At the end of July, YXLON International, a company of the Swiss tech holding COMET Group, lent one of their state-of-the-art computed tomography systems to the California Academy of Sciences.  The FF20 CT system will be in use at the institute until January 31st, 2018.

Computed Tomography (CT) imaging technology allows Cal Academy scientists to see the inner features of specimens using non-destructive evaluation methods.

This compact industrial CT system is on loan to explore how this technology can be used to understand and sustain life on Earth. 

High resolution CT scans will reveal critical clues of how organisms work and how they’re related.  This cooperation will create and provide images for scientific study and public inspiration.

They have already used the FF20 CT to produce stunning images of a variety of biological specimens and explore the natural world around us.

Above are CT images of a Nebria eschscholtzi, a beetle native to California and the American west. They will use images like these to study different aspects of how the insect’s organs function. The internal structure highlighted in red is the kidney.

Shown above are CT images of a juvenile California Sea Lion tooth.  The left offers a cross sectional view while the right highlights the enamel in red and the root in green.