Scientists have snapped the first ever portrait of H1N1, the new swine flu virus that has swept the globe in recent weeks.

A virus cell (such as the H1N1 swine flu cells above) is made up of a core that contains genetic material, which is surrounded by a protein-filled coat that allows the virus to catch onto and invade target cells. Each cell measures about one-ten-thousandth of a millimeter wide.

The samples, obtained from an infected patient in California, were photographed on April 27, 2009, at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.

[National Geographic]