacity of 20 rounds. These can be fired under full automatic control taking a little over a minute to exhaust those rounds at maximum fire rate. For sustained use, a three-man crew can keep the gun supplied with ammunition
.

Photo credit: Felix Garza Jr., U.S. Navy


May 21

Nymphal grasshopper

A

katydids, there are about 11,000 valid species described to date in 2,400 genera, including those known as locusts. Many undescribed species exist, especially in tropical rainforests
.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 22

Poison gas in WWI

A group of

German Spring Offensive of 1918, it was found that while some troops had discarded their rifles
, hardly any had left behind their respirators.

Photo credit: Frank Hurley


May 23

Montserrat

A

stitched panorama taken from St Jerome, the summit of Montserrat, a 1,236 m (4,055 ft) mountain near Barcelona, Spain
. The mountain's name means "jagged mountain" and is used because of the peculiar aspect of the formation, which is visible from a great distance.

Photo credit: Diliff


May 24

Cactus flower

A

angiosperms
, are more varied than the equivalent structures of any other group of organisms, and flowering plants also have an unrivalled diversity of sexual systems.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 25

Toledo, Spain

The

Moorish
cultures.

Photo credit: Diliff


May 26

Lake Mapourika

Morning

West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is the largest of the west coast lakes, a glacier formation from the last ice age. It is filled with fresh rain water which runs through the surrounding forest floor, collecting tannins
and giving it its dark colour.

Photo credit: Richard Palmer


May 27

Iraqi man with keffiyeh

An

Arab men, made of a square scarf, usually cotton
, folded and wrapped in various styles around the head. It is commonly found in arid climate areas to provide protection from direct sun exposure, as well as for occasional use in protecting the mouth and eyes from blown dust and sand.

Photo credit: Christiaan Briggs


May 28

Limburger cheese

A plate of

Limburger cheese and pumpernickel bread. Limburger originated from Limburg, Belgium, and is known for its strong odor, which is due in part to being fermented with the same bacteria partially responsible for human body odor
.

Photo credit: Jon Sullivan/Pharaoh Hound


May 29

P-38 Lightning

P-38 Lightning dug out from 268 feet (81.2 m) of ice in eastern Greenland in 1992. The P-38, with its distinctive shape, was used most successfully in the South West Pacific theater, where it was flown by the American pilots with the highest number of aerial victories in World War II
.

Photo credit: Tech. Sgt. Ben Bloker,

USAF


May 30

Ulysses Butterfly

The Ulysses Butterfly (Papilio ulysses) is a large Australian swallowtail with a wingspan of about 14 cm (5.5 in). The top of the butterfly’s wings are an iridescent electric blue; the underside is a more subdued black and brown coloration. When the butterfly is perched the intense blue of its wings is hidden (as seen here), helping it to blend in with its surroundings.

Photo credit: Fir0002


May 31

Comet McNaught

Comet

perihelion on January 12, 2007 at a distance of 0.17 AU
.

Photo credit: Fir0002


Picture of the day archives and future dates

2004: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2005: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2006: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2007: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2008: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2009: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2010: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2011: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2012: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2013: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2014: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2015: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2016: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2017: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2018: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2019: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2020: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2021: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2022: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2023: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2024: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2025: January February March April May June July August September October November December