Ferencvaros's David Siger lies on the ground to defend a free kick during the UEFA Champions League Group Stage match between Ferencvarosi TC and Juventus at Puskas Arena on November 4, 2020 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Bernadett Szabo/Reuters)

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)

The barren landscapes of the south-western US provided inspiration for photographer David Clapp. He visited Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona as part of his project on other-worldy locations, with surreal results. Here: An infrared image at dusk of strange clay rock formations in Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness in Farmington, New Mexico. (Photo by David Clapp/Barcroft Images)

An exhibition staff member looks over artworks by Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz on display during a preview of the exhibition “Magdalena Abakanowicz: Every Tangle of Thread and Rope” at the Tate Modern in London, Britain, 15 November 2022. The large-scale Abakan sculptures have been brought together for the first time in the UK. The exhibit opens on 17 November 2022 and runs until 21 May 2023. (Photo by Andy Rain/EPA/EFE/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A celebrant takes part in the ninth Hong Kong Buddha Sunning Festival at the Tai Mo Shan lookout on February 18, 2020 in Hong Kong, China. The global death toll from the coronavirus epidemic rose above 200, with all but five of those and the vast majority of the more-than 75,000 cases occurring on mainland China. (Photo by Billy H.C. Kwok/Getty Images)

Olaf Niess catches swans on the river Alster near the town hall in Hamburg, Germany, 17 November 2015. The Alster swans are moving to their ice-free winter quarters on the Eppendorf Muehlenteich millpond until spring. (Photo by Bodo Marks/EPA)

Kathleen Darling, wife of disabled veteran Caleb Darling, celebrates a shot during a sled hockey game on March 29, 2012 in Aspen, Colorado. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

Libyan rebel fighters protect a pro-Gaddafi loyalist fighter from angry onlookers as he is brought in for medical attention to the Tripoli Central Hospital on August 25, 2011 in Tripoli, Libya. Heavy fighting continues in the Libyan capital between Gaddafi's forces and the surging rebel presence. Rebels, who have issued a $1.7m reward for Gaddafi's capture “dead or alive”, are attempting to reach Colonel Gaddafi's hometown of Sirte but have met loyalist resistance. (Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)