Astronomy Photographer of the Year shortlist
The breathtaking sight of the Perseid Meteor shower shooting across the sky, swirling pink clouds of the Lagoon Nebula, and a mesmerizing lunar halo are among the awesome scenes captured by both amateur and professional photographers shortlisted in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2016 competition. The contest is held annually by the Royal Observatory Greenwich in Britain which received more than 4,500 entries from over 80 countries.
Here’s a look at the shortlisted images. Winning images for nine categories will be announced September 15.
Seven Magic Points - Rune Engebø (Norway)
The rusty red swirls of the circular, iron sculpture Seven Magic Points in Brattebergan, Norway mirror the rippling aurora above.
Mount Cook National Park
Above the World - Lee Cook (UK)
Taken from Sefton Bivouac, the oldest hut in Mount Cook National Park, New Zealand, star trails spiral over the majestic mountains of the park and the seemingly peaceful village below.
Hawke's Bay, New Zealand
A Fork, a Spoon and a Moon - Andrew Caldwell (New Zealand)
A Royal Spoonbill sits atop of a branch basking in the glow of the nearly Full Moon in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand.
Mount Cook National Park
Alone - Lee Cook (UK)
With temperatures close to -15 degrees, it’s not surprising that the photographer was the only soul in the vicinity of Plateau Hut in Mount Cook National Park, New Zealand.
The lonely hut, dwarfed by the snowy mountains of the park, contrasts with the abundance of star trails seemingly encircling the peaks of the Anzac.
Brunt Ice Shelf
Antarctic Space Station - Richard Inman (UK)
A view of the Halley 6 Research Station situated on the Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica, which is believed to be the closest thing you can get to living in space without leaving Earth, making it perfect to be used for research by the European Space Agency.
As the sun’s light dissipates into the horizon, the aurora can be seen swirling overhead.
Northern Lights
Aurora Bird - Jan R Olsen (Norway)
The vivid green Northern Lights resemble a bird soaring over open water in Olderdalen, Norway.
Southern Cross
South - Phil Hart (Australia)
The Southern Cross constellation of the Milky Way, visible in the southern sky creates a guiding light along Bucklands Lane in Central Goldfields Shire, Victoria.
Milky Way
Between the Rocks - Rick Whitacre (USA)
Our galaxy, the Milky Way, stretches across the night sky between two of the imposing rocks at Pfeiffer State Beach, near Big Sur, California.
Milky Way
Celestial Veil - Yuyun Wang (Singapore)
The natural light of the Milky Way battles with the light pollution over the fishing village, or kelong, in Batu Pahat, Malaysia. In the lower right hand corner, there is also bioluminescence in the waters at the bottom of the kelong.
Lunar halo
Crystal Brilliance - Tommy Richardsen (Norway)
A mesmerizing lunar halo forms around our natural satellite, the moon, in the night sky above Norway.
The halo, also known as a moon ring or winter halo, is an optical phenomenon created when moonlight is refracted in numerous ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere.
View over the Alps
Five Plus Two - Der Mits (Greece)
It was a rare opportunity to see five planets - mercury, venus, mars, saturn and jupiter - gleaming in the night sky over the Alps captured on camera. On the left hand side is the Dufour peak of the MonteRosa range and on the right hand side of the frame is the instantly recognizable peak of the Matterhorn.
Mount Shasta Perseid Meteor shower
Flash Point - Brad Goldpaint (USA)
The Perseid Meteor shower shoots across the sky in the early hours of August 13, 2015, appearing to cascade from Mount Shasta in California. The composite image features roughly 65 meteors captured by the photographer between 12:30am and 4:30am.
Milky Way over Italy
Frozen Giant - Nicholas Roemmelt (Germany)
The celestial curve of the Milky Way joins with the light of a stargazer’s headlamp to form a monumental arch over the Cimon della Pella in the heart of the Dolomites mountain range in northeastern Italy.
Manua Kea
Parallel Mountains - Sean Goebel (USA)
The shadow of Manua Kea, the highest peak in the state of Hawaii, is projected by the rising sun over the volcano, Hualalai, whilst the full moon soars above them, higher again.
Southern Lights
Auroral Nuggets - Stephen Voss (New Zealand)
The Universe puts on its very own light show to see in the New Year on January 1, 2016, as the Aurora Australis or Southern Lights, arcs over Nugget Point on the South Otago coast of New Zealand.
Manua Kea
Parallel Mountains - Sean Goebel (USA)
The shadow of Manua Kea, the highest peak in the state of Hawaii, is projected by the rising sun over the volcano, Hualalai, whilst the full moon soars above them, higher again.
ISS over France
ISS under Venus and the Moon - Philippe Jacquot (France)
Taken from atop the Semnoz Mountain, the International Space Station arcs over the city of Annecy, France, as venus and the moon loom overhead.
The great red spot
King of the Planets - Damian Peach (UK)
Looming in the night sky, tempestuous storms are visible across the face of the largest planet in our solar system, jupiter. The great red spot - a raging storm akin to a hurricane on Earth - stands out in a deep orange from the hues of browns surrounding it.
Lagoon Nebula
M8: Lagoon Nebula - Ivan Eder (Hungary)
New stars are formed in the undulating clouds of M8, also commonly referred to as the Lagoon Nebula, situated some 5,000 light years from our planet.
The moon over Brazil
Moon Reflection - Rafael Defavari (Brazil)
The brilliance of the moon illuminates the night sky, and is reflected in the expansive water of the Paraty Bay, Brazil.
The surface of the sun
Wall of Plasma - Eric Toops (USA)
A searing solar prominence extends outwards from the surface of the sun. The “wall of plasma” is the height of three times the Earth’s diameter.
Northern Lights
Northern Lights - Giles Rocholl (UK)
The Northern Lights illuminate the lagoon at Jokulsarlon, Iceland, February 2016.
Milky Way
Painted Hills - Nicholas Roemmelt (Germany)
With very little light pollution, the glimmering stars of the Milky Way bathe the colorful layers of the Painted Hills of Oregon in a natural glow.
Veil Nebula
Pickering’s Triangle - Bob Franke (USA)
The luminous tangle of filaments of Pickering’s Triangle intertwines through the night sky. Located in the Veil Nebula, it is one of the main visual elements of a supernova remnant, whose source exploded around 8,000 years ago.
The moon
Rise Lunation - Katherine Young (Sweden)
The often unnoticed ripples and shimmers of the moon captured on film as it appears to rise through the sky. Here, the moon is photographed at 98% illumination and is beginning to wane.
Night sky of the Eastern Sierras
Stars and Stripes - Brandon Yoshizawa (USA)
Ancient petroglyphs are lit up by the glittering stars of the night sky in the Eastern Sierras in California.
Comet Lovejoy
The Disconnection Event - Michael Jäeger (Austria)
Comet Lovejoy soars through the night sky in a green haze with an ion tail in its wake. The image shows Lovejoy appearing to lose its tail on January 21, 2015.
Total solar eclipse
The Diamond Ring - Melanie Thorne (UK)
The dramatic moment that our star, the sun, appears to be cloaked in darkness by the moon during the total solar eclipse of March 9, 2016 in Indonesia.
The sun peers out from behind the moon and resembles the shape of a diamond ring, caused by the rugged edge of the moon allowing some beads of sunlight to shine through in certain places.
The Joy of Seven Sisters
The Joy of Seven Sisters - José Francisco Hernández Cabrera (Spain)
Comet Lovejoy flashes through the darkness of the solar system, passing near the open star cluster of the Pleiades or Seven Sisters.
The Pleiades glow blue due to their extremely hot nature, and are the most obvious star cluster to the naked eye in the night sky.
Fve planets
Venus Rising - Ivan Slade (Australia)
During the seldom-seen alignment of the five planets in February 2016, venus, mercury and the Milky Way rose an hour before sunrise, and appear to be fleeing its early glow, overlooking Turrimeta Beach, Australia.
Comet Lovejoy
The Joy of Seven Sisters - José Francisco Hernández Cabrera (Spain)
Comet Lovejoy flashes through the darkness of the solar system, passing near the open star cluster of the Pleiades or Seven Sisters.
Southern Cross
South - Phil Hart (Australia)
The Southern Cross constellation of the Milky Way, visible in the southern sky creates a guiding light along Bucklands Lane in Central Goldfields Shire, Victoria.
Concentric star trails
Just Missed the Bullseye - Scott Carnie-Bronca (Australia)
The International Space Station (ISS) appears to pierce a path across the radiant, concentric star trails seemingly spinning over the silhouettes of the trees in Harrogate, South Australia.