National Geographic's Best of 2012

More than 900 images were published in National Geographic magazine in 2012, and Editor-in-Chief Chris Johns has selected his favorites. "Invariably the best photographs will always surprise you. You'll see something you couldn't have imagined," he says.

Giant Sequoias | December 2012 National Geographic magazine
Cloaked in the snows of California's Sierra Nevada, the 3,200-year-old giant sequoia called the President rises 247 feet. Two other sequoias have wider trunks, but none has a larger crown, say the scientists who climbed it. The figure at top seems taller than the other climbers because he's standing forward on one of the great limbs. (Photo by Michael “Nick” Nichols/National ... more
Giant Sequoias | December 2012 National Geographic magazine
Cloaked in the snows of California's Sierra Nevada, the 3,200-year-old giant sequoia called the President rises 247 feet. Two other sequoias have wider trunks, but none has a larger crown, say the scientists who climbed it. The figure at top seems taller than the other climbers because he's standing forward on one of the great limbs. (Photo by Michael “Nick” Nichols/National Geographic)

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