Three images connected to Memorial are shortlisted for a national contest.
Science Exposed, organized by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, highlights top images featuring scientific research in all fields of study.
A total of 20 images have made the final cut. The shortlisted Memorial images are below.
1/ Deep sea endeavours
An octopus (of the species Graneledone boreopacifica) is captured hovering over a lightly sedimented and fractured basalt lava flow 2,100 metres below sea level. This image was taken by members of a scientific research cruise aboard the Canadian Coast Guard Ship John P. Tully in 2016. The purpose of the cruise was to study the Endeavour hydrothermal vent fields and associated biological communities along the Juan de Fuca mid-ocean ridge, 300 kilometres off the west coast of British Columbia, within Canada’s first Marine Protected Area.
2/ Storms on giant planets
Researchers in geophysical fluid dynamics at Memorial University are modelling convective storms observed by spacecraft near Jupiter and Saturn. A cylindrical tank containing water is placed on a rotating table to simulate a planet’s rotation while the curved surface of the rotating water models the spherical form of a planet near its north pole. Storms are generated by heating the bottom of the tank and observed from above with a system that uses the water surface as a mirror of a Newtonian telescope to amplify small perturbations caused by the flow. Different colours show the “topographic map” of the surface, where elevations are just a fraction of millimetre.
3/ Beauty from the inside out
This photograph shows a cross-section of the internal skeleton of the deep-water sea pen Umbellula encrinus, a type of cold-water coral. Growth rings can be seen in its skeleton, like those seen in clams, other corals, and trees. Ring formation in these animals is not yet well understood, but it seems likely that the rings are formed annually.
Finallists are eligible for a chance to win one of three jury prizes of $2,000 each as well as the People’s Choice Award, valued at $2,000.
Votes must be submitted by Oct. 1.
The contest challenges research groups or individuals to tell science stories through vibrant and exciting images.
