National Geographic Photo of the Day: August 9th of 2015

August 9, 2015

A Night at Deadvlei

Photograph by Beth McCarley, National Geographic Your Shot

“The night before returning to Windhoek, we spent several hours at Deadvlei,” writes Beth McCarley, who was photographing in Namibia. “The moon was bright enough to illuminate the sand dunes in the distance, but the skies were still dark enough to clearly see the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds. Deadvlei means 'dead marsh.' The camelthorn trees are believed to be about 900 years old but have not decomposed because the environment is so dry.”