Well, it’s that time of year again, where a look back at the year gives us reflection and inspiration for the year ahead, and photo compilations are everywhere. However, National Geographic just published their best images of 2016, and it is not to be missed. The photographs include some you may recognize, and some you may have overlooked, and even some awe inspiring underwater ones.

As 2016 is coming to a close, we hope your underwater photography from the past year took you places beyond your expectations and that you have many underwater photography adventures planned for 2017 and beyond.

See all of the incredible National Geographic imagery here.