A groom leads his horse in the equine pool after working out on the track, during early morning workouts for the upcoming Derby race in Mumbai January 29, 2015. (Photo by Danish Siddiqui/Reuters)

Farmer Zhang Xianping rides his pig "Big Precious" during an interview with the media, in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, China, November 2, 2015. Zhang, a pig breeder, instead of killing it, decided to keep the two-year-old "Big Precious" as pet when its weight reached 600 kg, according to local media. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

People view the sunrise scene at the Bund in Shanghai, east China, January 1, 2017. (Photo by Wang Hechun/Xinhua/Barcroft Images)

Rugby Union, New Zealand vs Tonga, IRB Rugby World Cup 2015 Pool C, St James' Park, Newcastle, Englandon October 9, 2015: Fans is fancy dress before the game. (Photo by Andrew Yates/Reuters)

A diver wearing a Santa Claus costume feeds a sunfish to attract visitors at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium in Yokohama, suburban Tokyo on December 17, 2014. Christmas attractions will be held till Christmas Day. (Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP Photo)

A young performer cries as she parades during the Bun Festival on Cheung Chau island in Hong Kong Tuesday, May 6, 2014. Bun Festival, the Taoist God of the Sea, is worshipped and evil spirits are believed to be scared away by loud gongs and drums during the procession. The celebration includes bun scrambling, parades, opera performances, and children dressed in colorful costumes. (Photo by Kin Cheung/AP Photo)

Boeing B-29 (#10) from the 24th Bomb Squadron, 6th Bomb Group after an emergency landing at Iwo Jima on April 24,1945. (Photo by U.S. Air Force)

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)