1990 Gallery

Didcot coal-fired power station

Silhouette of power station cooling towers. Photographed at Didcot coal- fired power station, Oxfordshire, UK

© SHEILA TERRY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Carbon Emissions Footprint, Didcot, Didcot Power Station, Energy, England, Industry, Power Station, Stations, Technology, Uk, United Kingdom

Human blastocyst

Light micrograph of a human blastocyst, an early stage of embryonic development, photographed 4-5 days after fertilisation. The blastocyst consists of a hollow ball of cells with a localized thickening called the inner cell mass (bottom left), which ultimately develops into the actual embryo. The remainder of the blastocyst (the thin part of the ball ) is composed of trophoblast tissue. Analysis of trophoblast cells has provided a novel means of pre-natal screening for genetic disorders. Initially unattached, the blastocyst soon becomes implanted in the wall of the uterus

© ANDY WALKER, MIDLAND FERTILITY SERVICES/ SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Topographic map of Venusian north polar region

Colour-coded topographic map of the region surrounding Venus north pole. The view is centred on the pole and extends down to a latitude of 20 degrees north. Yellow areas represent high ground & orange areas low ground. The yellow region just below centre is Ishtar Terra and contains Lakshmi Planum (smooth area at left) and the Maxwell Montes (rough terrain at right), the highest mountains on Venus. The rope-like ridges at upper left are thought to be tectonic in origin. The map was compiled using data from the Soviet Venera 15 & 16 spacecraft, the American Pioneer Venus spacecraft and the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico

© USGS/NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY