Submit Your Amazing “What Is It?” Science Photos

We're looking for beautiful science images, as seen through your camera lens

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

Every month in Advances we showcase an intriguing science-related image called “What Is It?” We have shown you the mouth of a tick and even Martian dunes.

Now we would like to see what you've got. If you have taken a photo that you think shows some interesting science, we invite you to submit it. SA editors will consider them for an upcoming issue of Scientific American or an online slide show.

What makes a great What Is It?:
— It's visually compelling.
— The object isn't immediately recognizable. (It makes you ask “What is it?”)
— There's some science behind it—a phenomenon to explain or a species to describe, for example.
— The photo is relatively new (not older than two years old).

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Other previous What Is It? pix have included:
— A bug whose body has interlocking gears.
— A dramatic bend in the Missouri River.
— An animal that can live longer than 1,400 years.
— Lush farms in the Sahara Desert.

Please note that you must have the rights to your submission and its resolution must be at least 300 dpi. Its size has to be 4 by 5 or larger.

Make sure to explain in a few sentences what we are looking at.

The deadline is Tuesday, May 27, 2014.

By submitting your content, you certify that you hold the rights to do so and that you grant Scientific American the right to publish the content in any form. For further details about our terms of use, click here.*

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