• AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo
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    A performer from the Portela samba school parades during carnival celebrations at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Monday.

  • NASA
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    NASA's Terra satellite captured this image Sunday of snow stretching from the East coast westward past Lake Ontario.

  • AP Photo /Rajesh Kumar Singh
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    A Hindu devotee prays after a holy dip at 'Sangam', the confluence of Hindu holy rivers Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati, during the Maha Kumbh festival at Allahabad, India.

  • AP Photo/Craig Ruttle
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    Cars are buried by snow near Hamden, Conn., in the aftermath of a storm that hit Connecticut and much of the New England states.

  • AP Photo/Francisco Seco
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    Revelers dressed as clowns dance while marching during a carnival parade in Sesimbra, near Lisbon, Monday.

  • AP Photo/Rob Griffith
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    Many hands wave through clouds of colored dust during celebrations after the Swiss Color Run at Homebush Olympic Park in Sydney, Australia, Sunday.

  • AP Photo/Vadim Belkin
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    Skiing enthusiasts are seen after the start of a traditional mass skiing competition, "Ski-track of Russia," in Yakhroma, some 31 miles from Moscow. Tens of thousands amateurs and professional athletes competed Sunday in a 6 mile race in Yakhroma as part of a mass skiing competition held across the country every year.

  • AP Photo/Vincent Yu
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    Fireworks explode over the Victoria Harbour to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year in Hong Kong Monday.

  • AP Photo/John Minchillo
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    A production assistant removes the protective plastic tarp from the runway before the Vivienne Tam Fall 2013 collection is modeled during Fashion Week in New York.

  • AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino
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    Next: 25 Awe-Inspiring Photos from 2012

    A man holds an umbrella under heavy rain as he walks in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican, Monday. Declaring that he lacks the strength to do his job, Pope Benedict XVI announced he will resign Feb. 28, becoming the first pontiff to step down in 600 years.