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)

A worker walks through a salt pan on the eve of May Day or Labour Day on the outskirts of the southern Indian city of Chennai April 30, 2014. India is the third largest salt producing country in the world after China and U.S. with global annual production about 230 million tonnes, according to government data. (Photo by Reuters/Babu)

Showgirl Amy Findlay after the the rehearsals for Circus Vegas in Newcastle, Britain on July 27, 2023. (Photo by Lee Smith/Reuters)

Britain’s Kate, Princess of Wales, center, smiles as she wears an inflatable life vest during a visit at the Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton, near Yeovil in Somerset, England, Monday, September 18, 2023. The Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton is one of the Royal Navy's two principal air stations and one of the busiest military airfields in the UK. (Photo by Ben Birchall/PA Wire via AP Photo)

A greyhound dog dressed up in a festive costume on Buchanan Street in Glasgow on December 24, 2023. (Photo by Michael McGurk/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Team Bahrain Raid Xtreme's French driver Sebastien Loeb and his Belgian co-driver Fabian Lurquin steer their car, during stage 9 of the Dakar rally 2024, between Hail and Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia, on January 16, 2024. (Photo by Patrick Hertzog/AFP Photo)

Fishermen fill crates with sardines netted during the annual sardine run in Warner Beach, South Africa on June 3, 2025. (Photo by Rogan Ward/Reuters)

Boozed-out revellers donned fancy dress as they welcomed in the Bank Holiday at the Otley Run. Hundreds swarmed Leeds, UK on Saturday, March 30, 2024, as the infamous tipple mission got underway beneath blue skies and sunshine. (Photo by NB Press LTD)