A close up shows Ukraine's Hanna Ryzhykova leg breaking a hurdle before crashing out as she competes in the women's 400m hurdles heats during the European Athletics Championships at the Letzigrund stadium in Zurich on August 13, 2014. (Photo by Olivier Morin/AFP Photo)

Muslim pilgrims pray around the holy Kaaba at the Grand Mosque, during the annual haj pilgrimage in Mecca September 30, 2014. (Photo by Muhammad Hamed/Reuters)

Pawel Karpinski and Nadine Kinczel of Poland dance as they compete during IPC Wheelchair Dance Sport European Championships in Lomianki near Warsaw, November 9, 2014. (Photo by Kacper Pempel/Reuters)

Most people know Nikon as a purveyor of pro and consumer-grade digital cameras. But the company's expertise with optics bleeds over into related markets – it's one of the science community's major suppliers of microscopes. And each year the company asks the community to send it some of their favorite images of tiny objects. A panel of scientists and journalists have chosen the best of this past year's submissions, which Nikon has placed on its Small World site.

Photo: Honorable Mention. “Snow crystal, illuminated with colored lights (5x)”. (Photo by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Department of Physics, Pasadena, California, USA)

Participants from a North Korea military band perform during the Spasskaya Tower international military music festival in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, Friday, August 23, 2019. (Photo by Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo)

Japan's Naomi Osaka sits with her towel over her head during a break in her third round loss to Coco Gauff of the U.S. at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, January 24, 2020. (Photo by Lee Jin-man/AP Photo)

In this March 30, 2019 photo, Andrea Dovizioso of Italy falls from his bike during a Moto GP free practice run at the circuit in Termas de Rio Hondo, Argentina. Despite the fall Dovizioso raced in the third pole position on Sunday and finished in third place. (Photo by Nicolas Aguilera/AP Photo)

A woman sells chips in Abidjan, Ivory Coast on August 09, 2019. World's number one cacao producer Ivory Coast's capital Abidjan set peace after the 201011 Ivorian crisis. Women in Abidjan work in various jobs to help their families' budget. (Photo by Mahmut Serdar Alakus/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)