“In the late afternoon after a rain, genji botaru fireflies (luciola cruciate) dance above the swollen creek. The rocks darkened by the rain reflecting the blue sky, and the yellow-green ribbon of the glow from the fireflies, make a beautiful contrast”. – Takehito Miyatake. (Photo by Takehito Miyatake/Steven Kasher Gallery)

Students participate in a wet t-shirt contest at the MTV Beach Bash party put on by Global Groove at the Bahia Mar Hotel during the annual ritual of Spring Break March 26, 2008 on South Padre Island, Texas. The South Texas island is one of the top Spring Break destinations and attracts students from all over the country. (Photo by Rick Gershon/Getty Images)

Beautiful, strange and occasionally alarming pictures from the shortlist for this year’s Wellcome image awards – which celebrate the very best in science photography and imaging – from an x-ray of a bat to a micrograph of a kidney stone. The exhibition opens on 12 March at three science centres and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. Photo: Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of an Arabidopsis thaliana flower, also commonly known as thale cress. Some of the anthers are open, revealing pollen grains ready for dispersal. Arabidopsis was the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced and is widely used as a model organism in molecular and plant biology. Horizontal width of image is 1200 microns. Magnification 100x. (Photo by Stefan Eberhard/Wellcome Images)

Camille Kovalev and Pavel Kovalev of France compete in the Pairs Short Program during the ISU World Figure Skating Championships at Saitama Super Arena on March 22, 2023 in Saitama, Japan. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

Team Spain perform their routine during the Team Technical during the World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup 2024 - Stop 2 at Aquatics Centre on May 03, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

June 21: “World War Z”. Brad Pitt battles zombie apocalypse in $170 million film by “Quantum of Solace” director Marc Forster. This publicity photo released by Paramount Pictures shows, center, Brad Pitt as Gerald Lane in a scene from the film, “World War Z”, from Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions in association with Hemisphere Media Capital and GK Films. (Photo by Jaap Buitendijk/AP Photo/Paramount Pictures)

South Korean police officers show their martial arts' skills during the official launch ceremony of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on February 15, 2012 in Seoul, South Korea. The Korean National Police Agency launched a security squad, exclusively established for the successful hosting of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit. The 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit will be held in Seoul from March 26-27, 2012. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

The Leshan Giant Buddha, a 71-metre tall stone statue, is carved out of a cliff face in the southern part of Sichuan province in China. (Photo by Suchet Suwanmongkol/500px)