Sea lions wait on the deck of the boat before being released in front of Palomino island, in Callao, Peru September 12, 2015. Four young sea lions returned to the wild after being rescued by marine biologists and treated for various illnesses. The sea lions are survivors of various illnesses which they contracted off the coast of Peru caused by the elevated temperatures in the water because of the El Nino phenomenon, according to Carlos Yaipen, Director of Animal Science and Well-being Organization (ORCA). (Photo by Mariana Bazo/Reuters)

“Wells Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. Built between 1175 and 1490, Wells Cathedral has been described as “the most poetic of the English Cathedrals”. The Wells clock, an astronomical clock, is located in the north transept. The surviving mechanism, dated to between 1386 and 1392, was replaced in the 19th century, and was eventually moved to the Science Museum in London, where it continues to operate. It is the second-oldest surviving clock in England”. – Wikipedia

Photo: The clock face of world's oldest continually-working mechanical clock is seen as it is hand wound for the very last time on August 21, 2010 in Wells, England. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

These images have been created using a colour scanning electron microscope (SEM) by the award-winning Eye of Science, comprised of snapper Oliver Meckes and biologist Nicole Ottawa. For a decade the pair, based in Reutlingen in the south of Germany, worked with an old SEM they saved from the scrapheap, but for the last five years they have used a £250,000 FEI Quanta Series Field Emission SEM. Oliver said: “Flowers are beautiful in 'normal' view, but when you look closer, some parts get very bizarre and unexpected structures appear – flowers within flowers, worlds within worlds”. Photo: The floret of a Chamomile flower up close and personal. (Photo by Oliver Meckes/Barcroft Media)

“Ecotricity's Greenbird vehicle, designed and piloted by Richard Jenkins, broke the land speed world record for a wind-powered vehicle in 2009. Greenbird recorded a top speed of 126.4 mph (203.4 km/h), and sustained a speed of 126.2 mph (203.1 km/h) for the required time of three seconds, beating the previous, American held, record of 116 mph (186.7 km/h), set by Bob Schumacher in the Iron Duck in March 1999 at the same location”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Richard Jenkins poses for photographs with the world's fastest wind powered land Vehicle at Science Museum on August 3, 2009 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

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)

“Sasha Grey (born Marina Ann Hantzis on March 14, 1988) is an American former pornographic actress, who has since turned to mainstream acting, modeling and music. Early in her adult film career, she was profiled by several popular culture magazines and television programs. She won several AVN Awards between 2007 and 2010, and has also been featured in music videos and advertising campaigns. After her mainstream feature film debut as the lead in Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience, she shifted her focus to acting, starring in the black comedy/horror film Smash Cut as April Carson, as well as having a supporting role in season 7 of HBO's Entourage. She has also appeared in independent films Quit, The Girl from the Naked Eye, and Mark Pellington's I Melt With You”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Actress Sasha Grey arrives at the premiere of “127 Hours” at the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Samuel Goldwyn Theater on November 3, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

“The Space Launch System, or SLS, is a Shuttle-Derived heavy launch vehicle being designed by NASA, following the cancellation of the Constellation Program, to replace the Space Shuttle after its retirement. The NASA Authorization Act of 2010 envisions the transformation of the Ares I and Ares V vehicle designs into a single launch vehicle usable for both crew and cargo. It is to be upgraded over time with more powerful versions. The proposed SLS is visually similar to the legacy Saturn V booster and in particular the proposed, two-stage, Saturn INT-20”. – Wikipedia

Photo: In this illustration provided by NASA, the design for a new space rocket system, the Space Launch System, is seen. NASA's new rocket design will reportedly cost about $35 billion and be ready to for test launch in 2017. According to NASA, the rocket will be used to carry Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle as well as cargo and science experiments to earth's orbit, as a backup for the space station and possibly destinations beyond that. (Illustration by NASA via Getty Images)