Images Dated 30th April 2004

Human skeleton

Human skeleton. Historical artwork of a human skeleton holding an hourglass. The 206 bones of the skeleton provide protection and support to the body. The ribs of the chest (upper right) enclose the heart and lungs. The pelvis protects (centre right) the lower abdominal organs. The flexible backbone runs from the skull to the pelvis and protects the spinal cord. The bones of the arms and legs articulate to provide locomotion. Hourglasses are used to measure time. It may symbolise ageing or death. This artwork is by Felix Platter and was published in 1583

© MEHAU KULYK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Artwork of a comet

Artist's impression of a comet, seen on a winter's night. A comet is a body of ice and dust which moves on a long, elliptical orbit around the Sun. As it nears the Sun its surface is heated and some of the ice evaporates. The gas becomes ionised by the Sun's ultraviolet light and forms a coma, a glowing halo surrounding the nucleus. Ionised gas is drawn outwards by the solar wind (a stream of high velocity charged particles emitted by the Sun), forming a plasma tail. The released dust sometimes forms a second tail, pushed outwards by radiation pressure

© JULIAN BAUM/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Snake s head FRITILLARIES

ROG-11306
Snakes head FRITILLARIES
Frosty morning, Wiltshire, UK
Fritilllaria meleagris
Also known as Checked lily / Snakehead lily. Flowers: late Spring - April / March
Bob Gibbons
Please note that prints are for personal display purposes only and may not be reproduced in any way

© Bob Gibbons/ardea.com