Overview
- The competition published a 29-image shortlist in early July drawn from more than 4,000 entries submitted by photographers in 66 countries.
- Shortlisted images span aurorae, comets, nebulae, the Moon, solar phenomena and deep-sky galaxies, showing both wide landscapes and telescopic views.
- Standout entries include a 111-hour deep-field portrait of the Andromeda Galaxy, a 182-day pinhole solargraph, and a comet captured over the Swiss Alps.
- Many photographers used long exposures, image stacking, H-alpha solar imaging and homemade pinhole cameras, and some traveled to remote or seasonally rare sites to get their shots.
- Winners will be named on September 17 and the shortlisted and winning images will appear in an exhibition at London’s National Maritime Museum and in the forthcoming Collection 15 book, a sign of the contest’s international prestige and public outreach.