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)

Free Syrian Army fighters stand near an ambulance on the eastern edge of the northern Syrian town of al-Bab, Syria, February 27, 2017. (Photo by Khalil Ashawi/Reuters)

A baby elephant eats in a swamp in Amboseli national park, Kenya, March 19, 2017. (Photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Jack Frost, an ultra rare albino Hedgehog, that has been rescued by Prickly Pigs Hedgehog Rescue in Otley, West Yorkshire on August 23, 2020. (Photo by Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images)

Two guests pose prior to the Dolce & Gabbana 2021 women's spring-summer ready-to-wear collection during the Milan's fashion week in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, September 23, 2020. (Photo by Luca Bruno/AP Photo)

Bystanders look at MV Wakashio bulk carrier that had run aground and from which oil is leaking near Blue Bay Marine Park in south-east Mauritius on August 6, 2020. The carrier, belonging to a Japanese company but Panamanian-flagged, ran aground on July 25 and its crew was evacuated safely. The ship was empty at the time but was carrying 200 tonnes of diesel and 3,800 tonnes of bunker fuel, according to the local press. (Photo by Dev Ramkhelawon/L'Express Maurice/AFP Photo)

Activists from the climate action group Ocean Rebellion perform a stunt outside The Baltic Exchange building, in London, Britain on November 16, 2020. (Photo by Henry Nicholls/Reuters)

The cold doesn't seem to be a problem for these women who dance on December 02, 2020 in Cardiff, Wales. From Friday at 6pm licensed pubs, cafes and restaurants in Wales will have to stop serving alcohol and close at 6pm every day until further notice. The regulations will be reviewed on 17 December. The rules follow a firebreak period which started on October 23 and ended on November 9 which saw all non-essential shops close. (Photo by Huw Evans Picture Agency/The Sun)