13 Most Iconic Science Pictures Ever Taken

By Stevie Shephard / April 12, 2016

6. "A Child Is Born"

In 1965, the image of an unborn foetus appeared on the cover of LIFE.

Inside, there was a whole series of breathtaking images to be found, taken by Swedish photographer Lennart Nilsson, chronicling the journey from conception to moments before birth. The images showed the development of bones and blood vessels and even the facial features, but what everybody really wanted to know is how he'd done it.

Although many of the images were taken in utero, some of the foetuses €œhad been surgically removed [...] for a variety of medical reasons.€

The twist to this being that the images sparked off plenty of serious debate about the morality of abortion, of a woman's right to choose and the nature of life itself.