April Gallery

Yuri Gagarin onboard Vostok 1

Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in the cabin of Vostok 1, the spacecraft in which he became the first person to orbit the Earth on April 12, 1961. Gagarin's flight lasted 108 minutes, and he made one complete revolution round the Earth, landing safely only six miles from the calculated point. Gagarin was killed while testing an aircraft on March 27, 1968

© RIA NOVOSTI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Apollo 17 photograph of whole earth

Home planet. Classic photograph of the Earth, taken from Apollo 17 as it made its way to the Moon in December 1972. The continent of Africa fills the upper left quadrant, with Arabia at top centre. The Antarctic ice cap is seen at bottom centre. Apollo 17 was launched on 7 December 1972. Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt landed on the Moon, whilst Ronald Evans stayed in the command module in lunar orbit. Apollo 17 re-entered on 19 December 1972, and was the last of the Apollo Moon flights. This photograph was taken by Eugene Cernan. Overspilts moved to E050/247; these are also slightly different colour

© NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

SEM of the bird cherry aphid

Scanning electron micrograph, tinted green, of the bird cherry aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi (also known as Aphis avenae), next to its recently cast off exoskeleton. It is seen feeding on barley (Hordeum vulgare). The exoskeleton is made of inelastic chitin which is shed 5 times before adulthood to allow growth. This species is an economic pest, transmitting two viral diseases, yellow dwarf virus & maize leaf fleck virus, which infect crops such as oats, barley, wheat & maize. Transmission occurs when the aphid inserts its proboscis & feeds on sugar stored in the leaves (as here). Large infestations cause the leaves of a plant to wilt & fall. Magnification: X 14 at 35mm size. Original is BW print Z295/048

© SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY.