electron microscans of plankton (radiolaria skeletons, less than .1mm)


To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
 And Eternity in an hour

-William Blake, ‘Auguries of Innocence’

The radiolarians are among the most beautiful microbial eukaryotes.  They are significant components of the marine plankton and are characterized by mineralized cytoskeletal components that appear as nested spheres and spines; so that they often look like as tiny free-floating star-bursts.

When large numbers of them and their planktonic relations get together, they look like this; (more…)