INTRODUCTION
Most images are protected by copyright and cannot
be reproduced without permission from the copyright owner. The
exceptions are U.S. Government images, which generally are in
the public domain and free from copyright.
Even though the following image sources are from
government Web sites, it is always good practice to make sure that
the image is
not protected by copyright. One way to do this is to look for the
artist credit and copyright symbol (©). If there is a copyright
symbol, ©, and a date (©2002) then that image is protected
by copyright. If you wish to use a copyrighted image, you will
need to seek permission from the copyright owner. Once you are
ready to use an image, be sure to include image credit and source.
The Internet resources below are organized by broad
scientific classes. Since many of these sites are interdisciplinary
in nature,
there may be some overlap.
For a complete list
of Government image Web sites, see the USA.gov graphics list at
http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Graphics.shtml.
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AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Image Gallery
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/graphics/photos/
“The Image Gallery is provided as a complimentary source of high quality
digital photographs available from the Agricultural Research Service Information
Staff.” Search by keyword or browse for pictures by subject, e.g., animals,
crops, insects.
National Agricultural Library (NAL) Special Collections
http://www.nal.usda.gov/speccoll/
“Special Collections houses rare books, manuscript collections, nursery
and seed trade catalogs, photographs, and posters relating to a wide range of
agricultural subjects. The time span of the historical materials ranges from
the 1500’s to the present. Not limited to United States agricultural publications,
there are many well-known, international sources. Collection concentrations include
the fields of agriculture, horticulture, entomology, poultry sciences, botany,
natural history, and agricultural history.” Search by Collection, Finding
aid or Gallery.
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ASTRONOMY AND AERONAUTICS
Astronaut Photography of Earth
http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/default.htm
“The Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth hosts the
best and most complete online collection of astronaut photographs
of the
Earth.” Search specific collections, e.g., Mission highlights,
Earth from Space, Cities, or use the ”Find a Photo” feature.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Great Images
in NASA (GRIN)
http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/
“Photos include: aircraft structures, aircraft design, aircraft
models, wind tunnel tests, materials research, space programs,
astronaut training, robotic planetary exploration and images taken
by NASA spacecraft such as the Hubble Space Telescope and Mars
Global Surveyor. GRIN contains many, but not all of the most popular
images from NASA’s history.” Browse by subject, NASA
Center, or perform a keyword search.
National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC) Photo Gallery
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/
The Gallery provides images of planetary items, astronomical objects,
and NASA missions.
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BIOLOGY
National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) Digital
Image Library
http://images.nbii.gov/
"Here you will find a diverse
range of images related to nature and the environment. Our current
and future collections contain
images associated with plant and animal species, scenic landscapes,
wildlife management, and biological study/fieldwork. You may browse
our broad subject categories or search for specific images using
the search feature. Each image's metadata record contains valuable
information about the image, i.e. scientific name, description,
location, etc. ...Most images are in the public domain, unless
otherwise stated, so you are free to use as you wish. No need to
ask for permission (for those in public domain). However, please
provide credit for all images."
National Marine Sanctuaries Photo Gallery
http://www.sanctuaries.nos.noaa.gov/pgallery/pgallery.html
There are twelve marine sanctuaries: Gulf of Farallones, Cordell
Bank, Channel Island, Monterey Bay, Olympic Coast, Stellwagen Bank,
Gray’s Reef, Florida Keys, Flower Garden Banks, Hawaiian
Islands Humpback Whale, Fagatele Bay and Monitor. Photo galleries
represent each sanctuary and its purpose for designation. The
photos are arranged into one of five categories (1) The Living
Sanctuary;
(2) Habitats; (3) People and the Sanctuary; (4) The Sustainable
Seas Expeditions (selected sanctuaries only); and (5) The Kids
Gallery (selected sanctuaries only).
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) Photo Gallery
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/
There are over 16,000 images representing a broad range of topics
including weather, space, oceans, marine species, Polar Regions,
coral reefs, and tasks related to the environment and the planet.
Also available are albums and catalogs http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/collections.html
on specific topics, such as the Coral Kingdom.
US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Pictures and Graphics
http://images.fws.gov/
“The National Image Library contains still photo images of wildlife, plants,
National Wildlife Refuges and other scenics, as well as wildlife management
work. You may search all the images through the National Image Library, or
you may search by individual collection.” The US Fish and Wildlife Service
also has a list of related image galleries at http://pictures.fws.gov
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CONSERVATION
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Photo Gallery
http://photogallery.nrcs.usda.gov/
The NRCS Photo Gallery contains natural resource and conservation-related
photos from across the USA. Search by state or category.
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EARTH SCIENCES AND GEOLOGY
Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) Digital Photo Library
http://www.photos.blm.gov/
This web site contains a photo library of BLM digital images related
to America’s public lands and natural resources. Search by
keyword and choose a state or office you wish to search.
Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Photo Library
http://www.photolibrary.fema.gov/photolibrary/index.jsp
FEMA’s Photo Gallery provides keyword and location searching
of natural disasters and national emergencies.
NASA Visible Earth
http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/
“Visible Earth is a searchable directory of images, visualizations,
and animations of Earth.”
National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) Image Portal
http://firepix.blm.gov/
“Search, find, and download photos
related to natural resources on public lands administered by the
NIFC. This system allows you
to find images by searching for specific keywords or by browsing
categories or folders.“
“Many photographs in this database were taken by professional
photographers who retain their copyright for non-government and for-profit
use.
The lowest resolution version of these images can be downloaded
for public use free of charge; however, the photographer must be
given credit for the photo. Higher resolution versions must be
obtained directly from the photographer and that contact information
is included with the image information.”
National Park Service (NPS) Digital Image Archives
http://www.nps.gov/pub_aff/imagebase.html
This site contains images of national parks, monuments, battlefields,
and historic sites. To search for images use the “Select
Parks” drop-down menu.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Photo Gallery
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/
There are over 16,000 images representing a broad range of topics
including weather, space, oceans, marine species, Polar Regions,
coral reefs, and tasks related to the environment and the planet.
Also available are albums and catalogs http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/collections.html
on specific topics such as the Coral Kingdom.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Historic
Photo Library
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/historic/nws/
The Historic Photo Library provides “snapshots of the heritage
of the Weather Bureau and today’s Weather Service.” Topics
include weather wonders, meteorological monsters, hurricanes, exploring
the atmosphere, measuring instruments and methods, getting the
word out, and who was who.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National
Severe Storm Laboratory Collection
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/nssl/
The Severe Storm Laboratory Collection contains images of tornados,
instruments, sky scenes, lightning, and hail.
United States Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Image Glossary
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/image_glossary/index.html
This Web site presents a list of terms related to the study of
earthquakes (seismology) along with an image to illustrate each
term.
United States Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Photos
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/bytopic/photos.html
This Web site includes images from the Geohazards Collection, e.g.,
earthquake damage, debris flows, landslides, and auroras from the
Hector Mine, Loma Prieta and Nisqually Earthquakes. Links to non-USGS
image collection Web sites are also included.
United States Geological Survey (USGS) Image Collections
http://www.usgs.gov/picturingscience/collections.html
The Web site points to a list of image collections related to biology,
ecosystems, geology, geography, hydrology, and national parks.
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ENERGY
Department of Energy (DOE) Digital Archive
http://www.doedigitalarchive.doe.gov/
To access the DOE digital archive, you can create an account to
use special features; otherwise you can sign in as a guest user.
Search by keyword or use the advanced search interface with a drop
down menu of a list of topics.
Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Image Gallery
http://www.er.doe.gov/Sub/Library_Gallery/Image_Gallery/Image_Gallery.htm
This Web site provides access to the DOE galleries for the human
genome program and image galleries from the National Laboratories.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Photographic Information
eXchange (PIX)
http://www.nrel.gov/data/pix/pix.html
The Photographic Information eXchange (PIX) collection consists
of renewable energy and energy efficient technology photographs.
Search by keyword of subject or select subject headings from thumbnail
images.
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ENGINEERING
United States
Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) Photography and Engineering Drawing
Collection http://www.usbr.gov/history/archive.htm
Currently, the digital images are limited and there is no search
feature for the collection. For a description of the Bureau of
Reclamation photo archive and engineering drawings see http://www.usbr.gov/history/photos.htm.
Most of the more than 500,000 images are housed at the National
Archives and Records Administration offices in Washington DC and
Denver, Colorado. Images are also available at the Bureau’s
regional offices around the country and at Archives II in College
Park, Maryland.
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HEALTH SCIENCES AND MEDICINE
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Public Health Image Library
http://phil.cdc.gov/Phil/default.asp
An extensive collection of material related to public health. “The
content is organized into hierarchical categories of people, places,
and science, and is presented as single images, image sets, and
multimedia files.” Select photographs, illustrations, animation,
or audio-visual material.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) History of Medicine Image
Gallery
http://wwwihm.nlm.nih.gov/
Search 60,000 images in the prints and photograph collection of
the History of Medicine Division (HMD) of the US National Library
of Medicine (NLM). “The collection includes portraits, pictures
of institutions, caricatures, genre scenes, and graphic art in
a variety of media, illustrating the social and historical aspects
of medicine.”
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MISCELLANOUS
Firstgov: US Government Graphics and Photos
http://www.firstgov.gov/Topics/Graphics.shtml
Firstgov provides a complete list of US government graphic Web
sites. Web sites are listed in alphabetical order by sponsoring
agency and topic.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/catalog.html
“The pictorial collections of the Library of Congress represent an immense
fund of human experience, knowledge, and achievement. Works in these collections
touch upon almost every realm of human endeavor: science, art, invention, government
and political struggle, and the recording of history.” Not all images
in the collection are in the public domain. Helpful guides, reference aids,
and finding aids to the collections can be accessed at http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/bibsguid.html.
Compiled by Jennifer Harbster
2004 |
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