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)

Every year National Parks Week gives visitors a chance to celebrate the incredible woodland spaces around the UK. This year the National Parks Week runs from 28 July – 3 August and there are 10 national parks across England to explore. Each one has created a special event to celebrate the National Parks Week, from picnics and treasure hunt in the park to cycle rides, safari or outdoor art exhibition. (Photo by Diana Jarvis/VisitEngland)

Sleep under the Stars, hosted by Hepburn Wind, has given us an opportunity to enrich our daily life with art. Thanks to this festival, a regular wind turbine was turned into a marvelous peace of art. The artwork is especially noticeable, since its theme greatly contrasts with the background behind the wind turbine. Moreover, the idea of drawing a woman-giantess walking over the mountain tops on a large conical object is quite extraordinary. Nevertheless, the grey and green colors of the picture were very well chosen for this particular image. You can only imagine the obstacles that the artists had to face when making a picture on such a large object. However, nowadays, people never cease to amaze with their ingenuity, leaving us gaping in awe at their creations.

Fiona McGarva holds one of the sculptures from the art installation Gratitude at The Forth Bridge at North Queensferry on September 15, 2021, ahead of going on display just outside of Edinburgh at Newhailes House and Gardens from Friday 17th September. The public art installation pays tribute to NHS staff and all key workers for their ongoing courage and dedication during the Covid-19 pandemic. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty Images)

An elephant eats a snack after performing at Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus' “Circus Extreme” show at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, U.S., April 29, 2016. Elephants take a final bow at Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus on Sunday, ending a 145-year spectacle that delighted fans but enraged animal activists, who say the highly publicized retirement is not enough. (Photo by Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

Winton Elementary fifth graders Juliana Ragan, from left, Chloe Windsor and Paisley Ganske wait backstage for their turn to perform as the Andrew Sisters during the Pearl Harbor/Veterans assembly at the school on Monday, December 7, 2015, in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Dec. 7 is the 74th anniversary of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. (Photo by Kathy Plonka/The Spokesman-Review via AP Photo)

Yoga practitioners participate in yoga classes inside Times Square on the day of the summer solstice in New York City on June 20, 2024. The annual all-day outdoor yoga event, which is in its 22nd year, features classes from sun up to sun down in one of the busiest intersections of the world. (Photo by Andrew Schwartz/Splash News and Pictures)

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures during a visit to Darnford Farm in Banchory near Aberdeen in Scotland on September 6, 2019. Prime Minister Boris Johnson heads to Scotland on Friday in campaign mode despite failing to call an early election after MPs this week thwarted his hardline Brexit strategy. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/Pool via AFP Photo)