Photographer Andrew McCarthy constructed this spectacular 300-megapixel image of our sun by compositing thousands of individual images. Sunspots, coronal mass ejections, and feathery convective swirls abound. Check out his site for prints of this and other celestial images! (Image credit: A. McCarthy; via Colossal)
Ever wanted to try your hand at making these cool billowing ink photos? Photographer Jason Parnell-Brookes has a detailed tutorial over at PetaPixel laying out the necessary tools and set-up. I haven’t tried this out myself, but I hope to! How about you? (Image credit: J. Parnell-Brookes; submitted by clogwog)
To take these high-resolution images of individual snowflakes, Nathan Myhrvold and his collaborators built a special camera. Their apparatus keeps the snowflakes chilled despite the strong illumination cast on them. It uses a 500 microsecond shutter and focus-stacking to produce incredibly detailed portraits of these ephemeral subjects. Each snowflake’s shape is the result of the temperature and humidity that crystal experienced as it grew. Since these are natural snowflakes, no two are alike, but, with enough environmental control, it is possible to make twin snowflakes. (Image credit: N. Myhrvold; via Colossal)
This one definitely belongs in the do-not-try-this-yourself category, but this Slow Mo Guys video of a colorful fire tornado is pretty spectacular. Using an array of different fuels and a ring of box fans, Gav sets up a vortex of flame that transitions smoothly from red all the way to blue. As he points out in the video, the translucency of the vortex is so good that you can see how the two sides of the vortex rotate! (Video credit: The Slow Mo Guys)
This short film from artist Thomas Blanchard focuses on carnivorous plants and their prey. These plants — including Venus fly traps, sundews, and pitcher plants — rely on fluids both to attract and capture their prey. Plants like the Venus fly trap build turgor pressure in their cells to move and prop open their leaves. Once triggered, a mechanical release allows the fluid pressure to snap the trap closed. Sweet-smelling fluids invite insects in, only to become nightmarishly difficult to escape once prey try to unstick themselves from the highly viscoelastic liquids. (Video and image credit: T. Blanchard; via Colossal)
Waterfalls, fog, and snow wreathe Yosemite in these beautiful winter landscapes by photographer Michael Shainblum. I love how the tendrils of water and mist give you a real sense of the flow, even in still photos. Check out more of Shainblum’s photography on his Instagram and go behind-the-scenes on his Yosemite trip with this video. (Image credit: M. Shainblum; via Colossal)
Shifting bubbles and psychedelic colors abound in this abstract video from artist Rus Khasanov. He provides no specifics as to the materials he uses for this video, but my guess is they likely include oil, soap, and polarizing filters. It’s a fun and funky video! See more of Khasanov’s work on his website and Instagram. (Image and video credit: R. Khasanov)
Two well-timed and properly aligned droplets combine to create these umbrella-like fluid sculptures. The initial drop creates a jet that shoots upward. When the second drop hits that jet, it forms an expanding sheet of liquid like a miniature parasol. The higher the viscosity of the drops, the less lacy and unstable the sheet’s rim will be.
Although set-ups for these sorts of pictures can be finicky, they’re very doable, even for amateur photographers. In fact, the techniques used here have been around for about a century! (Image and research credit: A. Kiyama et al.)
Photographer Mitch Dobrowner captures the power of major storm systems across the western United States and Canada in these dramatic black-and-white images. Misty clouds, massive downpours, bulbous mammatus clouds, and lonely landscapes abound. You can find more of his work on his website and Instagram. (Image credit: M. Dobrowner; via Colossal)
As rivers near the sea, they often slow down and branch out, creating intricate paths through delta wetlands. This video explores the Arctic’s largest river delta, that of the Lena River in Siberia, during its spring and summer flood season. The images were all taken by satellite and processed with color enhancements to highlight patterns in the water. Although this is not quite how the area would appear by eye, all of the visible patterns are real. (Image credit: N. Kuring/NASA’s Ocean Color Web; video credit: K. Hansen; via NASA Earth Observatory)
