Scientists at Purdue University have achieved something big with something small: they've been able to capture a three-dimensional image of a virus at a resolution of 4.5 angstroms.

An angstrom is 0.1 nanometer long, or 1/10 billionth of a meter. To give a sense of perspective of how huge of a deal magnifying something that small, imagine that a single strand of human hair is equal to a million angstroms.

That's pretty small. This project is one of the of the first to bring magnification to near atomic-level resolution. But for now, the direct question; some of you may be thinking "why would anyone want to see a virus up close?"

Being able to see a virus at this magnification will help scientists better understand how it works. By analyzing the actual physical structure, scientists will be able to understand how virus particles assemble as well as how they infect other cells.

A supercomputer with the power of 7,000 computers was needed to magnify the cell to this resolution. (So no, a camera at that resolution will not be available in the near future.) Click on the image above to get a closer look at the virus.