Where is a good place to find scientific images w/o violating copyright?

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SUMMARY

This discussion centers on sourcing scientific images for an astronomy website without infringing copyright. Users highlight that images from Wikipedia are under Creative Commons licenses, making them safe for use. However, for unique figures not found on Wikipedia, it is advisable to seek permission from publishers. Additionally, images from NASA and ESA are public domain and can be used freely with proper attribution, making them a valuable resource for space-related content.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of copyright laws related to scientific images
  • Familiarity with Creative Commons licensing
  • Knowledge of public domain resources, specifically NASA and ESA
  • Basic web development skills for integrating images into a website
NEXT STEPS
  • Research Creative Commons licensing specifics for scientific images
  • Explore NASA and ESA's image repositories for public domain content
  • Learn how to request permission from publishers for image use
  • Investigate alternative sources for scientific diagrams beyond Wikipedia
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for web developers, educators, and content creators in the astronomy field seeking to include legally sourced scientific images on their websites.

Simfish
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Okay, so I'm thinking about creating a website about astronomy. One thing I'd like to do is to include a lot of figures from journal articles. But I fear that including these diagrams will violate copyright. Are there certain journals that pretty much allow anyone to post figures without violating copyright? I know that Wiki is a good place to start (as all the images there are under the creative commons license), but I'd like to highlight examples/figures that aren't on Wiki, since my website will be useless if it just gets everything from Wikipedia.
 
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You could ask the publisher for permission to use the images, but I don't know how many of them would appreciate high-volume use on a public website. Alternately, if these are space pictures that you're looking for, many come from NASA / ESA anyways, and, IIRC, are public domain free for use (so long as attribution to NASA / ESA is maintained).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Messier51_sRGB.jpg
 
Oh okay. Yeah, I don't really care much for Hubble/space pictures (there are already enough of those sites); I care more about diagrams that actually explain the physical processes involved.
 

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