In Photos: Jaw-Dropping Images Reveal Science Is Amazing

Acari trapped in spiderweb

With this image of an Acari spider mite hanging from a thin string of a spider's web in the Chilean temperate forests, photographer Bernardo Segura, of the University of Chile, snagged honorable mention in the Micro-Imaging category of the contest. The web, spun by Austrochilus spiders, have some threads with stunning bluish tones.

Diamond ring through thin clouds

IPhotographer Wei-Feng Xue got the rare chance to observe a total solar eclipse along the path of totality in northern Georgia on Aug. 21, 2017. His gorgeous image of the Great American Eclipse, with the sun's corona showing up like a diamond ring, snagged runner-up in the Astronomy category. To capture the shot, Xue used a Canon EOS6D digital SLR camera with an EF 70-200mm + 2x extender.

Pele's fire

Using a 55-300mm Tele lens, photographer Sabrine Koehler of the University of Hawai'i at Manoa won honorable mention in the Earth Science and Climatology category of the 2017 Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition and collected a stunning image of the power of the 61g lava flow at the current Pu'u O'o eruption site of the Kilauea volcano. The term "61g" refers to the seventh flow (indicated by letters of the alphabet) in the sequence of events that make up the so-called 61st episode of the current eruption from the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

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Toss the scorpion

In Tadoba, India, photographer Susmita Datta captured an image of a rascally Indian roller bird playing with its morning snack, a scorpion. The image, taken during a morning safari on the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve using a Canon 60D with a Sigma 150-500 lens, brought an honorable mention in the Behavior category to the photographer.

Within Reach

Over ESO's Paranal Observatory, the skies echo oil on water with the many colors blending into an shimmering skyscape.

The image, featuring our own Milky Way arching across the Chilean night sky with the Very Large Telescope off in the far distance, won photographer Petr Horálek an honorable mention in the Astronomy category of the 2017 Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition.