Images Dated 13th February 2007

Explorer 1 in orbit

Explorer 1. Computer artwork of America's first successful artificial satellite, Explorer 1, in orbit. Explorer 1 was launched on 31 January 1958, after the USSR took the USA by surprise by launching the world's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, on 4 October 1957. The satellite measured 2.05 metres in length and weighed 14 kilograms. It orbited Earth at heights of between 360 kilometres and 2520 kilometres until 31 March 1970. It carried, amongst other instruments, a geiger counter, used to detect cosmic rays. Data collected by the satellite led to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belt, a torus of charged particles held in place by the Earth's magnetic field

© DETLEV VAN RAVENSWAAY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Wandering albatrosses, Drake Passage;

Wandering albatrosses (Diomedea exulans) adult birds with the largest wing span, flying together above ocean while using wind and air currents, clear summer sky, Antarctic Convergence; Drake Passage; Antarctica; Southern Ocean

© John Eastcott and Yva Momatiuk

86177114, Animal Body Part, Animal Themes, Animal Wildlife, Animals In The Wild, Antarctic Convergence, Antarctica, Aquatic, Bird, Clear Sky, Day, Diomedea Exulans, Drake Passage, Flying, Freedom, Horizontal, Low Angle View, Motion, No People, Outdoors, Photography, Southern Ocean, Spread Wings, Sunny, Togetherness, Two Animals, Wandering Albatross

Man casts his shadow on the ground at Akihabara Electric Town, the largest electronics

A man casts his shadow on the ground at Akihabara Electric Town, the largest electronics shopping district in Tokyo February 13, 2007. Japanese wholesale prices rose less than expected in January from a year earlier, a sign that price growth remains tame, and investors now await GDP data to see if the Bank of Japan is likely to raise interest rates next week. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon (JAPAN) - GM1DUPHCEHAA