Images Dated 13th October 2003

Solar system map from 1853

Historical map of the solar system, published in Germany in 1853. The main diagram shows the orbits of the first seven planets out to Uranus. Neptune had been discovered in 1846, but is only shown on the list at upper left. Pluto was not discovered until 1930. The phases of the Moon are illustrated at lower left. Details of Saturn's rings are shown at upper right, while conjunctions of Mercury and Venus are shown at lower right. The main diagram, drawn to scale, shows how the inner solar system is tiny when compared to the vast distances of the outer solar system. The highly elliptical orbits of comets are shown, as well as the asteroid belt

© DETLEV VAN RAVENSWAAY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

HMS Walney

Royal Navy Sandown Class Minehunter HMS Walney.
The Class was originally named as the Single Role Minehunter and was planned to complement the capabilities of the preceding HUnt class and to be cheaper to build. Sandown MCMVs are highly manoeuvrable vessels and are considered to be the best Minehunters active in the world

© Crown Copyright

False-col SEM of cracked surface of compact disc

False colour scanning electron micrograph of the surface of a compact disc cracked to show the musical layer below (centre). The disc is made of plastic, which is pressed with a series of fine depressions (notches), representing a digitised musical signal capable of being read by a laser. To reflect the laser light, the music layer is coated with a fine film of metal (unseen) which follows the depressions exactly. This layer is covered by another layer of transparent plastic, which is visible here. The music is sandwiched between two layers of plastic, which prevents dust & scratches from affecting the sound. Magnificat- ion: x1000 at 10x8 inch size, x143 at 35mm size. Blue & red colorvir

© DR JEREMY BURGESS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY