Can you tell the difference between microscopic and massive? Red whirls on this rabbit’s tongue are filiform papillae, which roughen the tongue and help move food around the mouth. Purple and white “spike” proteins on this popular model of the coronavirus help it attach to and enter our cells. These might remind you of …… the clumps of cosmic debris in Tycho’s supernova, a star that may have exploded at many points simultaneously. Its concentric rings resemble …… the raging vortex at Saturn’s north pole, where green, pink and blue correspond to clouds of increasing depth.

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Persons: Kim Arcand, NASA’s Chandra, … Organizations: Smithsonian Astrophysical