IMAGES FOR SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL

Transcript

INTERNATIONAL
IMAGES FOR SCIENCE
AN EXHIBITION OF THE WORLD’S BEST SCIENTIFIC PHOTOGRAPHY
INTERNATIONAL IMAGES FOR SCIENCE 2013
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LEWIS MORRIS RUTHERFURD (1816-1892)
The Moon, photographed from New York, 6 March 1865
Albumen print
The Royal Photographic Society Collection at the National Media Museum, Bradford, United Kingdom
Shortly after the announcement of the daguerreotype in 1839 its inventor, Louis Daguerre, exhibited the world’s
first photographic image of the moon. It was faint but it showed what might be possible with photography and
astro-photography dates from this time as other used it to support their own experiments. In 1841 John William
Draper produced a far more successful series of daguerreotypes of the moon showing its principal features. In 1851
a series of seventy plates by John Adams Whipple and William Cranch Bond were exhibited to great acclaim at the
Great Exhibition. These reinforced photography’s claim to produce the best representations of the moon, particularly
as albumen and collodion emulsions on glass replaced earlier processes.
Other photographers such as Warren de la Rue and Lewis Morris Rutherfurd all produced ever more detailed images
of the moon which were used to produce lunar maps and to support astronomical research.
Rutherfurd had started photographing the moon from 1856, developing his own achromatic optics to improve
his results. His photographs were widely published in a variety of formats including stereoscopic pairs and as
large-format photographs. Although scientists were divided about their worth, the public greeted the images
with acclaim. He was praised at the time as ‘the greatest lunar photographer of the age’.
MICHAEL PRITCHARD FRPS
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FOREWORD
ROY ROBERTSON HonFRPS
President
The Royal Photographic Society
Science has always been an integral part of The Royal Photographic Society’s activities since
it was formed in 1853. Founded to promote the Art and Science of Photography, our remit is
wide ranging. Special Interest Groups include the Imaging Science, 3D and Holography and the
Medical Groups, and The Society runs a wide ranging Exhibition programme. These can be open
to both members and non-members.
The International Print Exhibition, the world’s longest running Print Exhibition, originally included
scientific images, but with the decline of these, The International Images for Science Exhibition,
was established in 2011, and was received with enthusiasm across the world, being shown to
large audiences in the UK, Europe and China.
The Society plans to build on the success of this previous exhibition, holding it every second year.
It provides a showcase for an extraordinary variety of scientific photography – images that explore
worlds we can only imagine, or that are used as tools in everyday life in medicine, engineering
and other related fields. They do this in a way that can inform, question, or simply inspire.
It is hoped that this exhibition, for which we are grateful to the Science and Technology Facilities
Council for its support, can build on the success of the previous exhibition, reach new audiences,
and continue to make scientific images accessible to a wider public.
I am grateful to Afzal Ansary ASIS FRPS for continuing to manage this superb exhibition, and
to our sponsors for enabling the exhibition to be produced and presented. My thanks also to
all those who contributed to the exhibition, and to the selectors who had the difficult task of
selecting this varied, informative and fascinating series of photographs.
I hope you enjoy it, and want to know more!
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INTRODUCTION
AFZAL ANSARY ASIS FRPS
Exhibition Co-Ordinator
International Images for Science Exhibition 2013
Since 1853, when it was established, The Royal Photographic Society (RPS) has promoted
the art and science of photography. In September 2011, The Society held its first International
Images for Science Exhibition, showcasing the vast range of applications of photography within
modern-day science.
The 2011 exhibition was an overwhelming success reflecting the quality of the images selected.
It was seen at the Edinburgh Science Festival, the Palace of Westminster and the Royal Albert
Hall and at educational establishments in the UK and Europe. It has been exhibited in China
and a complete set of all 50 images will be archived at the National Media Museum, Bradford,
UK. The exhibition was universally praised for being a showcase for the work that scientists do
and for showing how they use photography to support research and development.
Building on the success of the 2011 Exhibition, The Royal Photographic Society, in partnership
with the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), has organised the International
Images for Science Exhibition 2013. For this exhibition, submissions were open to both
members and non-members of The Society. Scientists, scientific photographers, researchers,
engineers, and technologists from 15 countries, including USA, Australia, Sweden and Israel
submitted images. The final 100, chosen after a rigorous selection process, include photographs
made by scientists for their research, as well as photographs made by scientific photographers
to record science. Together they represent many, but still only a small fraction of applications of
diverse photographic techniques currently in use.
To study and discover new fields, scientists need new tools. Analogue photography has
evolved into highly sophisticated digital imaging systems made to precise technical
specifications. They are capable of yielding very specific results, appropriate for diagnosis,
evaluation, measurements, assessment and investigation. The images often serve a dual
purpose as scientists use them for pictorial documentation, communication, presentations
and publications.
Photography plays an important role in diverse fields of science. In astronomy it is used to
study the composition of the nebulae and count stars, in oceanography, it helps to study
sea-floor geological formations as well as recording the migration and behaviour of marine
life, and in geography it not only aids in map making but in comparing tracts of land or urban
areas over time.
There are a number of scientific applications of photography such as micro and macrophotography, ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) photography, time lapse and high speed,
electron microscopy, thermography, fluorescein angiography, retinal photography, phase contrast
microscopy, schlieren photography, stress analysis and the list goes on. While new innovative
scientific imaging techniques are being developed, the old ones are finding new applications.
The Telegraph (thetelegraph.co.uk – 17 May 2013) reported “Professor Simon Fishel, one of the
world’s leading fertility specialists, explains how using time-lapse imaging is enabling scientists
to predict which embryo has the greatest chance of a successful birth”. With this time-lapse
imaging technique the scientists can now see more than 5000 images taken over a period of
five days as compared to the conventional method when the embryo development would be
checked up to six times over the same period.
A UK survey conducted by Ipsos MORI in 2011 on Public Attitudes to Science revealed that
51 percent said that they hear and see too little information about science. Over 80 percent
agreed that science is such a big part of our lives that we should all take an interest and twothirds thought it was important to know about science in daily life. Our International Images
for Science Exhibition is unique, in that it provides access to images from a range of fields,
which the public rarely gets to see. This is perhaps not surprising, given that most scientific
imagery remains within its specialist scientific area. This exhibition brings this material into
public view, allowing us to see that these images are not only important for science, but
are often beautiful and fascinating works of art in their own right. Public engagement is
valuable for better understanding of the role that photography plays in scientific research and
development. As Wilder (page 5) highlights “Photography, long a tool for illustrating the best
and newest science, has now become a more active participant, joining science with society
through exhibition and public engagement”.
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These images are not only outstanding records of seldom seen objects or events but they also provide a wealth of
scientific information. Words are usually not able to express or indicate all the information that a photograph can show.
Therefore, scientists need to communicate their discoveries by pictorial documentation in the form of photographs.
In fact, the application of photography to science is as old as photography itself.
Photography also has an important role in archaeology, natural history, medicine, forensic science, engineering,
fundamental research and through to every branch of science and technology. The International Images for Science
Exhibition 2013 : An exhibition of the world’s best scientific photography serves as a showcase for the vast range of
applications of photography within modern-day science.
This exhibition shows images recorded by a number of imaging techniques that include: macrophotography,
photomicrography, scanning electron micrography (SEM), time-lapse photography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI),
thermography, schelieren photography and 3D reconstructed imaging, computed tomography (CT) and high
speed photography.
Scientific research and development is important and necessary in today’s world – without which the world’s civilisation
would stagnate. The process of scientific imaging to document the research progress and research findings is equally
important. Pick up any scientific journal and it will be almost impossible to find any article that is not illustrated with
images. Images simplify complicated scientific data revealing information that might not be visible to the naked eye.
Academics have to publish to be able to communicate the outcome of their work and their publications need imagery.
Exploration and understanding of space and galaxies have always intrigued humans, inspiring us to pictorially document
what we have observed from very early on. In 1839 Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre (1787-1851), a French artist and
diorama proprietor, reportedly took the world’s first photographic image of the moon. Even though the daguerreotype’s
sensitivity to light was very poor and the camera optics were crude, the mere suggestion of an image made by the light
of the moon sent journalists into raptures. Modern day imaging techniques have given us a better understanding of outer
space, stars and galaxies by showing texture and details that would otherwise be indiscernible. Such images are further
analysed and processed by the mighty power of the computer, thus bringing vast galaxies much closer to us, and revealing
the most fascinating aspects of astronomy. Astronomical imaging has now become an essential tool for astronomers as
Burnell explains (page 4).
With its remit as an educational charity, The Society supports this exhibition as a unique opportunity to promote a better
understanding of the role that imaging plays in scientific research and development.
I would like to express my personal thanks, as well as those of The Society, to the following, without whose efforts and
contributions the exhibition simply would not have been possible: Natalie Bealing and the Science and Technology
Facilities Council (STFC) for their support and partnership; Professor Joceyln Bell Burnell and Dr Kelley Wilder for their
contribution in writing articles for this catalogue; The team of selectors: Catherine Draycott, Wellcome Trust; Gary Evans
ASIS FRPS, Science Photo Library; Professor Ralph Jacobson ASIS HonFRPS, Chair of the Imaging Scientist Qualifications
Board and past President; and Dr Uschi Steigenberger, formerly of the STFC, for their time, effort and expertise.
I would like to thank all of the sponsoring organisations for their support, for the second time – The British Institute
of Professional Photography, Science Photo Library, The Wellcome Trust, Paul Graham image specialists,
Creativity Backgrounds, Loxley Colour and Towergate Camerasure.
My thanks go to The Society’s President, Roy Robertson HonFRPS; Vice President and Chair of Science Committee,
Derek Birch ASIS FRPS; and the members of the RPS Council, for giving me the opportunity, once again, to co-ordinate
the exhibition. Also from The Society, I would like to thank Michael Pritchard FRPS, Director General; Lesley Goode,
Exhibitions Manager; Sally Smart ARPS, Exhibitions Assistant; Nicholas Rogers, Finance Manager; Tony Mant,
Database Manager; and David Land and Sue Harper, Editor and Assistant Editor of the RPS Journal.
I thank Professor Michael Peres, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA, for sharing his experiences with me.
Finally, my thanks go to David Spears ASIS FRPS; John Roe ARPS, of Omni; Colin Harding, of the National Media Museum;
and Phil Stapleton LRPS, of PhotoCompSoftware.com.
The exhibition launches on 31 August at the Great North Museum, Hancock, Newcastle, as part of the British Science Festival.
It will then tour the UK and abroad. All the images in the exhibition will be displayed at www.rps.org, under ‘Exhibitions’.
I hope you will enjoy seeing the exhibition as much as I have enjoyed curating it.
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ASTRONOMICAL IMAGING - AN ESSENTIAL TOOL
JOCELYN BELL BURNELL DBE
Visiting Professor, Astrophysics
University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Astronomical imaging predates photography; until the latter part of the nineteenth century
observers made sketches of what they saw through their telescopes. This was not straightforward,
as observers had to preserve their dark adaption – the sensitivity that comes after ten to twenty
minutes in the dark. At the same time they needed enough light to see to make the sketches!
Imaging is central in astronomy, and it has developed beyond wanting higher resolution optical
images of fainter objects. Astronomy is done right across the electromagnetic spectrum, from
high energy gamma ray astronomy to long wavelength radio astronomy. In every waveband we
are helped by having an image (or map) showing how the brightness of an object varies across
it. Sometimes in making the map one or another polarization is selected; this helps us towards
an understanding of the physical processes taking place, for example linear polarization is often
caused by a magnetic field.
Spectroscopy also reveals the underlying physical conditions and maps or images taken in a
particular spectral line are another starting point. For example, there is ubiquitous emission from
hydrogen atoms at the radio wavelength of twenty-one centimetres, or the rarer emission-line
objects can be found in the optical by making images in the red hydrogen alpha line. Sometimes
the image or map is acquired indirectly. In radio astronomy the data from an interferometer has
to be Fourier transformed to give the map. Sometimes it is helpful to change the contrast in an
image, or to take the gradient of the intensity. Computer manipulation of an image is the norm
these days, and astronomers regularly display images using false colours.
There are times when the human eye and brain do better than a computer, for example when
classifying galaxies by their shape. The problem has been the number of galaxies. One poor
research student had images of a million galaxies to classify. Working flat out he found he could
(only) do fifty thousand in a week! This led to the Citizen Science project ‘Galaxy Zoo’. The images
were put up on the web and volunteers were invited to help. A quarter of a million people joined
in! Now the Citizen Science website ‘Zooniverse’ has many more projects like this and earlier this
year had over eight hundred thousand people worldwide taking part.
Increased computing power for image processing has led to other innovative projects. At Palomar
Observatory in California, for example, a small telescope takes sixty-second exposures of a large
area of sky and repeats these exposures at intervals of anywhere between sixty seconds and five
days. Comparison of one photo with another picks out celestial objects that change brightness (or
move). In this way a new astronomical domain – that of transient objects – is being opened up. A
similar thing is being done in radio astronomy using the Low Frequency Radio Array (LOFAR) radio
telescope, one part of which is in Hampshire. It is too soon for final results but early indications
are intriguing. As they say – watch this space!
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PHOTOGRAPHY, SCIENCE AND SOCIETY
KELLEY WILDER
Reader in Photographic History, Photographic History Research Centre,
De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom
In the nineteenth century the audience for science was quite select. Whether it was the
educated classes attending demonstrations at the Adelaide Galleries, or colleagues at the
Royal Institution lectures, or visitors to the Crystal Palace, never had so many people been
more interested in the exploits of scientists or the wonders of scientific discovery. And yet this
audience still consisted largely of the moneyed and the educated. Photography, when it was
announced to the public in 1839, entered this dialogue between science and its audience
so seamlessly that it appeared to have always been there. It too was a pastime for those
interested in the arts and sciences, who had time on their hands and a disposable income.
So much has changed since then. Now cheap, transferable images are available to large
portions of some societies (there are still many areas where these images are not available),
and photography brings not only science to its audiences, but it generates new audiences,
bringing society to science in unprecedented ways. The transformation owes as much to
scientific policy as it does to photographic innovation, and it informs the use of photography
in science and the relationship of photography, science and society.
On January 12, 1839, the Literary Gazette described the invention of the daguerreotype as
‘a prodigy’ that ‘...disconcerts all the theories of science in light and optics, and, if borne
out, promises to make a revolution in the arts of design.’ The hyperbolic rhetoric describing
photography’s invention, the purported crowds attending demonstrations, the secrecy of the
process, and the nature of its exhibition all conspired to heighten the sensation that here
was some wondrous insight into the world. And yet it would be decades before photography
could be successfully or consistently applied to astronomy, microscopy and many other
sciences. In spite of the relative difficulty of applying photography to scientific endeavour,
the rhetoric was largely positive, and scientists were rewarded for bringing new discoveries
to photographic light, with lucrative speaking engagements, book contracts and university
posts. Increasingly diverse crowds flocked to public exhibitions and lantern slide lectures that
showcased everything from very, very small organisms and enormous nebulae to algae and
archaeological digs. It was a culture of spectacle, but also of education. Through photography,
scientists could offer up their newest and most astonishing discoveries for the enlightenment of
students of all ages.
By the first decades of the twentieth century, however, some scientists worried that this culture
of spectacle did science a disservice. Its assumed one way delivery (from experts to non
experts) alienated audiences and failed to engage them in the debates that sophisticated
scientific endeavour required. No longer was it enough for photography to be, as Berenice
Abbot put it, a ‘friendly interpreter’ between science and society. Instead, public engagement
and the acknowledgement of the social aspects of science, required that photography act
as a platform for bringing science and society together. Increasingly, this platform has used
the vehicle of public exhibition. One finds these exhibitions everywhere – from the humble
research poster at academic conferences, catching delegates’ eyes from a distance and inviting
them closer for a more in-depth discussion, to extensive showcases of visually arresting,
and scientifically relevant photographs like the Nikon Small World competition or indeed,
the International Images for Science Exhibition. Exhibitions on a small scale are replicated
on websites of science researchers, laboratories, and foundations. In these exhibitions,
photography plays the role of linking the public to the research of scientists, inviting them to
engage with current research in different ways. One has only to see the deployment of the
Hubble telescope images as large scale wall decoration through LUMAS, or the repeated
journalistic use of images from Mars to see this. Institutions that have education at the heart of
their mission, like the Smithsonian Institution, produce their own traveling exhibitions, like the
Hubble Space Telescope: New Views of the Universe. It is a revolving door – the photographs
act as a stimulus to bring people together, rather than a set of facts to be accepted.
Photography, long a tool for illustrating the best and newest science, has now become a more
active participant, joining science with society through exhibition and public engagement.
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DAVID MALIN FRPS
Dimedone – Cyclomethone,
5,5-Dimethyl-1, 3-Cyclohexanedione :
1972
RMIT University, Melbourne & Australian
Astronomical Observatory, Sydney,
New South Wales, Australia
Complex structures within a colourless crystal
are revealed using polarised light microscopy.
Dimedone is one of a class of chemicals
called diketones. These are used in the
production of a variety of chemicals such
as agricultural products, dyes and pigments,
synthetic vitamins and in the plastic industry
as a stabiliser. This image was captured on
4x5 inch transparency film using a Projectina
microscope and Leitz optics.
[email protected]
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SPIKE WALKER ASIS FRPS
Lagena Species Foraminifera : 2013
Penkridge, Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Light micrograph of a foraminiferan of the genus
Lagena. The foraminiferans are a class of marine
protists that have an external shell, or ‘test’.
Most commonly these are made of calcium
carbonate. When the organism dies, these
tests sink to the sea bed and over geological
time form the bulk of carbonate rocks such as
chalk and limestone. About 270,000 species,
living and in the fossil record, have been
described. Individuals of Lagena are typically
around 0.4mm long. This image was made
using ‘Spikeberg’ illumination, a combination
of polarised light and Rheinberg illumination
pioneered by the photographer, and captured on
a Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera. The extended
depth of field was achieved using stacking
software to combine 54 individual frames
focused at intervals of 4 micrometres.
[email protected]
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HARALD KLEINE
Focusing Shock : 2007
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School of Engineering and Information Technology, University of New South
Wales / Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra, Australia
Interferometry image of the complex patterns created by a reflected shockwave.
The shockwave has travelled down a shock tube from the top of the image to hit a
cylindrical reflector at the bottom. Parts of the shock wave collide producing huge
pressure variations, witnessed by the close-packed colour fringes. The image was
created by illuminating the shock tube with a flash gun, the light passing through
then hits an interference plate, and was captured using a high-speed video camera
with an exposure time of 0.6 microseconds.
[email protected]
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ADRIAN DAVIES ARPS
Seed Spiralling Down from Sycamore Tree in Autumn : 2012
Surrey, United Kingdom
Triple exposure image showing a seed falling from a Sycamore tree (Acer
pseudoplanatus). The sycamore ‘seed’ is technically a samara, in which the seed is
attached to a papery membrane that forms a wing. When the samara falls from the
tree, the wing makes it autorotate, slowing its descent rate and allowing it to be blown
further from the parent by the wind. This image was created in three exposures – the
first with flash to show the leaves and seeds, the next a half-second exposure showing
the spiralling fall and the last a flash exposure to freeze the samara at the bottom of
its descent. These were recorded on a Nikon D300S camera with 105mm macro lens.
[email protected]
www.adriandaviesimaging.com
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ADRIAN DAVIES ARPS
Pollen Being Discharged from Ash Tree Fraxinus excelsior : 2012
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Surrey, United Kingdom
Male flowers of a European Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) releasing pollen. Ash trees are
wind pollinated. They normally have either all male or all female flowers, although
mixed trees do occur and an individual tree can be one gender one season then the
other the next year. Ash trees in Europe are currently under threat from the disease
Ash Dieback, caused by the fungus Chalara fraxinea. This image was taken using a
Nikon D300 camera with a 105mm macro lens with lighting from three flash units.
[email protected]
www.adriandaviesimaging.com
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ROBERT HURT
Massive Star Making Waves : 2012
Spitzer Science Center, California Institute of Technology,
Pasadena, California, USA
The vast bow wave caused as stellar winds hit surrounding cosmic dust clouds is
captured in this striking image. At the centre is the giant star Zeta Ophiuchi, which
is moving through the surrounding space at about 24 kilometres per second about
370 light years from Earth. Stars generate a stellar wind, high-energy particles that
blast from their surface. Where this stellar wind hits the dust clouds a shock wave
forms, very much like the bow wave that precedes a ship moving at sea or the sonic
boom of a supersonic aircraft. In space, the effect is to heat up the dust which can
then be seen glowing in infrared radiation. The infrared radiation is colour coded by
wavelength: infrared at 3.6 and 4.5 micrometres are coloured blue, 8.0 micrometres
in green and 24 micrometres in red. The data for this image were captured by NASA’s
orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope.
[email protected]
www.spitzer.caltech.edu
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ROBERT HURT
The Dusty Spectacle of Orion : 2013
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The Great Nebula in Orion is shown here to be a vast cloud of gas and dust, glowing
in infrared and heated by large numbers of new stars. This view spans about 100 light
years, in the sky this would appear six times the size of the full Moon. The bright star
cluster in the centre of the nebula is easily visible to the unaided eye as part of the
‘sword’ in the constellation Orion. The infrared radiation seen here has been colour
coded according to its wavelength: cooler, longer wavelengths are shown in green
and cyan; hotter, shorter wavelengths in white and red. The data for this image were
captured by NASA’s Widefield Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft.
[email protected]
INTERNATIONAL IMAGES FOR SCIENCE 2013 11
TEAM LED BY OLIVER HAINAULT
The Wings of the Seagull Nebula : 2012
ePOD/ESO, European Southern Observatory, Garching, Germany
Dark clouds of dust and clouds of gas glowing red define the Seagull Nebula. The red
colour comes from hydrogen gas that is ionised by the ultraviolet light of hot, young
stars within the nebula. The same light, scattered by dust, gives patches of a gentle
blue haze. This is typical of what is known as an HII region. Known to astronomers as
IC 2177, the Seagull Nebula is a star forming region that lies around 3700 light years
from Earth on the border of the constellations Canis Minor and Monoceros. This frame
spans about 100 light years in width. This image was gathered using the MPG/ESO
2.2 metre telescope at the ESO La Silla Observatory, Chile.
[email protected]
www.eso.org
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RICHARD BOWER
The Invisible Universe : 2013
Institute of Computational Cosmology,
Department of Physics, University of Durham,
Durham, United Kingdom
Frame from a computer simulation of a large
portion of the observable Universe. The image
contains thousands of galaxies, each containing
clouds of stars here coloured pink. These are
the structures that are normally visible to
astronomers. Between the galaxies are immense
streams of cooler gas, coloured according to
temperature from blue (300 degrees) through
green and yellow to red (6 million degrees).
The distribution of matter through the Universe
is governed by the interplay of these cosmic
streamers of relatively cool gas that is not visible
to astronomers.
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[email protected]
www.dur.ac.uk/r.g.bower/Site/EAGLE.html
NICHOLAS WRIGHT
Triggering the Birth of Stars : 2010
Centre for Astrophysics Research,
University of Hertfordshire,
Hatfield, United Kingdom
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This image shows the ‘Elephant Trunk Nebula’,
a column of dark gas and dust about 2400
light years away from Earth in the constellation
Cepheus. A massive star out of frame to the
left is illuminating the nebula with ultraviolet
light, causing gas to ‘boil’ from the surface.
Fluctuations in density within the nebula cause
gas and dust to gather, eventually enough
material will clump together that it collapses
under its own gravity and ignites as a new star.
This image was composed from three exposures
combined in colour channels to make an RGB
image: a broad red filter (reproduced in green),
a broad infrared filter (reproduced in blue) and
a narrow ionised Hydrogen-alpha band filter
(reproduced in red). The data for this image
were gathered using the Wide Field Camera on
the Isaac Newton Telescope (INT) in La Palma,
Canary Islands.
[email protected]
ROBERT GENDLER
Trifid Nebula : 1997-2002
Robert Gendler Astronomy, Avon,
Connecticut, USA
Clouds of gas and dust mingle in a star-forming
region known as the Trifid Nebula. The three dark
arms that give the nebula its name almost hide
our view of the massive star at the centre, the
light from which has carved out this spherical
hollow in the surrounding material and make it
glow. The nebula, catalogued by astronomers as
Messier 20 or NGC 6514, spans about ten light
years in this frame. It is located about 9000
light years away in the constellation Sagittarius.
This image was assembled by the photographer
from various components: luminance data from
the 8.2 metre Subaru telescope in Hawai’i,
detail from the orbiting 2.4 metre Hubble
Space Telescope and colour data by amateur
astronomer Martin Pugh.
[email protected]
www.robgendlerastropics.com
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ROBERT GENDLER
Ring Nebula : 1995-2008
Robert Gendler Astronomy, Avon,
Connecticut, USA
Both the inner and outer structure of the famous
Ring Nebula is shown in this composite image.
The Ring Nebula was formed from the gas blown
out by a sun-like star toward the end of its life.
By this stage the star has used up its hydrogen
and is burning helium instead, its core has
contracted and its outer gas blown out to form
a red giant. When this fuel is exhausted,
complex processes eject huge shells of
gas which we see as a ‘planetary nebula’.
The Ring Nebula, catalogued by astronomers
as Messier 57 or NGC 6720, lies about 2300
light years from Earth in the constellation Lyra.
The central ring of the nebula is about one
light year across. This image was assembled
from data gathered by the orbiting 2.4 metre
Hubble Space Telescope, the 8.2 metre Subaru
Telescope in Hawai’i and the photographer’s
own 14.5 inch telescope.
[email protected]
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MARK MAIO
20/20 : 2011
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Digital Institute for Science and Medicine, Alpharetta, Georgia, USA
Composite of 20 images of human irises. The colour and structure of the iris is as
individual to a person as their fingerprints. Indeed, iris recognition is used in many
security applications. The images were captured using a slit lamp camera – a flash
passes through a thin directional slit to create a very narrow sheet of light that passes
over the iris from the side and the image recorded on a Canon 50D digital SLR.
The individual images were then assembled in an image editing program.
[email protected]
www.digitalimaginginstitute.com
ROBERT GENDLER
Spiral Planetary Nebula : 2012
Robert Gendler Astronomy, Avon, Connecticut, USA
The strange S-shape that gives the Spiral Planetary Nebula its common name is
seen clearly in this composite image. A planetary nebula is formed from the gas
blown out by a sun-like star toward the end of its life. By this stage the star has used
up its hydrogen and is burning helium instead, its core has contracted and its outer
gas blown out to form a red giant. When this fuel is exhausted, complex processes
eject huge shells of gas. Normally this is seen as an almost symmetrical shape, but
here interactions in the expanding gas have resulted in this spiral shape. The nebula,
catalogued by astronomers as NGC 5189, lies about 1,780 light years from Earth in
the constellation in the constellation Musca. This image was assembled from data
gathered by the orbiting 2.4 metre Hubble Space Telescope, the 8.1 metre Gemini
North Telescope in Hawai’i and the photographer’s own 14.5 inch telescope.
[email protected]
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DAVID SCHARF
Human Lymphocyte : 2011
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David Scharf Photography, Los Angeles, California, USA
Scanning electron micrograph of a human Natural Killer (NK) lymphocyte.
Lymphocytes are cells that mediate the immune system. NK cells such as this can
distinguish the surface proteins on normal cells that have been infected by a virus or
that have grown in a tumour. When it detects such a cell, the NK lymphocyte engulfs
and destroys it. The NK cell seen here is about 18 micrometres wide and was grown
in culture, fixed and dehydrated before being coated with platinum. The colours in this
image come from multiple secondary detectors in the microscope through a system
invented by Mr Scharf.
[email protected]
www.electronmicro.com
ROBERT GENDLER
Messier 106 : 1995-2003
Robert Gendler Astronomy, Avon, Connecticut, USA
A composite of space – and ground – based images reveal the grand structure of spiral
galaxy Messier 106. M106 is a so-called Seyfert galaxy, one with an exceptionally
bright core harbouring a supermassive black hole. The careful choice of filters allows
us to see the tenuous ‘anomalous arms’ (red), vast sweeps of gas heated to millions
of degrees, energised when matter falls into the central black hole. This frame spans
about 500,000 light years. Also known as NGC 4258, M106 is found about
23.5 million light years from Earth in the constellation Canes Venatici. This image
was created by combining data from the Hubble Space Telescope with ground-based
imagery taken by the photographer and Jay GaBany.
[email protected]
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ROBERT HURT
The Ultraviolet Andromeda Galaxy : 2012
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Hot stars burn brightly in this ultraviolet view of the Andromeda Galaxy. The bluewhite colours define the spiral arms in which young, hot, massive stars reside.
Between them are darker blue-grey lines where dust obscures star formation
regions. The Andromeda Galaxy, catalogued by astronomers as Messier 31, is the
nearest large galaxy to our own Milky Way sitting about 2.5 million light years away.
It is bright enough that the core is visible with the naked eye on a clear night as a
slightly fuzzy star-like object. The data for this image were gathered by NASA’s Galaxy
Evolution Explorer satellite. Shortwave ultraviolet radiation is shown in blue and
longwave ultraviolet in orange.
[email protected]
DANIEL KARIKO
Weevil Found on Front Porch, Doormat : 2012
School for Art and Design, East Carolina University, Greenville, USA
Extreme close-up view of the head of a weevil. There are over 40,000 species of
true weevils in the family Circulionidae, beetle-like creatures typified by a long snout
and clubbed antennae. This is part of a series investigating our often-overlooked
housemates, a result of the expansion of our habitat into rural areas. The image is a
composite of light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
[email protected]
www.danielkariko.com
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NICOLE OTTAWA
Tardigrade, or Water Bear : 2010
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Eye of Science, Reutlingen, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of a tardigrade, Paramacrobiotus craterlaki.
This fully-grown specimen is about 1mm in length and was found on moss in Crater
Lake, Tanzania. Tardigrades, or water bears, are tiny invertebrates that live in aquatic
and semi-aquatic habitats such as lichen and damp moss. They require water to
obtain oxygen by gas exchange. In dry conditions, they can enter a cryptobiotic
state of dessication in which their body water content is just 3 percent. In this state
they may to survive for decades. P. craterlaki is a carnivorous species that feeds on
nematodes and rotifers. Water bears are found throughout the world, including extreme
environments such as hot springs and deep underwater. They can also survive the high
levels of radiation and vacuum of space. This image was created in monochrome then
later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.eyeofscience.de
ANDREW SYRED & CHERYL POWER
Large White Butterfly Scent Scale : 2010
PS Micrographs, Powys, United Kingdom
Scanning electron micrograph of the wing of a Large White butterfly (Pieris brassicae)
showing the scent scale at centre. Also known as the androconium, this specialised
scale is used by the male butterfly to disseminate pheromones to attract a mate.
This image was captured in monochrome and then later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.psmicrographs.co.uk
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NICOLE OTTAWA
Evening Primrose Pollen : 2013
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Coloured scanning electron micrograph of the surface of a single grain of pollen of an
Evening Primrose (Oenothera sp.). This part of the sample is about 50 micrometres
wide. The very high magnification shows that the pollen grain has very fine hairs
(white) made of viscin that allow the grain to grip the body of a passing insect for
transport to another flower. These threads mean that the pollen may often only be
transported by an individual species of bee. There are about 125 species of Evening
Primrose, each adapted to be pollinated by a particular type of bee. This image was
created in monochrome then digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.eyeofscience.de
DAVID MALIN FRPS
Tungsten-Aluminium Alloy :
1970-2008
RMIT University, Melbourne & Australian
Astronomical Observatory, Sydney,
New South Wales, Australia
Composite scanning electron micrograph of
tungsten crystals in a matrix of aluminium.
SEMs work by scanning an electron beam
across a sample and detecting the scattered
electrons. However, the beam can penetrate
the surface of a sample depending on the
accelerating voltage and the atomic number
of the metal. Here three SEMs were created
at voltages between 5kV and 30kV. At higher
voltages the aluminium matrix appears
increasingly transparent. The original images
were made in 1970 as monochrome prints.
In 2008 they were scanned and combined as
different colour layers into a single digital image.
[email protected]
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Silkworm Cocoon Silk Fibres : 2012
Scanning electron micrograph of silk fibres.
Silk is the fibre spun by the larva of the
domesticated silkmoth (Bombyx mori).
During pupation the larva makes a protective
cocoon of these fibres, comprising two strands of
fibroin cemented together with gum-like sericin.
Each fibre may be up to 900 metres long. This
image was captured in monochrome then later
digitally colourised.
[email protected]
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NICKY GOODFELLOW
Lymphangiomas and Angiokeratomas on Leg : 2012
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Medical Illustration Services, Perth Royal Infirmary, Perth, United Kingdom
Photograph showing lymphangiomas and angiokeratomas clustered on the leg of a
patient. Localised abnormalities in the lymph system affect normal skin growth.
This causes multiple small tumours to grow. These often coalesce and may ooze fluid
and become infected. As well as causing embarrassment from their appearance, such
clusters may cause discomfort and restrict mobility. This image was captured in a
studio using a Nikon D90 camera and 105mm macro lens, with lateral diffuse
flash lighting.
[email protected]
GABRIEL BRAMMER
Comets and Shooting Stars Dance
Over Paranal : 2013
ESO Photo Ambassador, European Southern
Observatory, Garching, Germany
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Two comets and a meteor seen at sunset
over the Paranal Observatory in Chile. Close
to the horizon at right is Comet C/2011 L4
(PanSTARRS), its tail of dust reflecting sunlight.
Near the centre of the image just above the
mountain slope is the fuzzy Comet C/2012 F6
(Lemmon), the ionised gas in its coma glowing
with a greenish hue. The brightish streak lying
between the two comets is a meteor, or
falling star, that happened to collide with our
atmosphere at just the right time. The larger
fuzzy patch at top left is the Small Magellanic
Cloud (SMC), a dwarf galaxy that orbits the
Milky Way. The mountain seen here is Cerro
Paranal, home to the Very Large Telescope
(VLT), comprising four telescopes each of 8.2
metres diameter and operated by the European
Southern Observatory. This image was captured
on a Nikon D600 camera and 24-70mm
lens with an exposure time of 69 seconds at
ISO2000. The camera was mounted on an
Astrotrac mount to prevent blurring of the
star images.
[email protected]
www.eso.org
DAVID DOUBILET HonFRPS
World of Penguins,
Antarctic Peninsula : 2011
National Geographic Magazine (Contributing
Photographer), Clayton, New York, USA
Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins on a small ice
floe in the ocean near Danko Island, Antarctica.
The photographer observed them pushing each
other off the floe and swimming in the water as
if playing a game of tag. The two species belong
to the genus Pygoscelis, Gentoos are P. papua
and Chinstraps are P. antarcticus. The two species
probably diverged about 14 million years ago.
Gentoos are slightly larger than Chinstraps
and are the fastest swimmers of all penguin
species, reaching speeds of 36 km/h underwater.
This image was captured with a Nikon D3 camera
and 17-35mm lens in a customised waterproof
housing and twin flash units.
[email protected]
www.daviddoubilet.com
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DAVID MALIN FRPS
Star Trails over the Dome of the Anglo-Australian Telescope : 1979
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RMIT University, Melbourne & Australian Astronomical Observatory,
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
As the Earth spins on its axis, the stars appear to slowly draw out huge arcs in the sky.
By using a long time exposure, the stars leave curved trails concentric about the
celestial poles. In this image shot in Australia, the bright star closest to the celestial
pole is Sigma Octantis. Here the photographer has used a Hasselblad camera and
40mm lens at f/5.6 with a 9.5 hour exposure on ISO200 film.
[email protected]
DEE BREGER
Tunguska Ilmenite : 2008
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, New York, USA
Scanning electron micrograph of a sample of the mineral ilmenite from the region
around Tunguska, Siberia. This piece of the specimen is about 30 micrometres wide.
On 30 June 1908 a fragment of a comet or asteroid crashed into the atmosphere,
exploding at an altitude of 5-10km with an explosive energy equivalent to 10-15
million tons of TNT. The explosion flattened over 80 million trees over an area of
2150 square kilometres. The shock wave generated altered the structure of many
minerals that were found close to the surface. A piece of the comet or asteroid may
have survived to hit the Earth and form a crater, now called Lake Cheko, where this
specimen was found. The checkerboard pattern here is typical of instantaneous
mechanical stress. The original monochrome image was digitally enhanced using a
variety of graphics techniques to highlight structural features.
[email protected]
www.micrographicarts.com
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BERNARDO CESARE
Sunflower of Jasper : 2010
Dipartimento Di Geoscienze,
Università Di Padova, Padova, Italy
Polarised light micrograph of a sample of
ocean jasper. This is a rhyolite volcanic rock
that contains a large proportion of silicate
minerals. As the rock cools, small aggregates of
quartz or feldspar develop which act as seeds
for these radial inclusions. Ocean jasper is
found only in Madagascar and is highly prized
among collectors. Here a thin section of rock
just 30 micrometres thick has been polished
and polarised light shone through it. A second
polarising filter reveals these amazing colours.
Photographed using a Canon EOS 550D camera
on a Zeiss microscope.
[email protected]
www.microckscopica.org
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NORM BARKER
Red Fossil Coral, Indonesia : 2011
Department of Pathology,
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore,
Maryland, USA
Macro photograph of a red fossil coral. The best
of these kinds of fossils are found in Indonesia
and are characterised by these tiny flower-like
forms. The original corals were alive in reefs
during the Miocene epoch, about 20 million
years ago. The spaces left by the living part of
the coral were replaced with deposits of agate.
The carbonate skeleton of the corals were later
dissolved and replaced by silicates, rich in iron
and manganese. Specimens found today are
cut and polished and have a rich, red colouring.
Photographed with a Nikon D700 camera and a
Zeiss Luminar 40mm lens.
[email protected]
www.ancientmicroworld.com
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TED KINSMAN
Fluid Fishbone Effect : 2012
Kinsman Physics Productions, Rochester, New York, USA
High-speed flash image capturing the beautiful symmetrical pattern formed by two
colliding fluid streams. The fluid here is glycerol with 10 percent water and the streams
come from 1 millimetre diameter nozzles. As the streams collide, the combination
of momentum and surface tension initially form a thin sheet. This rapidly becomes
unstable, with most of the fluid volume forming droplets originating from the edge
of the sheet, with the sheet itself breaking into a pair of ‘reflected’ droplet streams
that soon combine directly below the collision point. The morphology of this pattern,
known as a fishbone or herringbone, is strongly dependent on the flow velocity
and the viscosity of the fluid. This image was captured with a flash duration of 25
microseconds and a digital camera.
[email protected]
www.sciencephotography.com
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STEVE LOWRY
Leaf Hairs on Deutzia scabra : 2012
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Portstewart, Co. Londonderry, United Kingdom
Polarised light micrograph of the hairs on the leaf of a Fuzzy Deutzia (Deutzia scabra).
The deutzias are members of the hydrangea family and are commonly cultivated as an
ornamental plant. The leaves have these stellate hairs, each of which is about 0.4mm
across. Up to 20 species of Deutzia can be differentiated by the density and size of
the hairs and the number of points on the ‘stars’. In Japan, traditional carpenters use
leaves from D. scabra as a final polishing agent for mahogany.
[email protected]
DAVID SCHARF
Two Neurons on a Glial Cell : 2011
David Scharf Photography, Los Angeles, California, USA
Scanning electron micrograph of two human cortical neurons on a glial cell.
Cortical neurons are cells found in the cerebral cortex, or ‘grey matter’, of the brain.
The cortex is the outer 2-4mm of the brain and is where most of the ‘higher’ functions
are based – memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language and
consciousness. The two neurons in the centre of the image have long, thin dendrites
that try to connect with other neurons, while the glial cell beneath them provides
nutrients. The central ‘soma’ of the neurons here are about 10 micrometres across.
The cells were grown in culture, fixed and dehydrated before being coated with
platinum. The colours in this image come from multiple secondary detectors in the
microscope through a system invented by Mr Scharf.
[email protected]
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GREG PARKER
Water Drop Collision and Bubble Burst : 2012
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Parker Technology, Brockenhurst, Hampshire, United Kingdom
High-speed flash image showing the collision of two water droplets beneath a bursting
soap bubble. The two droplets fell at slightly different times. The first broke through
the top of the soap bubble and hit the pool of water beneath. As the water from this
impact reflected upward, it was hit by the second droplet. The image was captured
using a Canon 5D Mark II SLR camera and a xenon flash unit with an exposure time of
9 microseconds.
[email protected]
www.scientificartist.com
JOHN PRIESTLEY
Change and Stability at the Heart of the Spinal Cord : 2013
Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
Confocal light micrograph of a longitudinal section through part of the spinal cord.
The sample has been stained with fluorescent markers that bind to different structures
and glow with specific colours when illuminated by a laser. Blue areas in the centre
denote the walls of the central canal, surrounded by axons containing serotonin (red).
Beyond these, offering structural support and protection, is a perineuronal net (green).
This image was gathered digitally using a Zeiss LSM 710 microscope.
[email protected]
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ANDERS PERSSON
Mechanical Heart Pump Computed
Tomography : 2012
Centre for Medical Image Science and
Visualisation (CMIV), Linköping University,
Linköping, Sweden
3D reconstructed image of the chest of a
patient showing an implanted heart pump
(blue). The patient was examined using a
Dual Energy Computer Tomography (DECT)
scanner. This takes a series of scans of the
patient, a virtual ‘slice’ at two different X-ray
energies. The slices can then be combined
to form a virtual 3D image and computer
processing can apply transparency and colour
to the various types of tissue and the synthetic
material of the pump. This image was used to
check the connection between the aorta and
the left side of the heart. The heart pump is a
temporary device used in patients waiting for
transplantation surgery.
[email protected]
www.cmiv.liu.se
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DORIT HOCKMAN
Bat Embryonic Development : 2006
Trinity College, University of Cambridge,
Cambridge, United Kingdom
Composite of three images showing embryos
of the Black Mastiff Bat, Molossus rufus.
The younger embryo is at left. These images
were taken in a study of the development of
the flight structures of the bat. The wings develop
as the fingers lengthen and a membrane grows
between them. However, in this species the
edges of their ears also extend and join together
forming a helmet-like structure that is thought
to help with manoeuvrability. Black Mastiff Bats
are well known for their fast aerobatic flight when
hunting for insects. Each of these images was
taken though a dissecting microscope at low
magnification and captured on a digital camera.
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[email protected]
BERNARDO CESARE
Graphite-Bearing Rock from Kerala, India : 2012
Dipartimento Di Geoscienze, Università Di Padova, Padova, Italy
Resembling a beautiful piece of abstract art, this is a polarised light photomicrograph
of a graphite-bearing mineral. The coloured patches are pieces of quartz and feldspar
with black graphite in between. This sample was found in Kerala, India, where such
minerals could be commercially exploited as a source of graphite. Here a thin section
of rock just 30 micrometres thick has been polished and polarised light shone through
it. A second polarising filter reveals these amazing colours. Photographed using a
Canon EOS 550D camera on a Zeiss Axioscop microscope.
[email protected]
www.microckscopica.org
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STEVEN MORTON FRPS
Acoustically Levitated Drop of Human Blood Cells : 2007
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School of Physics, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
A drop of human red blood cells seen being levitated by acoustic radiation pressure.
A pressure inducer (bottom) is used to generate intense sound waves. These create
a net upward pressure because intense sound fields operate as non-linear systems,
their effect is stronger than would be expected from classical physics. Here the sample
is studied using laser Raman spectroscopy, levitation means that the structure of living
blood cells can be determined without interference from the surface of any container.
This image was captured using a Kodak 14n digital camera and Nikon macro lens.
[email protected]
KATRINA GOLD
Fly’s Eye View : 2012
Wellcome Trust / Cancer Research UK
Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge,
Confocal light micrograph of a section through
the eye and brain of a fly. The colours come from
dyes that bind to specific proteins in different
tissue structures and that fluoresce under laser
illumination. Here the red tendril-like objects
at top and right are photoreceptors. Nerve
cells in the brain closest to the photoreceptors
are shown in green. The image was captured
digitally using a Leica TCS SPII microscope.
[email protected]
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HEATHER ANGEL HonFRPS
Darwin’s Slipper Flower in Visible and
UV Radiation : 2011
Natural Visions, Surrey, United Kingdom
Flowers of Darwin’s Slipper (Calceolaria
uniflora) photographed under visible light (left)
and ultraviolet radiation (right). Some birds
and insects have vision that extends into the
ultraviolet and are able to see subtle patterns in
the petals of certain flowers. In this image, the
right-hand view shows that part of the petal (red)
absorbs ultraviolet. Seedsnipes (Thinocorus
rumicivorus) are attracted to pick the larger
white patch, as they feed they rub the stamens
of the flower with their head. In this way they
transport pollen to other plants. C. uniflora is
native to Tierra del Fuego in the extreme south
of South America. These images were captured
on a Nikon D3 camera with 105mm macro lens.
The visible light image was illuminated with a
Nikon SB900 flash, the ultraviolet image with a
Metz 76 UV flash that provides illumination in
the 290-410nm wavelength range.
[email protected]
www.heatherangel.co.uk
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CRAIG AARTS
Sphere-Ology : 2010
Department of Biochemistry, Hamilton,
Ontario, Canada
Confocal light micrograph of a collection of
spherical colonies of stem cells. Each colony
has been stained with a variety of fluorescent
markers that highlight different structures within
the cells when illuminated by a laser beam.
Stem cells are the precursors to all the different
types of cells in the body. They are being studied
in the hope of finding treatments for many
degenerative diseases. This image was captured
digitally using a Leica DMIRB microscope.
[email protected]
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ROBERTA CAGNETTA
Human iPS-Derived Cerebral Cortex
Neurons : 2012
The Henry Wellcome Building of Cancer
and Developmental Biology, University of
Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Confocal light micrograph of human cerebral
cortex neurons. The core of each neuron is about
15 micrometres across. These nerve cells have
been infected by a lentivirus that expresses
Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP). The sample
has been stained with fluorescent markers that
bind to different structures. Blue areas are DAPI,
a stain that binds strongly to DNA; green marks
the GFP inside virus-infected cells; purple areas
show the antibody Tuj1 that binds with neurites,
projections from the cell body of the neuron.
The neurons seen here were grown from induced
pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Stem cell research
is aimed at providing possible new treatments
for debilitating degenerative conditions such
as Alzheimer’s.
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[email protected]
JIM SWOGER
10.5 Day Old Mouse Embryo, Neurofilaments : 2011
Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona, Spain
Light micrograph of a mouse embryo, approximately 10.5 days post-fertilisation.
The specimen was stained with a fluorescent marker that highlights the presence of
precursor cells to nerve tissue then chemically treated to make it optically transparent.
It was scanned using Selective Plane Illumination Microscopy to produce a series of
optical ‘slices’ that were combined to generate a virtual 3D model of the embryo.
The colours here from red to green to blue indicate increasing depth in the sample.
[email protected]
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VOLKER BRINKMANN
Shigella Comet : 2010
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Max-Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Berlin, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of bacteria leaving an infected epithelial cell
in the gut. Each bacterium, here coloured magenta, is about one micrometre long.
The bacteria are Shigella flexneri, a cause of bacterial dysentery. When they enter
epithelial cells in the gut, normally from contaminated drinking water, the bacteria
form bundles with parts of the cell cytoskeleton. These bundles, known as ‘comets’,
enable the bacteria to move freely as the cytoskeleton protects them from the body’s
immune system. Here the bacteria are seen inside a comet bundle (green) leaving
an infected host cell (yellow). This image was created in monochrome and later
[email protected]
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/de/services/core/mikroskopie
STEVE GSCHMEISSNER
Ruptured Venule : 2011
Bedford, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom
Coloured scanning electron micrograph showing red and white blood cells inside a
small blood vessel. The sample was prepared by freeze fracturing, rapidly freezing the
sample with liquid nitrogen such that tissues are instantly preserved. If the sample is
broken, the inner structures are revealed. In this frame, a tiny vein, or venule, has been
opened to show the blood cells inside. This image was created in monochrome and
[email protected]
www.theworldcloseup.com
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NICOLE OTTAWA
Beauveria bassiana : 2012
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Coloured scanning electron micrograph showing the base of the antenna of a
mosquito. The thin white tendrils are a fungus, Beauveria bassiana. This is common
to many soils and is parasitic on many insects, causing white muscardine disease.
B. bassiana is already used as a biological pesticide to control many types of insect
pests, such as termites, aphids and some beetles. More recently it has been studied
as a possible biological control for malaria-transmitting mosquitoes. This image was
created in monochrome and later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.eyeofscience.de
STEVE GSCHMEISSNER
Activated Macrophage : 2013
Bedford, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of a human macrophage. Macrophages
derive from monocytes, a specialised type of white blood cell. Their role is to destroy
pathogens and cellular debris by engulfing and digesting them. Activated macrophages
have receptors that are specifically attracted to lymphokines, signal devices used
by the immune system to target microbes or tumour cells. Human macrophages are
typically about 20 micrometres in diameter. This image was created in monochrome
and later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.theworldcloseup.com
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48
Fruit Fly Male Sex Comb – Drosophila melanogaster : 2008
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Scanning electron micrograph of the front leg of a male fruit fly (Drosophila
melanogaster) showing the sex comb. This is a secondary sexual characteristic of the
fruit fly that may be used to hold the female during mating. It is a rapidly evolving
structure in D.melanogaster and the size and number of bristles appear to be
important in selection by females. This image was captured in monochrome then later
[email protected]
DAVID DICKIE
Squamous-Cell Carcinoma,
Right Hand : 2011
Department of Medical Photography,
Crosshouse Hospital, Kilmarnock,
United Kingdom
Close-up view of the back of a patient’s hand
showing a squamous-cell carcinoma (SCC).
This is the second most common form of skin
cancer after basal cell carcinomas (BCC).
SCCs arise from uncontrolled multiplication of
epithelial cells and usually occur on areas of
the skin exposed to sunlight. There is a low but
significant risk of metastasis (spreading), mainly
to the lymph nodes, this risk is higher in SCC
that presents on the lips or ears. Treatment is
normally by surgical excision. This image was
made using a Micro Nikkor 105mm lens on a
Fuji S5 camera. Lighting was flash from the right
and rear to emphasise the shape and texture of
the carcinoma with a gentle fill light from the left
to soften the shadows.
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[email protected]
STEVEN MORTON FRPS
Feeding Aedes aegypti : 2012
School of Physics, Monash University,
Victoria, Australia
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Macrophotograph of a yellow fever mosquito,
Aedes aegypti, feeding on a human arm.
Female mosquitoes are the ones that bite as
they need blood to feed their developing eggs.
A. aegypti is a mid-size species with a body
length of 4-7mm. It can spread the viruses
responsible for Dengue Fever, Yellow Fever and
Chikungunya among other diseases. Despite
various attempts at control, these diseases have
risen 30-fold in the last 30 years. Current efforts
are aimed at finding a genetic modification that
could prevent the mosquito larvae surviving to
the reproductive stage. This image was captured
on a Nikon D800E camera and macro lens.
The apparent depth of field was extended using
a sequence of stacked images.
[email protected]
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JOHN VOLCANO
Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome with Cleft Palate : 2013
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UCL Medical Illustration Services, University College London,
London, United Kingdom
Photograph of a baby showing a cleft palate (palatoschesis). He had also been
diagnosed with Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome (BWS). Both the cleft palate and
BWS are genetic conditions symptomised by anomalous development before birth.
Cleft palate is a result of the two parts of the skull that form the hard palate in the roof
of the mouth not joining completely. Cleft palate is normally treated surgically soon
after birth as it can lead to problems with feeding. BWS is an overgrowth condition
characterised by high birth weight and length, overgrown tongue, abdominal wall
defects, low blood sugar after birth and ear pits and creases. This image was captured
on a Canon EOS 5D Mk.II camera and 100mm macro lens using studio flash lighting
and a hand-held flash unit.
[email protected]
Lemon Sharks on Patrol,
Bahama Banks : 2010
A small group of Lemon Sharks (Negaprion
brevirostris) feeding beneath a braking wave.
Lemon Sharks inhabit coastal regions of
tropical North, Central and South America and
the west coast of Africa. They grow to around 3
metres in length and weigh around 90kg. Unlike
many species, Lemon Sharks survive well in
captivity and have been well studied as a result.
This photograph was taken using a Nikon D2X
camera and 10-17mm lens inside a customised
underwater housing. Lighting was provided by
two flash units.
[email protected]
53
How a Pond Skater Walks
on Water : 2006
Macrophotograph showing a Pond Skater
(Gerris lacustris) standing on the surface of
water. This clearly shows how the insect spreads
its weight across the surface of the water so it
doesn’t break the surface tension and sink.
The surface of their legs is covered with
extremely fine hairs and a wax-like substance
that prevent water sticking to them. These
adaptations mean that G. lacustris is able to
move quickly across the water surface looking
for smaller insects on which to feed. This
image was captured in a studio, a backlight
softbox providing the illumination to highlight
the depressions in the surface caused by the
presence of the insect.
[email protected]
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Male Tomato Clownfish Guarding
Eggs, Anilao Philippines : 2009
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Close-up view of a male Tomato Clownfish
(Amphiprion frenatus) guarding a clutch of
eggs. Clownfish tend to lay eggs on flat surfaces
of stones or rocks with both parent guarding
the nest until the eggs hatch 6 to 11 days
later. A. frenatus is found in the waters of the
western Pacific Ocean, normally among purple
anemones. They form symbiotic relationships
with the anemones – the anemone protects
the clownfish with its tentacles and provides
food through scraps left from its meals, the
clownfish cleans parasites from the anemone
and provides nutrients through its faeces.
This image was made with a Nikon D2X camera
and 105mm lens in a Seacam underwater
housing with lighting from a single flash unit.
[email protected]
NORM BARKER
Gallstones : 2011
Maryland, USA
Gallstones are crystalline deposits that develop
within the gall bladder. They vary in size,
sometimes growing to the size of a golf ball.
Their composition may be strongly crystalline
or chalky, depending on the minerals involved
which itself depends largely on age, diet and
ethnicity. The three main types are cholesterol
stones, pigment stones (bilirubin and calcium
from bile) and mixed gallstones. Stones are
often asymptomatic until about 8mm and larger,
after which time they can cause intense pain
and infection. Treatment is by using medication
to dissolve the stones, breaking the stones apart
using focused ultrasound (lithotripsy) or surgical
removal. The image was recorded with a
Nikon D700 camera and 105mm Micro Nikkor
lens and a fibre optic light source.
[email protected]
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ANDREW GASSON ARPS
Bubbles Beneath a Contact
Lens : 2004
Andrew Gasson Contact Lenses,
Tiny bubbles of air are seen trapped underneath
a gas-permeable contact lens in a patient’s eye.
The lens is used for orthokeratology, a process in
which wearing a specially-shaped lens flattens
the cornea of the eye by a calculated amount
to reduce myopia (short-sightedness). The tears
are shown by a sodium fluorescein stain glowing
green under ultraviolet illumination with the
bubbles as small blue spots. The tears follow the
broad curve of the iris, at top left is the pupil and
the ‘white’ (sclera) at lower right. This image was
taken using a Nikon D200 camera attached to
a Nikon FV3 slit lamp microscope with a Kodak
Wratten 12 filter used to enhance the contrast.
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[email protected]
NORM BARKER
Gomphothere Tooth : 2012
Maryland, USA
Macro photograph of a polished section of the
tooth of a gomphothere. The gomphotheres
were a diverse family of elephant-like animals
that flourished in the Miocene and Pliocene
epochs (12-1.6 million years ago). They differed
from the true elephant ancestors by their tooth
structure, often having four tusks. Gomphothere
species across North America and Eurasia began
to be replaced by true elephants from about 5
million years ago, although the most isolated
populations in South America may have survived
as recently as 6000 years ago. The blue mineral
associated with the original enamel is vivianite.
Photographed with a Nikon D800E camera
and a Zeiss Luminar 63mm lens with fibre
optic lighting.
[email protected]
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FERNAN FEDERICI
Fluorescent Arabidopsis thaliana Plant : 2009
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Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge,
Confocal light micrograph of part of a Thale Cress plant (Thaliana Arabidopsis). Various
fluorescent stains have been used that bind to specific protein structures. Here cyan
shows plasma membranes and red and yellow denote cell nuclei. An attempt has
been made to modify the DNA within each cell nucleus. All express a reference protein
that binds with the red fluorescent marker, but have a variable expression of the
protein that binds with the yellow marker. The ratio of yellow to red gives the efficiency
of the uptake of the modified protein expression. This is of great use in quantifying
issues in genetic studies.
[email protected]
GERD-A. GÜNTHER
Tick Hypostome : 2013
Düsseldorf, Germany
Polarised light micrograph of the end of a hypostome of a Castor Bean Tick, Ixodes
ricinus. The segment seen here is about 0.1mm long. The hypostome is a piercing
mouth part common to certain arthropods such as ticks and mites. They are used
to pierce the skin in search of blood, the harpoon-like projections allowing the insect
to remain attached to the host during feeding. If the tick is removed incorrectly,
this segment of hypostome can break off and remain in the skin, causing infection.
I. ricinus is the largest of three common tick species in the United Kingdom.
This image was captured using a Leica DMLB microscope with polarised light
illumination and a Canon digital camera.
[email protected]
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TONY McCONNELL
Large Lady : 1998
Tony McConnell Photography,
Thermal infrared image of an overweight woman.
This image was shot in a darkened room,
so relies on the heat energy of the subject.
Heat, detected as long wavelength infrared
radiation, is colour coded from blue (coolest)
through green yellow and red to magenta
(warmest). The image was captured using a
VarioCAM hr research 600 camera.
[email protected]
www.tonymcconnell.com
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PHRED PETERSEN
MAV Takeoff : 2012
School of Media and Communication,
RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
Schlieren image showing the downwash from
the rotors of a model helicopter. This technique
visualises changes in the refractive index of
a gas, in this case because of changes in air
density. In this instance, alcohol vapour has
been added to emphasise density variations
as air is forced downward by the rotors. As the
air stream hits the ground it moves outward in
all directions with a turbulent, billowing motion.
Studies such as this investigate the occurrence
of recirculation, or how the billowing outwardmoving ground air is pulled back toward the
rotors. In the real world this can cause significant
damage to the rotors and engines from debris.
The image was captured using a 300mm
Z-configuration schlieren system with a threecolour filter over the electronic flash source.
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[email protected]
HARALD KLEINE
Bullet Sequence : 2012
School of Engineering and Information Technology, University of New South
Wales / Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra, Australia
A sequence of colour schlieren images showing the passage of a 0.22 inch calibre
bullet in air. In the top frame the bullet is seen to the left, outside of the visualisation
system, and shows no evidence of a shockwave. In the centre and lower frames, the
same bullet is seen surrounded by compression waves (red and yellow) and expansion
zones (blue and cyan). An area of turbulence left by the passage of the bullet is most
clearly seen in the lower frame. The images were captured using a high-speed digital
video system, taking 40,000 frames per second with an interval of 200 microseconds
between frames.
[email protected]
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DAVID SCHARF
MEMS Electrostatic Motor : 2010
David Scharf Photography,
Los Angeles, California, USA
Scanning electron micrograph of a torsional
ratcheting actuator, a kind of microscopic
electrostatic motor. This is an example of a
microelectromechanical system (MEMS), tiny
moving devices created by technologies used
to make computer chips. Here the interlocking
combs on the electrodes alternate between
attraction and repulsion in response to a rapidly
changing electrostatic charge. A ratchet device
means that an attached component rotates in
only one direction, but with relatively high torque.
Each electrode is about 100 micrometres long
and 20-30 micrometres wide. The colours in this
image come from multiple secondary detectors
in the microscope through a system invented by
Mr Scharf.
[email protected]
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MANFRED P KAGE
Nerve Cells on a Silicon Chip : 2009
KAGE Mikrofotografie, Institute of Scientific
Photography, Lauterstein, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of nerve
cells on a circuit printed on a silicon chip.
The nerve cells (neurons) were cultured on the
surface of the chip until they formed a network
with other cells nearby. The part of the chip seen
here is about 1.2mm in width. It was created in
monochrome then later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.kage-mikrofotografie.de
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CHRISTOPHER GUERIN
Yeast SEM : 2012
VIB Bio-imaging Core, Gent, Belgium
Scanning electron micrograph of two yeast cells in the process of budding. The
larger cells are about 4 micrometres in diameter. Yeasts are single-celled organisms
that reproduce asexually. Those that do so by budding, growth from an offshoot
of a parent cell rather than by splitting into equal-sized offspring, come into the
order Saccharomycetales or true yeasts. These are the yeasts used in baking and
in fermenting. In total there are over 1500 species of yeasts in two phyla, the
Ascomycota and the Basidiomycota.
[email protected]
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PHRED PETERSEN
Blast Wave Patterns : 2011
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School of Media and Communication, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
High speed schlieren image showing the propagation of a shock wave from a toy
cap gun charge inside a cylinder. This technique visualises changes in the refractive
index of a gas, in this case because of changes in air density. The charge is ignited
in the upper left frame. By the frame at upper right the spherical shock wave is well
developed. At lower left the principal shock wave has been completely reflected
from the corrugated interior surface of the cylinder causing a complex pattern of
interactions. In the last frame the interactions have largely resolved into a nearspherical principal reflection. The frames were captured at a rate of 5000 per second
with a synchronised flash unit providing exposures of 25 nanoseconds. The elapsed
time between first and last frames was just 0.6 milliseconds. The video was captured
with a Phantom v7.3 high speed camera and HSPS Mini Strobokin flash unit.
[email protected]
PAUL WHITTEN
Retinal Haemorrhage : 2013
New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, New York, NY, USA
Mosaic of three images of a human retina showing bleeding beneath the inner limiting
membrane (ILM). The blood is seen draining into the vitreous humour, the clear gel
that fills the eye. Retinal bleeding can be caused by high blood pressure, blockage or
as a result of diabetes. Mild bleeding, especially where not associated with chronic
disease, can often be left alone to reabsorb in its own time. More serious cases can
be treated with laser cauterisation of damaged blood vessels. This image was made
using a Topcon TRC 501X retinal camera and proprietary mosaic software.
[email protected]
www.paulwhittenphotography.com
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STEVEN MORTON FRPS
Malaria Infected Human Red Blood Cell : 2008
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Atomic force microscope (AFM) image of the surface of a human red blood cell
from a patient who has been infected with the malaria parasite (Plasmodium sp.).
The parasite first infects the liver, then reproduces forming merozoites that infect red
blood cells. Inside each cell, a single merozoite can multiply to form 8-24 clones
before the cell bursts and the infective merozoites are released into the blood stream.
This image was created from surface height data gathered by the AFM, then processed
through a 3D visualisation package.
[email protected]
GERD-A. GÜNTHER
Butterfly Wing : 2012
Light micrograph of the wing of a common blue Common Blue Charaxes butterfly,
(Charaxes tiridates). The part of the wing seen here is about 0.2mm in width.
The undersides of the wing are covered in scales, mostly light brown but occasionally
in bands of black. Two veins are seen here in dark brown, these are tubular and
provide structural support for the wing as well as oxygen exchange (‘breathing’).
C. tiridates is found in most of central Africa. This image was captured using a
Leica DMLB microscope and Canon digital camera.
[email protected]
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LOUISE MURRAY
Porcelain Crab Feeding Inside the Safety of its Host : 2011
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A Porcelain Crab eating inside the protecting folds of a Pocillopora coral. Porcelain
crabs belong to the family Porcellanidae, with 277 species described. They have very
flattened bodies to enable them to hunt and hide in rocky crevices. This image was
taken at night, an ultraviolet light causing the coral to fluoresce and give a ghostly
green light to the scene. Photographed underwater in Tondoba Bay in the Red Sea off
the coast of Egypt.
[email protected]
www.louisemurray.com
NICOLE OTTAWA
Coffea : 2012
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of the cells of a coffee bean. Coffee is made
from the beans of the coffee plant (Coffea sp.). This part of the sample is about 30
micrometres wide. The sample was prepared by freeze fracturing, rapidly freezing the
sample with liquid nitrogen such that tissues are instantly preserved. If the sample
is broken, the inner structures are revealed. Here the fractured edges of cell walls are
seen as grey. Inside the cells are small particles of oil. During the roasting process
the oils are concentrated and converted to caffeol, responsible for the characteristic
aroma and flavour. The oil particles also contain the caffeine in solution. This image
was created in monochrome then digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.eyeofscience.de
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VIKTOR SYKORA
Eye of a Cerambyx : 2012
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First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of the eye of a beetle of the genus Cerambyx.
The lenses of the compound eye is at lower right, at upper left are hairs that
surround and protect the eye. Cerambyx is one genus of the Capricorn beetles, or
Cerambycidae, so called because their antennae are long and curled and reminiscent
of the horns of the Alpine Ibex. The genus contains about 30 species, the most
common of which is Cerambyx cerdo. This image was created in monochrome then
[email protected]
FARAH AHMED
20 Million Year Old Gecko in Amber : 2012
The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
3D reconstructions of a gecko found preserved in amber, imaged using X-rays in a
micro-CT scanner. The CT technology uses fine beams of X-rays to take a virtual ‘slice’
of the sample – many such slices are then stacked together to make a 3D model.
By careful computer processing, the bones are easily made visible. Because the
specimen was preserved in amber, there is an air space which the soft tissues used to
fill. The CT software is able to map this interior surface, effectively replicating the skin
of the gecko. This specimen was found in the Dominican Republic and dates to about
20 million years ago.
[email protected]
www.nhm.ac.uk
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STEVEN MORTON FRPS
115 Million Year Old Jaw of Bishops whitmorei : 2009
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Macrophotograph of the tiny fossilised jaw of Bishops whitmorei, a placental mammal
that flourished in Australia during the Early Cretaceous period about 115 million years
ago. The classification of this and similar fossils has been governed by the assumed
evolution of molar teeth in mammals. However, evidence from B. whitmorei suggests
the existing understanding of this evolutionary trait may be incorrect and that many
species have been incorrectly classified. This image was captured using a Nikon D3
camera with macro lens.
[email protected]
VOLKER BRINKMANN
Stiletto : 2012
Max-Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Berlin, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of the proboscis of a mosquito, Anopheles
gambiae. At upper left is the outer sheath, or labium, enclosing the tip of the stylet
(green). The stylet is made of the maxillae and mandibles, and is used to pierce the
skin of the host animal to find and penetrate a blood vessel. The blood that escapes
is sucked up through the labium. In mosquito species, such as the A. gambiae, the
labium is relatively long and forms a proboscis. The section of stylet seen here is
about 0.2mm long. This image was created in monochrome then digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/de/services/core/mikroskopie
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TED KINSMAN
Over-Inflating a Balloon : 2011
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Kinsman Physics Productions, Rochester, New York, USA
High-speed flash image showing a balloon shortly after it has burst. A few millilitres of
water were put in the balloon before it was inflated. When it burst, the sudden drop in
pressure allowed water vapour inside to cool rapidly, forming the water droplets seen
here. The flash was triggered by the sound of the balloon bursting, its duration of 50
microseconds freezing the moment.
[email protected]
www.sciencephotography.com
ANDERS PERSSON
Computed Tomography Angiography of
Dead Wild Boar : 2013
Linköping, Sweden
3D reconstructed image of a dead wild boar
showing its skeleton and blood vessels.
The animal had been killed in a traffic accident.
An iodine contrast agent was injected into the
arteries before the animal was placed in a Dual
Energy Computer Tomography (DECT) scanner.
This takes a series of scans of the animal, a
virtual ‘slice’ at two different X-ray energies.
The slices can then be combined to form a
virtual 3D image and computer processing
can apply transparency and colour to the
various types of tissue. This technique is being
developed to enable virtual autopsy to be
performed on human bodies post mortem.
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[email protected]
www.cmiv.liu.se
ANDERS PERSSON
Post-Mortem Dual Energy Computed
Tomography Examination : 2012
Linköping, Sweden
3D reconstructed image of the thoracic cavity
of a cadaver. At centre is the liver, beneath this
is the small intestine. At upper left are parts of
the bones and musculature of the shoulder and
upper arm. The body was examined using a Dual
Energy Computer Tomography (DECT) scanner.
This takes a series of scans, a virtual ‘slice’ at
two different X-ray energies. The slices can then
be combined to form a virtual 3D image and
computer processing can apply transparency
and colour to the various types of tissue. At post
mortem, higher X-ray energies may be used
than for live patients. This gives extremely good
tissue differentiation. The resulting images can
be used for guiding autopsy investigations and
for teaching.
[email protected]
www.cmiv.liu.se
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ANDERS PERSSON
Computed Tomography Angiography : 2013
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Centre for Medical Image Science and Visualisation (CMIV),
Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
3D reconstructed image of the head and neck of a patient highlighting the blood
vessels. The skull and spine are also clearly seen. An iodine contrast agent was
injected into the arteries before the patient was placed in a Dual Energy Computer
Tomography (DECT) scanner. This takes a series of scans of the patient, a virtual
‘slice’ at two different X-ray energies. The slices can then be combined to form a
virtual 3D image and computer processing can apply transparency and colour to the
various types of tissue. As well as its use in clinical diagnosis, this technique is being
developed to enable virtual autopsy to be performed on human bodies.
[email protected]
www.cmiv.liu.se
DAVID SCHARF
MEMS Brain Electrode Array : 2011
David Scharf Photography, Los Angeles,
California, USA
Scanning electron micrograph of an array of
microscopic electrodes used to connect with
neurons in the brain. Neural interfaces such as
this may be used for recording brain signals
and interpreting them (such as operating a
prosthetic limb) or for passing information to the
brain (such as in hearing or sight impairment).
This array was created by using an electric
spark to selectively vaporise areas of a polished
silicon crystal, leaving these electrodes standing.
Each of these electrodes is about 0.1 mm thick.
The colours in this image come from multiple
secondary detectors in the microscope through
a system invented by Mr Scharf.
[email protected]
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VOLKER BRINKMANN
Malaria Sporozoite Movement : 2011
Max-Planck Institute for Infection Biology,
Berlin, Germany
Time lapse fluorescence micrograph of malaria
sporozoites. Sporozoites are the motile form
of a parasite that infects its host. Here, the
sporozoites are from Plasmodium, a genus of
parasites that carry malaria. They are present
in the saliva of a mosquito and are transmitted
to a host during the mosquito’s blood meal.
Here the colours show two different genetic
varieties, stained with different fluorescent dyes.
The motion of the sporozoites in two dimensions
(up/down, left/right) is mapped as a function of
time (into/out of the image plane). The majority
of green-stained sporozoites are highly motile
and move in helical tracks away from the centre.
Most of the red-stained variety are relatively
immotile.
[email protected]
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/de/services/core/
mikroskopie
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FARAH AHMED
Tissint – Martian Meteorite : 2012
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The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
3D reconstruction of a fragment of the Tissint Martian meteorite, imaged using X-rays
in a micro-CT scanner. The CT technology uses fine beams of X-rays to take a virtual
‘slice’ of the sample – many such slices are then stacked together to make a 3D
model. CT technology allows very fine density differences to be visualised through
the bulk structure of the rock. Here orange colours indicate the mineral olivine, green
shows what were once fluid inclusions, blue is silicate glass and white shows fracture
networks. Tissint is the name of a meteorite that fell to Earth in Morocco on 18 July
2011. Study of its structure and mineral content show that it was blasted from the
surface of Mars in an impact about 700,000 years ago since which time it has
wandered to solar system.
[email protected]
www.nhm.ac.uk
DANIEL KARIKO
Yellow Paper Wasp Found on Back Yard, Pathway : 2013
Extreme close-up view of the head of a Yellow Paper Wasp. Paper wasps belong in
the genus Polistes, with over 300 known species. Many species build their nests
on human habitation, while not normally aggressive paper wasps will defend their
nests vigorously. This image is part of a series investigating our often-overlooked
housemates, a result of the expansion of our habitat into rural areas, and is a
composite of light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
[email protected]
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DANIEL KARIKO
Cuckoo Wasp Found on Window Screen : 2013
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Extreme close-up view of the head of a cuckoo wasp. Cuckoo wasps belong in the
family Chrysidae, with over 3000 known species. Common names also include jewel
wasp, gold wasp or emerald wasp, reflecting their brilliantly coloured, metal-like
bodies. Most species are cleptoparasites – laying their eggs in host nests where their
larvae eat the host egg or larvae. This image is part of a series investigating our oftenoverlooked housemates, a result of the expansion of our habitat into rural areas, and is
a composite of light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
[email protected]
DAVID W WALKER
Victorian Microscope Slide: Head of Vanessa urticae : 2011
Huddersfield, Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Digital scan of a microscope slide showing the intricate detail in the head of a small
Tortoiseshell Butterfly (Aglais urticae). Also known by its older names Vanessa urticae
or Nymphalis urticae, this is an abundant species in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The specimen was prepared and mounted by W Watson & Sons, a famous supplier
of microscope slides, in the 19th Century. The slide was scanned in a 35mm film
scanner, the resulting digital file was cleaned and balanced before conversion to
monochrome and inverted to form this digital ‘negative’.
[email protected]
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MANFRED P KAGE
Ant Holding a Micromechanical Gear : 2006
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KAGE Mikrofotografie, Institute of Scientific Photography, Lauterstein, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of a Leafcutter Ant (Atta cephalotes) holding
a gear from a micromechanical device. The gear was made by shining a laser into a
chemical film, solidifying the polymer so that it can be recovered by washing away
the excess chemicals. The gear is about 0.1mm wide. The image was created in
monochrome then later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
www.kage-mikrofotografie.de
SPIKE WALKER ASIS FRPS
Mouse Foetus, Longitudinal
Section : 2006
Penkridge, Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Macrograph of a stained sagittal section through
a mouse embryo. At centre in green is the heart,
beneath that is part of the spinal column. In the
head at left, the brain and tongue are shown
clearly. At right are sections through the legs
and, closest to the body, the tail. This embryo
measures about 18mm in length. The image
was captured using a Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II
camera on a Zeiss Tessovar. The tones in the
resulting frame were reversed and the colours
further emphasised using Photoshop ™ software.
[email protected]
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RICHARD KIRBY
The Doliolid, Doliolum nationalis :
2012
University Of Plymouth, Marine Institute,
Plymouth, United Kingdom
Light micrograph of the adult doliolid Doliolum
nationalis. The larval stage of this creature
possesses a notochord – a flexible rod-like
structure of supporting cells – and so, like
humans, they belong to the phylum Chordata.
This 1.5 mm long, adult doliolid possesses
bands of muscle around its barrel-shaped
body that help it swim and feed as it drifts
among the plankton at the sea surface.
Contraction and relaxation of the muscles
draws water in through the buccal siphon
(right) and over the comb-like gills before it is
expelled as a jet from the atrial siphon (left).
A mucus sheet situated behind the gills traps
food particles before the stream of water leaves
the animal’s body.
[email protected]
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DAN SYKES
A Blaschka Jellyfish : 2013
Imaging and Analysis Centre, The Natural
History Museum, London, United Kingdom
3D reconstruction of a glass model of a
jellyfish, imaged using X-rays in a micro-CT
scanner. The artificial colours used here are
based on the density of the glass. This incredible
model was sculpted in glass in the mid-19th
Century by Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka. The
techniques used by this father and son team are
not fully understood, it is hoped that this study
will help reveal some of their secrets.
[email protected]
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GERD-A. GÜNTHER
Puccinia lagenophorae,
Rust Spores : 2012
Light micrograph of a section of the stem
of a common groundsel (Senecio vulgaris)
infected with spores of a rust fungus Puccinia
lagenophorae. The spores are in the yellow
patches at centre forming two clustered
spots each about 50 micrometres wide.
P. lagenophorae is parasitic to the common
groundsel. Rusts such as this rarely kill their
host but can severely debilitate individual
plants. This is a major consideration in
agriculture where rusts form on cereal crops.
This image was captured using a Leica DMLB
microscope and dark field illumination and a
Canon digital camera.
[email protected]
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HANS U. DANZEBRINK
Flame : 2013
Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB),
Braunschweig, Germany
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Colourised light micrograph showing a
section of a prepared sample of nanoparticles.
The nanoparticles are made from PMMA, or poly
(methyl methacrylate), and appear as tiny dark
spots in the upper part of the image and in the
red area below. The yellow areas are remnants
of the liquid suspension stabiliser from the
manufacturing process, the blue-grey area is a
silicon substrate. The nanoparticles are about
190 nanometres wide, the piece of the sample
seen here is about 800 micrometres across.
Nanoparticles are being studied as possible
drug-delivery agents as they can be treated to
carry chemicals to specific cell types within the
body. This image was captured using a Zeiss
Axiophot 2 microscope under bright-field contrast
illumination, then later digitally colourised.
[email protected]
VOLKER BRINKMANN
Dividing Cancer Cells : 2001
Max-Planck Institute for Infection Biology,
Berlin, Germany
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of
dividing cancer cells. One of the features
that defines a cancer cell is that it undergoes
rapid division. The rate of replication of normal
epithelial cells is normally governed by ‘gatekeeper’ proteins, but these are missing on cancer
cells. This image was created in monochrome
[email protected]
www.mpiib-berlin.mpg.de/de/services/core/
mikroskopie
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DAVID McCARTHY
Swimmers on the Beach : 2012
University College London,
School of Pharmacy, London, United Kingdom
Scanning electron micrograph of ‘nanoswimmers’.
These are microscopic objects being investigated
for use as drug carriers in medicine. Each tiny coil
is just 25 micrometres long, 5 micrometres wide
and 300 nanometres thick. The coils are made
from a polymer coated in nickel and titanium.
This image was captured in monochrome then
later digitally colourised by Ms A Cavanagh.
[email protected]
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NICOLE OTTAWA
Diatoms : 2006
Coloured scanning electron micrograph of
the shells of various diatoms. Diatoms are a
type of photosynthetic, single-celled algae.
There are around 100,000 species of diatom,
which form an important part of the plankton
at the base of the marine and freshwater food
chains. The characteristic feature of diatoms is
their intricately patterned, glass-like cell wall, or
frustule. This image was created in monochrome
[email protected]
www.eyeofscience.de
95
Chromodoris Nudibranch with Commensal Shrimp,
Bali Indonesia : 2007
National Geographic Magazine (Contributing Photographer),
Clayton, New York, USA
A Pyjama nudibranch (Chromodoris magnifica) photographed with an attending shrimp.
The nudibranchs form a group of soft-bodied, gastropod molluscs. There are over 3000
described species of nudibranch, many of which are extremely colourful to warn of their
toxicity to potential predators. C. magnifica is found in the western Pacific Ocean and
feeds on sponges of the genus Negombata. This specimen was photographed in an
underwater miniature studio – a white background was fixed to a tripod and taken to the
nudibranch. A marine biologist placed the nudibranch on the background then returned
it to its environment. The image was captured on a Nikon D2X camera and 60mm macro
lens in an underwater housing. Lighting was from two flash units with a further unit
providing some back light.
[email protected]
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AMANDA REBBECHI
Bladder Stones : 2002
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Medical Illustration Unit, The Royal Melbourne Hospital,
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
A clinician holding some bladder stones, also known as vesical calculi or cystoliths.
Normally these are small particles that form when the patient is dehydrated and
thus has concentrated urine, or if urine is allowed to become stagnant in the bladder
due to infections. This allows various minerals to crystallise – most often these are
calcium oxalates and phosphates of calcium, magnesium and ammonia. Treatment
in the early stages is by breaking the stones using ultrasound or a laser and allowing
the fragments to pass. In extreme cases, as seen here, surgical removal is required.
This image was captured using a Nikon FM-2 camera with 55mm macro lens and
studio lighting.
[email protected]
DORIT HOCKMAN
Skeleton of a Chameleon Embryo : 2012
Trinity College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Light micrograph of a prepared specimen of an embryo of a Veiled Chameleon,
Chamaeleo calyptratus. The skin was removed and the embryo treated with skeletal
stains. These render cartilage in blue and bone in red. During development, the
skeleton starts out as cartilage which is rapidly replaced by bone. Here most of the
skeleton has turned into bone, with just the front ribs and parts of the skull still as
cartilage. This image was taken as part of research into embryonic development and
the diversity of growth in different species. The image was captured using a Leica
dissecting photo-microscope.
[email protected]
82
98
HUGH TURVEY
Woman Drinking Water : 2010
99
The British Institute of Radiology, London, United Kingdom
A variety of imaging techniques is used here to visually illustrate the anatomy and
mechanics of a simple yet essential action – drinking water. The image uses magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI), X-ray and conventional photographic elements that have
been digitally combined and given a blue tint.
[email protected]
www.bir.org.uk/about-us/artist-in-residence
Time Lapse Sequence of Glory Lily Flower Opening : 2009
Time-lapse sequence showing the opening of a flower of a Glory Lily (Gloriosa
superba). This clearly illustrates how the petals enlarge, flex upwards and change
colour as the flower opens. This exposes the stamens and stigma so that butterfly
pollinators can make contact with them. These images are part of an ongoing project
on floral structure and pollination mechanisms, which Heather Angel is undertaking for
the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The images were captured using a Nikon D3 camera
and 105mm macro lens with illumination from two SB900 electronic flash units.
Separate exposures were later combined in an image editing program.
[email protected]
84
100
LISTINGS
NAME
COUNTRY TITLE
PAGE
Craig Aarts
Canada
Sphere-Ology : 2010
Farah Ahmed
United Kingdom 20 Million Year Old Gecko in Amber : 2012 / Tissint – Martian Meteorite : 2012
Heather Angel HonFRPS
United Kingdom Darwin’s Slipper Flower in Visible and UV Radiation : 2011 / How a Pond Skater Walks on Water : 2006 / Time Lapse Sequence of Glory Lily Flower Opening : 2009
Norm Barker
USA
Red Fossil Coral, Indonesia : 2011 / Gallstones : 2011 / Gomphothere Tooth : 2012
Richard Bower
United Kingdom The Invisible Universe : 2013
Gabriel Brammer
Germany
Comets and Shooting Stars Dance Over Paranal : 2013
Dee Breger
USA
Tunguska Ilmenite : 2008
Volker Brinkmann
Germany
Shigella Comet : 2010 / Stiletto : 2012 / Malaria Sporozoite Movement : 2011 / Dividing Cancer Cells : 2001
Roberta Cagnetta
United Kingdom Human iPS-Derived Cerebral Cortex Neurons : 2012
Bernardo Cesare
Italy
Sunflower of Jasper : 2010 / Graphite-Bearing Rock from Kerala, India : 2012
Hans U. Danzebrink
Germany
Flame : 2013
Adrian Davies ARPS
United Kingdom Seed Spiralling Down from Sycamore Tree in Autumn : 2012 / Pollen Being Discharged from Ash Tree Fraxinus excelsior : 2012
David Dickie
United Kingdom Squamous-Cell Carcinoma, Right Hand : 2011
David Doubilet HonFRPS
USA
World of Penguins, Antarctic Peninsula : 2011 / Lemon Sharks on Patrol, Bahama Banks : 2010 /
Male Tomato Clownfish Guarding Eggs, Anilao Philippines : 2009 /
Chromodoris Nudibranch with Commensal Shrimp, Bali Indonesia : 2007
Fernan Federici
United Kingdom Fluorescent Arabidopsis thaliana Plant : 2009
Andrew Gasson ARPS
United Kingdom Bubbles Beneath a Contact Lens : 2004
Robert Gendler
USA
Trifid Nebula : 1997-2002 / Ring Nebula : 1995-2008 / Spiral Planetary Nebula : 2012 / Messier 106 : 1995-2003 Katrina Gold
United Kingdom Fly’s Eye View : 2012
Nicky Goodfellow
United Kingdom Lymphangiomas and Angiokeratomas on Leg : 2012
Steve Gschmeissner
United Kingdom Ruptured Venule : 2011 / Activated Macrophage : 2013
Christopher Guerin
Belgium
Yeast SEM : 2012
Gerd-A. Günther
Germany
Tick Hypostome : 2013 / Butterfly Wing : 2012 / Puccinia lagenophorae, Rust Spores : 2012
Team led by Oliver Hainault
Germany
The Wings of the Seagull Nebula : 2012
Dorit Hockman
United Kingdom Bat Embryonic Development : 2006 / Skeleton of a Chameleon Embryo : 2012
Robert Hurt
USA
Massive Star Making Waves : 2012 / The Dusty Spectacle of Orion : 2013 / The Ultraviolet Andromeda Galaxy : 2012 Manfred P Kage
Germany
Nerve Cells on a Silicon Chip : 2009 / Ant Holding a Micromechanical Gear : 2006
Daniel Kariko
USA
Weevil Found on Front Porch, Doormat : 2012 / Yellow Paper Wasp Found on Back Yard, Pathway : 2013 / Cuckoo Wasp Found on Window Screen : 2013
Ted Kinsman
USA
Fluid Fishbone Effect : 2012 / Over-Inflating a Balloon : 2011
Richard Kirby
United Kingdom The Doliolid, Doliolum nationalis : 2012
Harald Kleine
Australia
Focusing Shock : 2007 / Bullet Sequence : 2012
Steve Lowry
United Kingdom Leaf Hairs on Deutzia scabra : 2012
Mark Maio
USA
20/20 : 2011
David Malin FRPS
Australia
Dimedone – Cyclomethone, 5,5-Dimethyl-1,3-Cyclohexanedione : 1972 / Tungsten-Aluminium Alloy : 1970-2008 / Star Trails over the Dome of the Anglo-Australian Telescope : 1979
David McCarthy
United Kingdom Swimmers on the Beach : 2012
Tony McConnell
United Kingdom Large Lady : 1998
Steven Morton FRPS
Australia
Acoustically Levitated Drop of Human Blood Cells : 2007 / Feeding Aedes aegypti : 2012 / Malaria Infected Human Red Blood Cell : 2008 / 115 Million Year Old Jaw of Bishops whitmorei : 2009
Louise Murray
United Kingdom Porcelain Crab Feeding Inside the Safety of its Host : 2011
Nicole Ottawa
Germany
Tardigrade, or Water Bear : 2010 / Evening Primrose Pollen : 2013 / Beauveria bassiana : 2012 / Coffea : 2012 /
Diatoms : 2006
Greg Parker
United Kingdom Water Drop Collision and Bubble Burst : 2012
Anders Persson
Sweden
Mechanical Heart Pump Computed Tomography : 2012 / Computed Tomography Angiography of Dead Wild Boar : 2013
Post-Mortem Dual Energy Computed Tomography Examination : 2012 / Computed Tomography Angiography : 2013
Phred Petersen
Australia
MAV Takeoff : 2012 / Blast Wave Patterns : 2011
John Priestley
United Kingdom Change and Stability at the Heart of the Spinal Cord : 2013
Amanda Rebbechi
Australia
Bladder Stones : 2002
David Scharf
USA
Human Lymphocyte : 2011 / Two Neurons on a Glial Cell : 2011 /MEMS Electrostatic Motor : 2010 /
MEMS Brain Electrode Array : 2011
Jim Swoger
Spain
10.5 Day Old Mouse Embryo, Neurofilaments : 2011
Dan Sykes
United Kingdom A Blaschka Jellyfish : 2013
Andrew Syred & Cheryl Power United Kingdom Large White Butterfly Scent Scale : 2010 / Silkworm Cocoon Silk Fibres : 2012 / Fruit Fly Male Sex Comb – Drosophila melanogaster : 2008
Viktor Sykora
Czech Republic Eye of a Cerambyx : 2012
Hugh Turvey
United Kingdom Woman Drinking Water : 2010
John Volcano
United Kingdom Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome with Cleft Palate : 2013
Spike Walker ASIS FRPS
United Kingdom Lagena Species Foraminifera : 2013 / Mouse Foetus, Longitudinal Section : 2006
David W Walker
United Kingdom Victorian Microscope Slide: Head of Vanessa urticae : 2011
Paul Whitten
USA
Retinal Haemorrhage : 2013
Nicholas Wright
United Kingdom Triggering the Birth of Stars : 2010
39
64 / 71
38 / 48 / 84
29 / 49 / 50
13
26
28
41 / 66 / 70 / 78
39
29 / 36
78
8 /9
46
26 / 48 / 49 / 80
51
50
14 / 14 / 16 / 18
38
25
42 / 44
56
52 / 60 / 77
12
35 / 82
10 / 11 / 19
55 / 75
20 / 72 / 73
30 / 67
76
7 / 54
31
15
6 / 24 / 27
79
53
37 / 46 / 59 / 65
61
21 / 23 / 43 /
62 / 79
33
35 / 68 / 68 / 69
53 / 57
34
81
17 / 32 / 55 / 70
40
77
22 / 24 / 45
63
83
47
6 / 76
74
58
13
85
SELECTORS
CHAIRMAN OF SELECTORS
Medical & Scientific Imaging Consultant
CATHERINE DRAYCOTT
Head of Wellcome Images
Wellcome Trust
GARY EVANS ASIS FRPS
Manager Scientific Relations
Science Photo Library
Afzal Ansary trained in Medical Photography
at St Mary’s Hospital Medical School,
London, and studied Scientific Photography
at the Polytechnic of Central London, after
which he worked at Guy’s Hospital Medical
School, London. In 1971, he established
the Department of Medical Illustration at
the University of Zambia, School of Medicine
(University Teaching Hospital), which he
headed for 18 years. During this period,
he was also an Honorary Consultant to the
National Council for Scientific Research,
Lusaka, Zambia.
Catherine Draycott has been Head of
Wellcome Images since 1992. She has also
been a Director of the British Association of
Picture Libraries and Agencies since 1997
and was it’s Chairperson from 2000 to 2007.
Gary Evans gained a BSc in scientific
photography at the Polytechnic of Central
London before joining the photographic
industry as a technical advisor. Since 1991
he has worked at the Science Photo Library,
the world’s largest specialist stock agency
for images of science, technology, medicine
and the natural world.
He has worked in medical photography
in three large teaching hospitals in the
UK, and is an Accredited Senior Imaging
Scientist, Registered Medical Illustration
Practitioner, and Emeritus Fellow of the
Bio-Communications Association. Besides
his academic qualifications, he holds five
Fellowships in Scientific, Medical and
Biological Photography. He won the RPS
Medical Group Lancet Award in 1990,
for the book, A Colour Atlas of AIDS in the
Tropics, of which he is principal author.
A member of the Science Committee,
and the Imaging Scientist Qualifications
Board, he coordinated the first International
Images for Science Exhibition in 2011,
and has presented and published
several papers.
86
She is responsible for the management and
development of Wellcome Images’ collection
which spans the history of medicine and
civilisation from antiquity to the present
day with over 180,000 images available
online. Since starting at Wellcome, she has
overseen the acquisition and development
of a collection of 45,000 contemporary
images combining clinical medicine and
disease with biomedical science. She has
been a judge of the Wellcome Image Awards
since their inception in 1997.
He has worked on several internationally
renowned exhibition projects, including
designing and curating the prototype of
From Earth to the Universe for UNESCO in
2008, an exhibition of astronomy images
subsequently seen at over 1000 venues
in more than 100 countries, and was a
selector for the first IISE in 2011.
An outspoken advocate of the power of
images to communicate science with
the public, he also remains an active
photographer. Current projects include an
exploration of extremely long exposures
in daylight on monochrome film, stacked
focus macrophotography and taking digital
pictures though his new telescope.
PHOTO: STFC/STEPHEN KILL
RALPH JACOBSON ASIS HonFRPS
Emeritus Professor of Imaging Science,
University of Westminster
USCHI STEIGENBERGER
Director of ISIS (retired)
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Ralph Jacobson has MSc and PhD degrees
from the University of London. He was
made Professor in 1992 and Emeritus
Professor of Imaging Science in 2002 at
the University of Westminster where he has
been teaching and carrying out research
for more than 30 years. He founded the
Imaging Technology Research Group and
initiated an MSc in Digital and Photographic
Imaging. Ralph has authored, co-authored,
or contributed to 11 books and more than
150 research papers. His main current area
of research is in measuring image quality
using physical and psychophysical metrics.
He was awarded a Fellowship of the Society
for Imaging Science and Technology in
2006 for his research contributions in
image quality and his leadership in imaging
science education.
Uschi Steigenberger studied physics at the
University of Würzburg in Germany. Having
finished a PhD in semiconductor physics
she extended her scientific interest to
magnetic materials using neutron scattering
techniques as a key scientific tool. First
working at the Institut Laue Langevin in
Grenoble, the renowned research reactor,
and later at the world’s leading pulsed
neutron source, the ISIS Facility at the
Rutherford Appleton in the UK, she focused
on the structure and dynamics of materials
known generally as strongly correlated
electron systems.
He was awarded an Honorary Fellowship
of The Society in 1994 and was President
from 2005 to 2007. He received the Fenton
Medal in 2010. He is currently Editorial
Consultant to The Imaging Science Journal
and a member of the Science, Education
and Imaging Sciences Group committees
and chairs the Imaging Scientist
Qualifications Board.
She also became interested in developing
neutron instrumentation and techniques.
During her professional career she
recognised the importance of visualising
experimental results. She says: ‘Imaging
scientific results is a tremendously
powerful tool which supports the scientific
interpretation and, in addition, can deliver
absolutely stunning and beautiful images’.
She recently retired as the Director of ISIS.
She has a lifelong interest in photography
which started when she was given an Agfa
box camera for her 10th birthday and as
a keen traveller she enjoys capturing
the excitement of exploration in
photographic images.
87
GLOSSARY
88
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) First invented in 1986,
bright-dark-bright cycle meaning a complete wavelength out
especially in biological specimens. A filter is made with a
AFM essentially ‘feels’ a surface with a microscopic probe.
of phase. This technique is sensitive and can be used to make
central disc of one colour, say green, and a surrounding ring
The tip of the probe is a few nanometres wide. This is
quantitative measurements of very small changes.
of another, say red. This is placed below the condenser lens
brought extremely close to the sample surface, so close that
Light year (ly) The distance travelled by light in a vacuum
in the light path of a microscope. This is arranged so that
electrons in the atoms of the tip and of the sample start
in the course of one Julian year (365 ¼ days). This is about
only the central green light enters the microscope objective,
to repel each other, creating a force. The probe is scanned
9.46 trillion kilometres (or 5.9 trillion miles), or more than
the red light just misses the objective. If a sample is now
across the sample surface while a feedback mechanism
63,000 times the distance from the Earth to the Sun.
placed in the microscope, parts of it will refract the outer
raises or lowers the tip so that this repelling force remains
Macrophotography This term covers what we normally
red light component enough that it enters the objective.
constant. The energy needed for raising and lowering of
think of as ‘close-up’ photography. Generally speaking this
Therefore the viewer sees the specimen against a green
the tip as it scans is recorded and provides a 3D model of
is capturing an image at somewhere like life size, although
background with various structures emphasised in yellow
the surface being studied. AFM works at the very limits of
macro is often accepted to be from about ¼ life size to
(the mixture of green and red light) and red.
microscopy, being able to resolve individual atoms.
10 times life size. Macrophotography can be achieved
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) Electrons can act as
Computed tomography (CT) Conventional X-ray images are
through supplementary ‘close-up’ lenses, specially designed
waves as well as particles. A beam of electrons is created
excellent at showing damage to hard structures such as
macro lenses or by complex systems of reversed lenses
from a hot filament and focussed using magnets into a spot.
bones, but are poor at discriminating soft tissues.
and bellows units. The main issues in macrophotography
This is scanned across a specimen in a vacuum chamber.
There is also the problem of superposition, where the
are lighting and focus. Many digital photographers now
Atoms in the surface of the specimen are energised,
point of interest is surrounded by other tissue such as bone.
use ‘stacking’ software to take many exposures at slightly
releasing this energy as secondary electrons that are picked
To overcome this, computed tomography takes a series of
different focus points, the software then combines the
up by a detector. Some items, notably biological specimens
slit-like X-ray images through the body from many directions.
‘sharp’ sections of each image to produce a frame with
such as insects, need to be coated with gold to produce
These images are combined in a computer and software
a greatly expanded apparent depth of field.
a conductive surface. The current created by the secondary
used to display the spatial position of various structures,
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) One of the greatest
electrons is represented by the brightness of a spot on the
resulting in a virtual ‘slice’ through the body. By moving the
advances in medical diagnostic imaging, MRI is used to
screen that is synchronised with the scanning beam. Thus a
patient slightly and repeating the procedure, a series of
discriminate between tissues that appear identical in X-rays.
monochrome image is formed with excellent resolution (more
slices is obtained that can be assembled by the computer
The MRI scanner is essentially a large superconducting
than 200 times sharper than light) and extensive depth
into a 3D model. CT scans (also known as CAT or computed
magnet. The magnetic field it generates aligns the spin of
of field. Various techniques are used to create colour in
axial tomography scans) are especially useful when used in
hydrogen atoms in the body, such as in water molecules in
the image. One technique uses multiple detectors, each
conjunction with a contrast medium, for example in studying
tissues, and a brief burst of radio waves ‘flips’ the spin of the
producing a single colour channel, which are then combined
blood vessels.
atoms. The rate at which the atoms return to their original spin
as an RGB image. Others are colourised in post-production
Confocal Microscopy This is an optical technique used
state, and the energy they emit doing so, is characteristic of
using image editing programs such as Photoshop.
to increase the resolution, depth of field and contrast in a
the molecular bond of the hydrogen atom and thus the tissue
Schlieren photography This is a technique for visualising
microscope. A point light source is focussed onto the specimen,
type in which it resides. Complex software is used to create
changes of refractive index – normally in air – resulting from
the reflected light passing back through the lens and reflected
a 3D map of the body from these data that shows excellent
local differences in pressure or heat. The most familiar use
by a semi-silvered mirror to a pinhole at an identical distance
differentiation in soft tissues such as the brain, muscles,
is showing shock waves in supersonic flows. A light source
away. This drastically reduces any out-of-focus light, but means
the heart and in many types of tumour.
is placed at the focus of a parabolic mirror. This projects a
that to get an image the focus spot needs to be scanned
Micrometre (μm) Also known as a micron, this is one
beam of light toward an identical mirror, the gap between
across the specimen. This technique is most often used in
millionth of a metre or one thousandth of a millimetre.
them is the ‘working section’. A knife edge is placed at
conjunction with fluorescent dyes and an ultraviolet laser to get
Microsecond (μs) One millionth of a second.
the focus of the second mirror, from above, the apparatus
high-resolution location and compositional information in
Nanometre (nm) One billionth of a metre, one thousandth of
has a characteristic ‘Z’ shape layout. Thus the image of the
a biological specimen.
a micrometre.
light source is focussed onto the knife edge, which is also
Fluorescence microscopy This technique is ideal for
Nanosecond (ns) One billionth of a second, one thousandth
at the focus of a camera lens. Any local change in air density
highlighting the location and composition of structures
of a microsecond.
in the working section bends the light above or below the
such as cells and cell organelles. Fluorescent dyes are used
Polarised light microscopy This method allows us to see
knife edge, at the camera this is seen as a corresponding
that glow each in a specific colour when illuminated with
differences between materials that otherwise simply appear
brighter or darker patch against a mid-grey background. More
UV radiation. Each dye is designed so it binds to a specific
to be transparent. Light is passed through a polarising filter
sophisticated systems use a multi-coloured light source or a
protein or chemical fragment. When a sample is viewed,
that only allows through light waves that oscillate in a single
coloured filter in place of the knife edge.
different colours highlight different parts of the sample –
common direction. This goes through the sample, where
Selective Plane Illumination Microscopy This is a
for example, when imaging a cell, blue may highlight the
different materials that are optically active, rotate the plane
development of fluorescence microscopy in which the
presence of DNA, green may show the actin of the cell’s
of polarisation by different amounts. By looking through a
illumination comes from the side of the subject, not down
structure and red may be used to show the mitochondria.
second polarising filter (known as the analyser), we see these
onto or through it. The illumination is normally by a laser
Fluorescence techniques are often allied with confocal
different amounts of optical rotation as different colours.
beam which passes through a cylindrical lens and becomes
illumination to take advantage of its high spatial resolution.
This process is especially useful in determining the content of
a thin sheet of light. This is aimed into the subject from the
Infrared radiation (IR) Infrared is an electromagnetic
mineral samples, in many biological structures and in stress
side, so that it lights at a specific depth as seen by the user.
radiation similar to light, but with longer wavelength, typically
analysis of transparent materials.
By changing the depth of this light sheet, the structure of a
0.7 micrometres to 1000 micrometres. Longer wavelengths
Raman Spectroscopy Raman spectroscopy allows scientists
sample at different depths may be studied, even combined
are known as ‘thermal’ infrared, as their emission depends on
to identify and study the structures of large molecules such
in a computer to create a 3D model.
the surface temperature of an object.
as proteins. A laser is used to energise vibrations, rotations
Ultraviolet radiation (UV) Ultraviolet is a type of
Interferometry Optical interferometry exploits a characteristic
or small-scale variations within a molecule – in doing so
electromagnetic radiation similar to light but with shorter
of coherent light, such as that produced by lasers. A light
the energy of the laser beam is altered in a measurable
wavelengths, typically 10-400 nanometres. Many insects
beam is split into two, one passes through the test object and
and characteristic way. This is known as inelastic scattering.
can see longwave UV radiation (300-400 nanometres).
is recombined with the other, reference, beam. Because the
Raman spectroscopy allows the study of very small samples,
Shorter wavelengths, typically 280-315 nanometres,
light waves start out in phase (in step), any changes in the
does not require the sample to be physically fixed and is
promote the production of Vitamin D but excessive exposure
test area change the phase of light rays passing through.
largely unaffected by water so can be used for aqueous
leads to sunburn. UV ‘blacklights’ make fluorescent
When recombined they interfere with the reference beam,
solutions.
dyes glow in visible light, for example in security inks on
either constructively (adding up) or destructively (cancelling
Rheinberg illumination This is a technique for highlighting
banknotes or the optical brighteners used in many
out). This produces a pattern of dark and bright lines, each
microscopic structures within apparently clear samples,
washing powders.
Afzal Ansary ASIS FRPS is to be congratulated for bringing
together a diverse range of exciting images that come
within the remit of Scientific Imaging which according to the
Encyclopaedia of Imaging Science and Technology (John Wiley
& Sons, 2002) may be defined as: The scientific applications
of photography and imaging as tools to assist visualization. It
is as old as photography itself and is concerned with making
visible events that are too large, too small, too slow, too rapid,
or beyond the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum
to be seen. As we have seen from the introduction (page 2-3),
virtually all areas of science and technology benefit from and
even depend on scientific imaging. It is also used extensively
by the manufacturing industries and as an educational tool
to reveal all those events that cannot be seen by the unaided
eye. Scientific photography and the imaging science behind its
many practical techniques have played and continue to play a
most significant role in all aspects of our modern society, from
the discovery of radioactivity and sub-atomic particles to the
fabrication of microcircuits. Perhaps William Henry Fox Talbot
can be considered a very early imaging scientist and scientific
photographer, if not the first.
I very much hope that this exhibition will inspire and encourage
those involved in scientific imaging to apply for a Science
Distinction by the submission of prints, transparencies or digital
images. Applicants are asked to provide a statement which
must provide a clear explanation of the purpose, objectives
or intent of the work submitted together with technical details
of sample preparation, image capture conditions and any
image manipulations or processing that have been applied,
where appropriate. Even If the nature of the applicant’s work is
confidential then arrangements can be made for the work to be
assessed ‘in camera’ and its confidentiality guaranteed. Also many
Scientific Photographers are involved professionally in scientific
imaging and may wish to apply for one of our Imaging Science
Qualifications which are summarised on this page (below).
Further details of the requirements for both Distinctions and
Qualifications can be found on The Society’s website (www.rps.org).
PROF RALPH JACOBSON ASIS HonFRPS
Chair, Imaging Scientist Qualifications Board
Past President of The Royal Photographic Society (2005-2007)
IMAGING SCIENTIST QUALIFICATIONS
The Royal Photographic Society Imaging
Scientist Qualifications provide a structure
leading to professional qualifications for
engineers, scientists and technologists
whose professional activities are concerned
with quantitative or mechanic aspects of
imaging systems or their applications.
The relevant academic disciplines
(chemistry, engineering, physics etc),
imaging systems (silver, non-silver,
electronic etc) and applications, will be
interpreted as widely as possible.
The Qualifications may be gained by
members of The Society working within
relatively narrow specialisations but their
achievements will require a range of widely
applicable professional skills. Candidates
are required to demonstrate at an
appropriate level, and as required by their
particular professional circumstances, an
ability to undertake a programme of work,
write reports and papers, work within a
team and produce results.
Members who acquire an Imaging Scientist
Qualification will also receive a Society
Distinction.
LEVEL 1
Qualified Imaging Scientist and
Licentiate (QIS LRPS)
For those with academic qualifications
below degree level. For this level there is
a minimum age of 21 years.
a) BTec, HND, in engineering or science.
b) One year of relevant experience.
Where the candidate has not satisfied
part A, four years of relevant experience
will be accepted instead.
c) Normally, the candidate will have
performed work of a non-routine nature,
which may have been directed by a senior
colleague, and have produced accurate
records and simple internal reports.
LEVEL 2
Graduate Imaging Scientist and
Associate (GIS ARPS)
For those with a first degree
a) A suitable degree in engineering
or science.
b) One year of relevant experience where
the candidate has an honours degree and
two years of relevant experience where the
candidate has a pass degree.
c) Normally, the candidate will have made a
useful contribution to the work of a team of
scientists and may have directed the work
of a technician.
LEVEL 3
Accredited Imaging Scientist and
Associate (AIS ARPS)
The qualification for those with
post-graduate experience as imaging
scientists
a) Normally either QIS or GIS.
b) Five years of relevant experience postQIS or three years of relevant experience
GIS. Where the candidate has not satisfied
part A, nine years of relevant experience will
be accepted instead.
c) As GIS but more evidence reflecting the
years involved. Normally, the candidate
will have generated and completed an
individual project and will have written
internal reports and published refereed
papers. The Qualifications Board will expect
to see evidence of independent work.
LEVEL 4
Accredited Senior Imaging Scientist
and Fellow (ASIS FRPS)
The Senior professional qualification
a) Normally AIS.
b) Five years of relevant experience postAIS Alternatively, nine years of relevant
experience post-GIS or eleven years postQIS. Where the candidate has not satisfied
QIS part A, fourteen years of relevant
experience will be accepted instead.
c) Individual work of a high standard, which
has shown originality. The Qualifications
Board will expect to see evidence of a
broad involvement in imaging science
beyond a narrow specialism.
89
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT
THE ROYAL PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY
Fenton House, 122 Wells Road, Bath BA2 3AH United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)1225 325733 Website: www.rps.org Email: [email protected]
Registered Charity Number: 1107831
EXHIBITION CO-ORDINATOR
FRONT COVER IMAGE
DAN SYKES A Blaschka Jellyfish
DESIGNED BY
OMNI www.omni-digital.co.uk
PRINTED BY
WINCANTON PRINTING COMPANY www.wincanton-print.com
THE EXHIBITION IS SPONSORED BY
ISBN 978-0-904495-06-5
9 780904 495065
© 2013 All rights reserved
90

IMAGES FOR SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL

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