Science

tardigrades

  • light micrograph of a tardigrade
    Robert Pickett/Getty Images
    01
    Despite being less than a millimeter in length, it's quite straightforward to photograph tardigrades, also known as water bears.
  • light micrograph of a tardigrade
    Robert Pickett/Getty Images
    02
    All it takes to capture closeups of these tiny astronauts is a light microscope connected to a camera.
  • light micrograph of a tardigrade
    Roland Birke/Getty Images
    03
  • light micrograph of a tardigrade
    Robert Pickett/Getty Images
    04
  • scanning electron micrograph of tardigrades
    Power and Syred/Getty Images
    05
    Unlike light micrographs which capture images using optics, scanning electron micrographs are produced by focusing a beam of electrons to detect surface topography.
  • scanning electron micrograph
    Steve Gschmeissner/Getty Images
    06
    The resulting image has a much more detailed and opaque quality.
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