Long Beach, Calif. — Evening rush-hour traffic moves slowly along the rain-soaked 405 Freeway. A large storm system is expected to bring even heavier rains in time for Wednesday's morning commute.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17590

0

Huntington Beach, Calif. — Erik Snow, 22, tries to to control his umbrella in the wind and rain as he walks along the Huntington Beach Pier with his girlfriend, Whitney Elder, 21.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17591

1

Manassas, Va. — A composite of three images shows the moon in different stages of a total lunar eclipse on Dec. 21. The eclipse fell on the same day as the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the first such occurrence in 372 years.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: KAREN BLEIER / AFP/Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17592

2

Vladivostok, Russia — Earth's shadow moves across the face of the Moon toward a full lunar eclipse, seen above a glowing sign with the Russian name of the far eastern city of Vladivostok. The eclipse is the first to coincide with the winter solstice since 1638.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: YURI MALTSEV / REUTERS

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17593

3

Chah Ghanbar, Iran — Iranian men gather around three of seven victims who died when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake hit the country's southeast. The epicenter was near the town of Hosseinabad in Kerman province and was followed by numerous aftershocks, including one of magnitude 5.0, the Mehr news agency said.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: HAMID SADEGHI / AFP/Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17594

4

Bangkok, Thailand — Members of a Thai bomb squad patrol a shopping mall in Bangkok. The government said it would lift a state of emergency in the city and three neighboring areas, seven months after a bloody military crackdown on anti-government "Red Shirt" protesters.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: PORNCHAI KITTIWONGSAKUL / AFP/Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17595

5

Montreal, Quebec — An acrobat, one of a cast of 52 that includes musicians and singers, performs in "Quidam." The production, which premiered in Montreal in 1996, is the ninth stage show produced by Cirque du Soleil.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ROGERIO BARBOSA / AFP/Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17596

6

Roebershagen, Germany — Ice sculptures glow with color at the Karls theme park. Thirteen artists from Germany, Poland, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Russia created a forest landscape made entirely of snow and ice for the exhibition, which opens Christmas Day.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: BERND WUESTNECK / EPA

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17597

7

Istanbul — Dervishes perform during Mevlana's 737th Reunion Anniversary Commemoration Ceremonies.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: OSMAN ORSAL / REUTERS

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17598

8

Chandigarh, India — A worker packs bags of onions at a wholesale vegetable market in northern India. Onion prices in the country have more than doubled in the last week because of a shortage caused by unusually heavy rains.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: AJAY VERMA / REUTERS

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17599

9

Ahmedabad, India — Schoolchildren attend a yoga class during a camp in western India. As many as 6,000 children were estimated to have participated.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: AMIT DAVE / REUTERS

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17600

10

Yokohama — A rabbit dressed as Santa Claus helps Japan celebrate Christmas and the Year of the Rabbit at a pet shop. 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit on the Chinese zodiac calendar.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: KIM KYUNG-HOON / REUTERS

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17601

11

London — Police watch as hundreds of people line up at St. Pancras Station for the Eurostar train to France and Belgium. Major delays and cancellations persisted Tuesday at European airports, including London's Heathrow, and on the Eurostar train link, leaving thousands stranded across Europe as Christmas approached.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Lewis Whyld / Associated Press

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17425

12

London — Passengers wait to check in for flights outside Terminal 3 of Heathrow Airport as weather-related delays increased. More than half the flights at Europe's busiest international hub were expected to be canceled.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Matt Dunham / Associated Press

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17426

13

Reykjavík, Iceland — About 30 people brave the bitter cold to gather around a telescope set up by the Amateur Astronomical Society in a parking lot to observe the moon and stars on December 21, 2010. The lunar eclipse left a red glow in the Reykjavik sky early Tuesday.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: HALLDOR KOLBEINS / AFP / Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17427

14

San Salvador, El Salvador — A double-exposure shows the moon and the monument of "The Savior of the World" during a total lunar eclipse as seen from San Salvador. This eclipse occurred just hours before the solstice.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Jose Cabezas / AFP / Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17428

15

Arosa, Switzerland — Three snowshoe hikers watch the almost full moon rising behind the Weissfluhjoch Mountains in Arosa.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Alessandro Della Bella / Associated Press

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17429

16

Taiyuan, China — A vendor drinks tea as he waits for customers at his shoe stall in Taiyuan in Shanxi province. China's consumer price index was up 3.3% in 2010, exceeding the 3.0% target set earlier this year, China's state television said Tuesday.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Reuters

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17430

17

Bucharest, Romania — Members of an honor guard stand at attention during commemorations for victims of the bloody 1989 anti-Communist Romanian revolution, at the Heroes Cemetery in Bucharest. Romania's dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was arrested after the December 1989 popular uprising and was executed on Christmas Day that year.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Bogdan Cristel / Reuters

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17431

18

Khan Younis, Gaza Strip — A Palestinian man checks damage at an abandoned house that was destroyed during an Israeli airstrike overnight in Khan Younis. Violence is escalating along the Israeli-Gaza border.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Eyad Baba / Associated Press

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17432

19

Dinklage, Germany — Sister Monica of the Benedictine abbey of the castle Dinklage walks through the snow. The snow chaos in Europe has upset the plans of thousands of travelers in Germany.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Ingo Wagner / AFP / Getty Images

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17433

20

Sentosa Island, Singapore — A mannequin in a red Valentino dress graces a preview of the "Valentino, Retrospective: Past/Present/Future" exhibition at Resorts World Sentosa, one of Singapore's main tourist attractions.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Wong Maye-E / Associated Press

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=17434

21