The Top Photos from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022

Astronomy photographer of the year contest

The Royal Observatory Greenwich’s annual Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 competition has revealed this year’s shortlisted photos from all over the globe.

Competition for the World’s Greatest Space Photography

The prestigious contest received over 3,000 entries from amateurs and professionals submitted from 67 countries worldwide. Now running for the fourteenth year, the competition features an expert panel of judges from the art and astronomy world.

Photographers compete across nine categories — Skyscapes, Aurorae, People and Space, Our Sun, Our Moon, Planets, Comets and Asteroids, Stars and Nebulae, Galaxies, and Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year for budding astronomers under the age of 16, in addition to the coveted Astronomy Photographer of the Year 14 title for the overall winner. The judges will also award two special prizes — The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer and The Annie Maunder Prize for Image Innovation.

All winners will be announced at an online award ceremony on September 15, 2022, with the winning photos also exhibited in the National Maritime Museum alongside a selection of shortlisted entries.

The prize pool consists of a £10,000 cash prize for the overall winner and £1,500 for all other category winners. Runners-up and highly commended entries will receive £500 and £250, respectively, while the Special Prize winners will be awarded £750. All winning photographers will also receive a one-year subscription to BBC Sky at Night Magazine.

Below are this year’s shortlisted entries:

Annie Maunder Prize

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Earth Cyanotype © Lynda Laird, Using open source data from Suomi NPP satellite
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Busy Star © Sergio Díaz Ruiz, using open source data from NOAA GOES-16, Solar Ultraviolet Imager (SUVI)

Aurorae

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Spectrum © Stefan Liebermann
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Solar Wind Power © Esa Pekka Isomursu
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
An Icelandic Saga © Carl Gallagher
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Electric Wizardry © Shane Turgeon

Galaxies

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Arp 271: Cosmic Collision © Mark Hanson, Mike Selby
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Hydra’s Pinwheel © Peter Ward
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Interacting Galaxies in Eridanus © Terry Robison

Our Moon

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Above the Lunar South Pole © Tom Glenn
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Inverted Minerals © Noah Kujawski
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Fly over the South Pole © Andrea Vanoni

People and Space

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Moonrise Over Los Angeles © Sean Goebel
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Riverside of Funakawa in Spring © Takanobu Kurosaki
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
The Starry Sky Over the World’s Highest National Highway © Yang Sutie
Stacks and Stones © Derek Horlock
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Equinox Moon and Glastonbury Tor © Hannah Rochford

Planets, Comets, and Asteroids

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
The Jovian Family © Damian Peach
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Comet C/2021 A1 (Leonard) © Lionel Majzik
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Saturn and its Moons © Flávio Fortunato

Sir Patrick Moore Prize

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Messier 78 © David Loose
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Radio Telescope © Liu Xuemei

Skyscapes

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Circles and Curves © Sean Goebel
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Crossing the Madison © Jake Mosher
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Chidiya Tapu © Vikas Chander
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Ladder to the Stars © Mihail Minkov
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Oregon Coast © Marcin Zajac
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Diagonal © Gen Kiryu

Stars and Nebulae

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Suburbs of Carina Nebula © Ignacio Diaz Bobillo
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
NGC 6888 – The Crescent Nebula © Bray Falls
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
The Rolling Waves of Vela © Paul Milvain

Our Sun

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Solar Inferno © Stuart Green
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Clouds of Hydrogen Gas © Simon Tang
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Partial Eclipse of the Sun in H-alpha © Alessandro Ravagnin

Young Astronomy Photographer

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
IC 1871 – A Little Devil Riding on the Head of a Dragon © Nan Wang, Binyu Wang
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2022 Shortlist
Pickering’s Triangle in Light-Polluted City © Zezhen Zhou

More information about the competition can be found on the Royal Museums Greenwich website.


Image credits: All photos individually credited and provided courtesy of Royal Museums Greenwich.

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