Round Gallery

HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, 1845

Engraving showing HMS Erebus (left) and HMS Terror, pictured on the River Thames, 1845. In 1845 the British Admiralty sent two polar exploration ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, to look for the Northwest passage round the northern coast of Canada. The expedition, commanded by Sir John Franklin, disappeared from view late in 1845 and none of the men were ever seen again. In fact the ships made it to the King William Island region, then got stuck in the ice. With supplies running out the surviving crew abandoned ship and headed south. However, none made it to safety and it is assumed all died from disease, exposure or starvation. From 1848 onwards a number of relief expeditions were sent to find Franklin, but it was only in 1859 that Francis Leopold McClintock was able to confirm Franklin's fate

© Mary Evans Picture Library 2015 - https://copyrighthub.org/s0/hub1/creation/maryevans/MaryEvansPictureID/10217704

Neptune, Voyager 2 image

Neptune. Neptune is a gas giant, composed mostly of hydrogen and helium with some methane. Seen at centre is the Great Dark Spot, thought to be a hole in the methane cloud deck of Neptune, accompanied by bright, white, high-altitude clouds. This image was reconstructed from two images (one through a green filter and one through an orange filter), taken by the narrow-angle camera aboard the Voyager 2 spacecraft in August 1989

© JPL/NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Africa, satellite image

Africa. Satellite image of the Earth centred on Africa. Clouds are white, oceans are blue and land is green and brown. Also seen are Europe (top) Asia (upper right), the Indian Ocean (right), the Southern Ocean (bottom), the South Atlantic Ocean (lower left), South America (left) and the North Atlantic (upper left). This image was produced by combining data from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP), NOAA's POES and Nimbus 7 satellites and the MODIS instrument on board NASA's Terra satellite

© PLANETARY VISIONS LTD/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY