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 United Launch Alliance Delta IV heavy rocket carrying classified spy satellite cargo for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office lifts off from Space Launch Complex 37B at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Tuesday, April 9, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. This is the final flight of a Delta IV heavy rocket. (Photo by John Raoux/AP Photo)

An Afghan Army soldier secures the hill overlooking the Kart-e Sakhi mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, March 20, 2013. Thousands of Afghans will celebrate Nowruz on Thursday, March 21, 2013 to mark the first day of spring and the beginning of the year on the Iranian calendar. (Photo by Ahmad Jamshid/AP Photo)

The sunrise over the beach huts at Hamworthy Park in Poole, Dorset, United Kingdom on April 28, 2022. (Photo by Rachel Baker/Bournemouth News)

A row of abandoned oil tanks is filled with creepers on the riverside of Liyun River in Huai 'an, East China's Jiangsu Province, May 9, 2023. (Photo credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

Sunset on Monday evening, June 17, 2024 at Mudeford in Dorset, UK with a swan stretching it's wings. (Photo by Cenk Albayrak-Touye/Picture Exclusive)

Bowden Loch, near Melrose, Scottish Borders, Scotland. The Northern Lights made an appearance over the Uk on the evening of the 7th October 2024. (Photo by Phil Wilkinson/The Times)

People are seen at Avalon Beach on December 18, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. A cluster of Covid-19 cases on the northern beaches of Sydney has grown to 28, prompting NSW health officials to urge residents of affected suburbs to stay home. Traffic at Sydney Airport has increased as people rush to leave the city with several states imposing quarantine restrictions for New South Wales residents. (Photo by Jenny Evans/Getty Images)