This year’s Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition is now open for submissions, encouraging astrophotographers from around the world to capture and share the beauty of the cosmos.
Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2016 will welcome submissions in nine main categories:
- Skyscapes:Landscape and cityscape images of twilight and the night sky featuring the Milky Way, star trails, meteor showers, comets, conjunctions, constellation rises, halos and noctilucent clouds, alongside elements of earthly scenery.
- Aurorae:Photographs featuring auroral activity.
- People and Space:Photographs of the night sky including people or a human interest element.
- Our Sun:Solar images including solar eclipses and transits.
- Our Moon:Lunar images including lunar eclipses and occultation of planets.
- Planets, Comets and Asteroids:Everything else in our Solar System, including planets and their satellites, comets, asteroids and other forms of zodiacal debris.
- Stars and Nebulae:Deep-space objects within the Milky Way including stars, star clusters, supernova remnants, nebulae and other intergalactic phenomena.
- Galaxies:Deep space objects beyond the Milky Way including galaxies, galaxy clusters, and stellar associations.
- Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year:Pictures taken by budding astronomers under the age of 16 years old.
Returning again this year are two special prizes in the shape ofThe Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer, awarded to the best photo by an amateur astrophotographer who has taken up the hobby in the past year, andRobotic Scope, for images taken using a computer-controlled telescope.
As a taster of what to expect from this year's competition, we present the winning images and some shortlisted submissions from 2015.
See below for more details and how to enter this year's competition.
Entries must be submitted by 14 April 2016, with the winners announced during a ceremony at the Royal Observatory Greenwich on 15 September 2016. The winning images will then form an exhibition in the Astronomy Centre at the observatory from 17 September.
The winner of this year’s competition will receive £10,000. Winners of the main categories will each receive £1,500, while runners up and highly commended entries will receive £500 and £250, respectively. Special Prize winners will receive £750 each. All winners will also receive a year’s subscription to BBC Sky at Night Magazine.
With plenty of time to enter this year’s competition, there’s no reason not to get out there and get snapping the night sky. To enter, visit theRoyal Observatory Greenwich website. Good luck to all of this year's entrants!
Follow this year's competition on social media using the hashtag #astrophoto2016.
All images are copyright the respective photographers