Photos from Der Spiegel

This 45-minute exposure of a dilapitated barn near Iron River, Wisconsin captures the motion of stars. During the time exposure, the barn was lit with a battery-powered spotlight using a technique called light painting. The bright star in the upper right corner is Polaris, the North Star.

A worker fills a cardboard tube with gunpowder to make a firecracker in the Indian city of Siliguri. Fireworks are a major part of the Hindu festival of lights, Diwali.

A Ukrainian draftee is inspected at a military training center in Ukraine. Nearly 20,000 recruits were drafted in Ukraine this year.

Photos selected from a gallery of 51 images at Der Spiegel's best of 2009.  Follow this link for a gallery of the best of 2008.