It’s never been easier to keep up with what’s going on in the world. The news is everywhere – in our Facebook feeds, on the morning commute, during that lazy half hour before you switch off the TV and go to bed. But the tide of global affairs is often more upsetting than uplifting and it can be tempting to bury our heads in the sand. As the saying goes: a picture is worth a thousand words, so to offer a different perspective we've rounded up some of the most memorable images of the week's events, captured by the best photojournalists on the planet.
Surfers attempt to ride the Severn Bore as it passes in Newnham on Severn on 3rd February 2018 in Gloucestershire, England. The Bore, which follows this week's super moon and was given a four-star rating as it is likely to be one of the largest in 2018, attracts surfers from around the world. A natural tidal phenomenon and one of the largest in the world, the Severn Bore pushes a 4ft wave up the Severn Estuary and is at its most dramatic in spring when the tides are at their highest.
Photo: Matt Cardy/Getty Images
Punxsutawney Phil is held up by his handler for the crowd to see during the ceremonies for Groundhog Day on 2nd February 2018 in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Phil predicted six more weeks of winter after seeing his shadow. Groundhog Day is a popular tradition in the United States and Canada where people await the sunrise and the groundhog's exit from his winter den. If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow he regards it as an omen of six more weeks of bad weather and returns to his den. Early spring arrives if he does not see his shadow, causing Phil to remain above ground.
Photo: Brett Carlsen/Getty Images
A Palestinian protester confronts an Israeli soldier during an army search operation in the Palestinian village of Burqin in the northern occupied West Bank, on 3rd February 2018.
Photo: AFP PHOTO / JAAFAR ASHTIYEH/ Getty Images
The United Arab Emirates' Al-Fursan (The Knights) National Aerobatic Team performs with smoke during the 2018 Red Bull Air Race World Championship in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi on 3rd February 2018.
Photo: NEZAR BALOUT/AFP/Getty Images
Polar bear Bill swims in the pond of his enclosure of the zoo in Gelsenkirchen, western Germany, on 5th February 2018 as temperatures drop below zero degrees Celsius.
Photo: ROLAND WEIHRAUC/Getty Images
Palestinians take part in a protest against the US move to freeze funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) at the Rafah refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip on 6th February 2018.
Photo: SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images
College students take a selfie against a mural including Emmeline Pankhurst (top left) painted on the Molly House in the Gay Village on 6th February 2018 in Manchester, England. One hundred years ago, on 6th February 1918, the Representation of the People Act was passed, which allowed women to vote for the first time in the United Kingdom.
Photo: Anthony Devlin/Getty Images
Congolese children are seen inside a makeshift orphanage that houses children abandoned or separated from their families, in Beni, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), on 6th February 2018. Fighting between Ugandan Muslim militia, the Allied Defence Forces (ADF) and local government forces in eastern DRC as well as ongoing attacks by the ADF have displaced thousands of people since October 2017.
Photo: JOHN WESSELS/AFP/Getty Images
Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim of the United States compete in the Figure Skating Team Event – Pair Skating Short Program during the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Gangneung Ice Arena on 9th February 2018 in Gangneung, South Korea.
Photo: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
A rescue worker takes a photo of the Yun Tsui building, which is leaning at a precarious angle, in the Taiwanese city of Hualien on 8th February 2018, after the city was hit by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake late on 6th February. Taiwanese rescuers continued the terrifying task on 8th February of searching for survivors in a dangerously leaning apartment block that was partially toppled by the quake, despite regular aftershocks coursing through the building's tottering structure.
Photo: ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP/Getty Images
Syrian civilians flee from reported regime air strikes in the rebel-held town of Jisreen, in the besieged Eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, on 8th February 2018. A fourth consecutive day of heavy regime bombing raids on the rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta near Damascus killed 22 civilians on 8th February, a monitor said.
Photo: ABDULMONAM EASSA/AFP/Getty Images
A zookeeper poses with penguins during the annual stocktake at ZSL London Zoo in central London on 7th February 2018.
Photo: BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images
Spanish ski mountaineer Kilian Jornet Burgada competes in the 4th stage of the Ski-Mountaineering World Cup in Puy-Saint-Vincent on 8th February 2018.
Photo: JEFF PACHOUD/AFP/Getty ImagesLike what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
You Don't Need To Tell Me That A 26-Year-Old Can't Afford To Buy A House
7 Photos That Tell The Story Of The Last 7 Days
Fashion Blogger's Astute Reply When Asked About Iran Goes Viral