After the huge success of Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2009 the Royal Observatory Greenwich (and Sky at Night Magazine, as media partner) have today opened entries to this year’s competition. Last year the competition received hundreds of images showing everything from spectacular swirling nebulae to moonscapes reminiscent of the views seen by Apollo astronauts.
This year’s competition takes on much the same form as last year’s but with a few interesting extras. Just like last year there are three main categories. They are: ‘Earth and Space’ (for ‘earthly’ landscapes with an astronomical object in them), ‘Our Solar System’ (for images of our Sun, the planets, the Moon, comets etc.) and finally ‘Deep Space’ (for pictures of stars, nebulae and galaxies). There will also be two special prizes. The first is ‘People and Space’ which, according to the ROG website, is for “photos that include people in a creative and original way” and the second is the ‘Best Newcomer’ prize. This is a new prize for those of you who have just started taking pictures of the night sky in the last year and haven’t entered the competition before. Here’s where we’ll no doubt see the rising stars (if you’ll excuse the pun) of astroimaging.
Last, but by no means least, there will also be the Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year category, for entrants under-16 years old. There were some fantastic images from last year’s young astroimagers, with some really clever shots entered. So if you know a budding young astroimager, why not tell them about the competition?
The overall winner of the competition will receive £1000 and there are other prizes for the various category winners, runners up etc. For the full rules of the competition and more about how to enter see the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s website.
I’ll be on the judging panel again for this year’s competition and, like last year, I’m really looking forward to seeing what the world’s top astroimagers can produce. We had a superb mix of subjects last year and I know that all of the judges were incredibly impressed at the quality in all the categories. For now though it’s over to you…impress us! You’ve got until the 16th July to submit your images, so good luck and clear skies!
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