For centuries we've looked to the stars, dreaming of the weird and alien worlds that exist beyond the confines of Earth. But beneath the sea live creatures so utterly strange, hideous and fantastical, they might as well have landed here from a different planet.
Photographer Franco Banfi snapped these incredible images while leading a group of divers in the White Sea near Karelia, northern Russia. The mystical creatures he photographed range from strange-looking shrimp to flower-like to alien-like jellyfish.
"Some of the creatures I pictured definitely look like aliens from another world," said Franco.
The "sea angel", a swimming sea slug, is most beautiful of the deap sea animals he snapped -- not exactly a tough contest to be fair. Mostly transparent, the sea angel's internal organs appear to glow brightly in the image. "I dedicated the dive to look for [the sea angel]," said Franco. "It was only after 30 minutes of swimming under the ice when I was almost ready to give up, I spotted it."
For more weird animals, see Killer parrots, the pigbutt worm and other extraordinary animals
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
