optical illusion

Phil Plait Bad Astronomy rotatingsnakes_simple

I swear these illusions aren't moving. Your brain will say otherwise.

By Phil Plait 8 months ago

akiyoshi_color_squares

Orange you glad I have another optical illusion to confuse your brain?

By Phil Plait 9 months ago

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Trippy new type of optical illusion will have you seeing starbursts, no kaleidoscope needed

By Elizabeth Rayne 10 months ago

A color contrast optical illusion makes it look like the balls are different colors. In reality they are all the same color and shading. Credit: David Novick, used with permission

Another brain-frying optical illusion: What color are these spheres?

By Phil Plait 2 years ago

An optical illusion created by Kohske Takahashi: All the lines are smoothly curving sine waves, but their shading and contrast with the background makes them appear to be sharp zigzags. Credit: Kohske Takahashi

An optical illusion that will zigzag your brain

By Phil Plait 2 years ago

A 3D printed sculpture appears to wiggle and move when spun and lit by a strobe light on video. Credit: John Edmark, from the video

Aliasing illusion makes 3D sculptures wiggle and gyrate

By Phil Plait 4 years ago

Pulsating star illusion will have you questioning reality

By Phil Plait 4 years ago

A view of a region of northern Siberia from the Sentinel-2A satellite… but all is not as it seems. Credit: ESA

Siberian Illusion

By Phil Plait 4 years ago

Alternating curved arrangement of lighter and darker “turtles”… or are they? Credit: Akiyoshi Kitaoki

Optical illusion: Shade-changing shape-shifting gray turtles

By Phil Plait 4 years ago

This is not a spiral, no matter how much your brain yells at you that it is.

Can you make your brain not see this circle illusion?

By Phil Plait 4 years ago