Classical Gallery

Celestial mechanics, medieval artwork

Celestial mechanics. Coloured historical artwork depicting a medieval pilgrim looking out from the sky (blue) to see the mechanics of the heavens (upper left). Cogs (yellow) can be seen in the left corner, with tracks that the Sun, moon and stars move along. This is an example of the classical geocentric (Ptolemaic) worldview that dates back to Ancient Greek times. It was replaced by the heliocentric (Copernican) model, proposed by Nicolaus Copernicus in 1543. This woodcut is from The Atmosphere by Camille Flammarion, published in 1873

© DETLEV VAN RAVENSWAAY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Winged Victory of Samothrace or Nike of Samothrace

Greek art. Winged Victory of Samothrace or Nike of Samothrace. 2nd century BC. Marble. Sculpture of the greek goodess Nike (Victory). Museum of Louvre. Paris

© Thaliastock / Mary Evans

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Nuclear Fission Artwork

Nuclear fission. Conceptual computer artwork of an atom being split through nuclear, or atomic, fission (splitting). Electrons (orange) can be seen orbiting the nucleus (centre), made up of protons (yellow) and neutrons (blue). Nuclear fission is a reaction in which the nucleus of an atom is split into smaller parts. This often causes free neutrons to be emitted (lower right, blue) and results in lighter nuclei. The splitting of the nucleus can produce a vast amount of energy, used for nuclear power and nuclear weapons

© CROWN COPYRIGHT