This is the Z machine, its the largest X-ray generator in the world and is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It concentrates electrical energy and turns it into short pulses of enormous power, which can then be used to generate X-rays and gamma rays. (Photo: Image: Randy Montoya/Sandia National Laboratories)

The Z machine, the largest X-ray generator in the world, is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It concentrates electrical energy, turning it into short pulses of enormous power, which can then be used to generate X-rays and gamma rays. (Photo: Image: Randy Montoya/Sandia National Laboratories)

The farthest-ever view of the universe. Hubble's "extreme Deep Field (XDF) is a composite made from 2,000 images, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope over a 10 year period. (Credit: NASA; ESA; G. Illingworth, D. Magee, and P. Oesch, University of California, Santa Cruz; R. Bouwens, Leiden University; and the HUDF09 Team)

The farthest-ever view of the universe. Hubble’s Extreme Deep Field (XDF) is a composite made from 2,000 images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope over a 10-year period. (Credit: NASA)

An orange elephant ear sponge or Agelas clathrodes that was found in NOAA's Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary located in the Gulf of Mexico. (Photo: NOAA)

This orange elephant ear sponge, or Agelas clathrodes, was found in NOAA’s Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico. (Photo: NOAA)

The Curiosity rover may found evidence of an ancient stream bed when it took this picture of a Martian rock outcrop called Link. The outcrop has characteristics that are consistent with a rock that was formed by the water deposits and transport. (Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)

The Curiosity rover may found evidence of an ancient stream bed. This picture of a Martian rock outcrop called Link has characteristics consistent with a rock formed by water deposits and transport. (Photo: NASA)

African penguins gather to keep warm as others are fed sardines by staff at the South African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds after they were recently found covered in oil on Robben Island, Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo: AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

African penguins gather to keep warm as some are fed sardines at the South African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds.  The penguins were recently found covered in oil on Robben Island, Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo: AP)

A shot of the space shuttle Endeavour, atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, when it recently landed at the Los Angeles International Airport. The flight marked the final scheduled ferry flight of the Space Shuttle Program. The shuttle will be placed on public display at the California Science Center. (Photo: NASA/Matt Hedges)

Space shuttle Endeavour, atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, comes in for a landing at the Los Angeles International Airport. It was the final scheduled ferry flight of the US Space Shuttle Program. Endeavour will be placed on public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.  (Photo: NASA)

A multi-university team used a high-powered laser - based at the University of California, Santa Barbara - to improve an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer, one of the tools scientists use to study the world at the atomic level. (Photo: UCSB/Susumu Takahashi)

A high-powered laser – based at the University of California, Santa Barbara – is used to study the world at the atomic level. (Photo: UCSB/Susumu Takahashi)

A cardiac balloon catheter embeded with a mesh of sensors and electronics is being developed by researchers at the University of Illinois. When placed inside a cardiac patient’s heart, a device such as this may allow for a better and more efficient diagnosis and treatment of arrhythmias. (Photo: J. Rogers, University of Illinois)

A cardiac balloon catheter embeded with a mesh of sensors and electronics is being developed by researchers at the University of Illinois. When placed inside a cardiac patient’s heart, a device such as this may allow for a better and more efficient diagnosis and treatment of arrhythmias. (Photo: J. Rogers, University of Illinois)

Technicians and scientists, in the clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., check out one of the first two flight mirrors that will be used on the new Webb Space Telescope. (Photo: NASA/Chris Gunn)

Technicians and scientists in the clean room at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, check out one of the first two flight mirrors that will be used on the new Webb Space Telescope. (Photo: NASA)