Astronaut and keen astrophotographer Donald Pettit has shown off a stunning image he took from the International Space Station (ISS) that "cannot be taken anymore".A question that comes up every now and then, is why stars are not visible in photographs taken from the ISS. Though there are photos that display stars in the background, a lot of photos show nothing but darkness behind the Earth.A typical view from the ISS shows no stars in the background.Image credit: NASAIt is natural to assume that the stars should be more visible from space, without our atmosphere interfering with the light. This is the case, and the distortion of our atmosphere is why we keep sending our telescopes into space.But actually photographing stars, as anyone who has tried from Earth knows, requires you to lengthen your exposure time in order to get enough light. During this time the camera must remain pointed precisely at the space object you are trying to capture. This used to be possible onboard the ISS, as highlighted in a photograph taken by Pettit during a stay on the space station in 2003, containing green airglow from atomic oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere, and a whole host of stars. IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites."At this time Space Station’s orbital attitude was a solar inertial attitude (XPOP) that allowed the solar panels to point towards the sun without any tracking (solar tracking was not added to ISS until much later)," Pettit explained in an Instagram post. "Essentially, the station itself was the tracking mechanism thus for a camera mounted to Space Station, a time exposure yielded stars as pinpoints."Unfortunately for fans of seeing images of space taken from space, since 2006 the ISS has adjusted its angle, with one side remaining pointing towards Earth. Pettit took the above photograph using a 30-second exposure, but now such an exposure would just give you stars as arcing trails.    Though the inclination of the ISS limits star images to less than half a second, Pettit plans to take a tracking device to compensate for the motion of the space station in an upcoming trip. With more advanced cameras also available, we should hopefully get more star field images upon his return to the space station.

The diving bell spider is the only species of spider that can spend the entirety of its life underwater. Remarkably, it pulls off this aquatic lifestyle without the ability to actually breathe underwater. The diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica) is native to freshwater habitats across large parts of Eurasia, from the British Isles and Siberia to Iran and South Korea. Japan even has its own subspecies, called the Japanese water spider (Argyroneta aquatica japonica) or mizugumo, which looks extremely similar but has larger genitalia.They’re relatively small, measuring between 8 and 15 millimeters (0.3 and 0.6 inches) in length, although the males tend to be larger than the females (which is unusual for spiders). Just like its land-dwelling cousins, the diving bell spider obtains oxygen from the air. So, to breathe, they must create a submerged bubble of air.  They create the bubble by rising to the water’s surface and sticking out their abdomen and legs, which are covered in hydrophobic hairs. They then swim down into the water with the pocket of air and add it to a submerged bubble that’s held in place with a silken web anchored to a surface, usually a plant.The spider can hang out in a single bubble for more than a day. They would be able to stay longer, but nitrogen steadily diffuses from the bubble, causing it to gradually shrink.        They live on a diet of small aquatic bugs and small fish. To catch them, the spider will set up a system of webs around their vicinity that will alert them if prey is near. If the web is tugged, they quickly swim to catch them and drag them back into their bubble.  Watch out, though: as per the British Arachnological Society, the species can bite if mistreated, and it’s about as painful as a bee sting.Many other species of semi-aquatic spiders exist in a variety of forms, but none commit to the bit as much as the diving bell spider – they even reproduce underwater. Male spiders will build their bubble near a female’s. When the time is right, he will create an opening between his bubble and the females, joining them into one. The male will then feed the bubble to make enough space for both of them.  Aquatic spiders shouldn’t be confused with sea spiders, which are from a totally different branch of the tree of life and aren’t even arachnids, despite their name. In fact, sea spiders (Chelicerata) are one of the oldest groups of arthropods and can be considered a “sister group” to other living arthropods, like insects, mollusks, and crustaceans.

Meet the blood clam, also known as blood cockles. Hailing from the shellfish family Arcidae, they’re so named for their dramatic coloration. The blood-red is really just that, blood, but you would do well to take it as a bit of a warning.Eating blood clams is considered one of life’s more dangerous delicacies because of the significant risk they’re packing something other than their curiously red blood. Like other shellfish they can contain harmful toxins, bacteria, and viruses, including hepatitis A.What are blood clams?Blood clams are species of ark clams found across the world, but they are heavily cultivated in Southeast Asia where they’re considered something of a delicacy. Traditionally, blood clams are eaten raw and have been compared in flavor to geoducks, the ocean’s bizarre giant burrowing clam.Why are blood clams red?The blood-red coloration of these curious clams comes from hemoglobin, the same protein that makes our blood red. Most clams don’t look like this because they don’t have hemoglobin, but blood clams are packed full of it, giving them a rather spooky but undeniably eye-catching appearance.Consuming blood clams can carry a risk of hepatitis A.Image credit: adriefoto / Shutterstock.comWhy are blood clams dangerous?If you live outside of Asia and this is the first time you’re seeing blood clams, that could come down to the fact that importing them has been banned across much of the globe due to health concerns. According to the New York Times, shipments have even been seized by governments in some parts of the globe, demonstrating how seriously some people take the risks of blood clams.Like other bivalves, blood clams are filter feeders, and with great sieving comes great risk. This is because if a shellfish is living in contaminated waters, they become the perfect little vessel for accumulating pathogens.This is, of course, true of other such delicacies. After all, who doesn’t know someone who’s fallen foul of a nasty oyster? But there is generally stricter regulation around where oysters are grown and harvested, making the risk of viruses like hepatitis A slightly lower. However, that's not to say that hepatitis A is always present in blood clams, and in some areas it's thought treating them for contaminants can make them safer.Hepatitis A spreads through feces so can wind up in waters contaminated with human and animal waste, and outbreaks of the illness have been connected to the consumption of clams. There’s no way of knowing just by looking at the blood-red pulp of a raw blood clam if it’s contaminated, and if you eat it, you could develop serious illness.Perhaps the blood clam is better left as food for the eyes.

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