Ok, bear with us on this one… here’s a reminder that our greatest nemesis—the coronavirus—is also an awe-inspiring creation of nature. What you’re looking at is the ‘molecular dance’ (‘tandav’ may be more apt) that the virus’ spike proteins perform when they attach themselves to a human cell: “Each spike protein snaps together with two others, forming a structure that has a tulip-like shape. A long stem anchors the proteins to the virus, and their top looks like a three-part flower.” And then they dance!
For a whole lot more: New York Times (freemium paywall) and Daily Mail have an array of stunning new images of the virus released by scientists over the weekend.