The shortlist for the 2026 ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year competitors options photos of nebulae, the Milky Way, meteor showers and different distinctive astronomical occasions. Run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich and in affiliation with BBC Sky at Night Magazine , the competitors attracted nearly 4,000 entries from novice {and professional} photographers in 66 international locations.
Among the shortlisted pictures is British photographer James McBeath’s Moody Partial Solar Eclipse, which reveals the Sun in the course of the partial photo voltaic eclipse of 29 March 2025, photographed by fast-moving clouds.
Moody Partial Solar Eclipse © James McBeath (UK). Here, the partial photo voltaic eclipse of 2025 was shot by fast-moving clouds on what was a lovely spring morning. James McBeath spent a number of hours in a neighborhood park monitoring the eclipse along with his digital camera, displaying many passers-by what he was doing and giving them a superb view of the eclipse. McBeath ended up with a whole lot of photographs, however this one, with the clouds framing the Sun completely, instantly caught his eye. Taken with a Sony ILCE-7 digital camera, Canon EF 300 mm USM lens with 2x teleconverter, Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer Mini mount, Pig Iron 720-nm R-72 Infrared filter, 600 mm f/18, ISO 100, 1/3,200-second publicity. Other shortlisted photos embrace the primary full Moon of 2026 above the Paris skyline, and {a photograph} of cherry blossom bushes alongside Japan’s Funakawa River.
Supermoon Path Over Paris at Sunset © Martin Giraud (France). Martin Giraud selected to {photograph} the primary Full Moon of the yr over the Paris skyline. The Eiffel Tower was 6.3 km (3.9 miles) away from their place, and the Sacré-Cœur Basilica was 11.1 km (6.9 miles) away. This explains why the Moon seems so massive within the body. The location provided the right alignment between the buildings and the rising Moon. The Moon rose simply earlier than sundown, permitting Giraud to seize the vivid colors and Belt of Venus [a pinkish band of light visible at twilight] within the background. Taken with a Canon EOS 6D digital camera, Sigma 150-600 mm lens, 500 mm f/8, ISO 100, 1/60-second publicity. Setsu-getsu-ka © Takanobu Kurosaki (Japan) ‘Setsu-getsu-ka’ is a standard Japanese expression meaning ‘snow, moon and flowers’. This {photograph} captures that trio on the Funakawa River by framing Mount Asahi – Asahi’s symbolic peak – and cherry blossom bushes below a lunar halo and a uncommon, faint tangent arc [optical phenomena caused by the refraction of moonlight through ice crystals in clouds]. The blossoms final for under about 10 days, making their synchronisation with the snow-capped mountain and these atmospheric optics a once-in-a-season miracle. To emphasise the fragility of the scene, Takanobu Kurosaki captured this as a single publicity relatively than a composite. Taken with a Sony ILCE-7RM5 digital camera, Sony FE 24–105 mm f/4 G OSS lens, 29 mm f/4, ISO 800, 6-second publicity. Now in its 18th yr, the competitors is judged by a panel drawn from the fields of artwork and astronomy. Awards will likely be introduced throughout 9 classes, alongside two particular prizes and the general competitors winner.
The winners will likely be introduced on 17 September, with the successful photos happening show on the National Maritime Museum in London from 18 September as a part of an exhibition that includes a collection of shortlisted pictures.
You can see a collection of the shortlisted photographs under.
Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) Over the Swiss Alps © Jakob Sahner (Germany). This {photograph} reveals Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) within the early hours of the morning. Jakob Sahner drove deep into the Swiss Alps to benefit from the final clear night time earlier than the brand new Moon cycle. The panorama was breathtaking and made an ideal foreground for the comet. Taken with a Nikon Z 7 digital camera, Move Shoot Move Nomad star tracker, TTArtisans AF 85 mm f/1.8 lens, 85 mm f/2.2, ISO 800, Foreground: 120-second publicity; Sky: 38 x 30-second exposures. Dancing Flames © 与晨 林, aged 14 (China). This high-resolution H-alpha picture of the Sun’s chromosphere was captured from the photographer’s dwelling in first rate seeing circumstances. It reveals intricate floor particulars, together with sunspots, photo voltaic flares, filaments and prominences alongside the photo voltaic limb. Taken with an Acuter Elite Phoenix 40 H-Alpha photo voltaic telescope, ZWO AM5 mount, ToupTeokay G3M678M digital camera, 400 mm f/10, 1,000 x 10-millisecond exposures. A Deep Look Into the Milky Way’s Core © Jakob Sahner (Germany). This Milky Way mosaic was captured utilizing two cameras – one for RGB color and one for H-alpha – to document as a lot element and construction as potential. The venture almost fell aside when surprising Newton’s rings (an optical phenomenon that may happen when working with filters) appeared in most of the panels after stacking. Jakob Sahner thought of abandoning your complete dataset, however finally discovered a approach to appropriate most of it and protect the picture. In the tip, it turned a roughly 750-megapixel mosaic. Taken with a Sony Alpha 7 III and Nikon Z 6 cameras, Samyang 135 mm f/2 lens, Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer GTi mount, 135 mm f/2, ISO 1600, 1,950 x 90-second H-alpha exposures, 2,182 x 90-second RGB exposures. Vortex © Jennifer Rogers (UK). This picture of a star path aligned with the chimney of the previous tin mine Wheal Owles in Cornwall was taken on a chilly night time in February. Jennifer Rogers took time to place Polaris instantly above the chimney within the composition. Taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV digital camera, 14 mm f/2.8, ISO 1600, Foreground: 1 x 60-second publicity; Star path: 72 x 60-second exposures. The Crimson Vortex and Sapphire Blossoms of Andromeda © Chuhong Yu and Zuoming Wang (Both China). Taken with a Sky Rover 130 mm APO Pro telescope, ScorpioAstro 50-mm LRGB and 7-nm H-alpha and OIII filters, Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6 PRO mount, QHYCCD QHY600PH-M SBFL (brief again focal size) digital camera, 910 mm f/7, 111 hours and 25 minutes complete publicity.
Aurora Over Causey Reservoir © Samuel Morse (USA). This beautiful aurora shot is a simple single-frame picture with no compositing or different alterations. The color stability was pushed barely in direction of blue to reinforce vibrancy and create colors that complemented the pink within the sky. Taken with a Sony ILCE-7M4 digital camera, tripod, Laowa AF 10 mm f/2.8 Zero-D lens, 10 mm f/2.8, ISO 1600, 30-second publicity. Te Hoho Rock Moonrise © Evan McKay (Aotearoa/New Zealand). On this specific night time, Evan McKay had solely a small window to seize the sky earlier than the Moon began to rise. McKay polar-aligned his mount throughout twilight after which started capturing the sky panorama from this location. The moonlight supplied the most effective of each worlds and did a implausible job of lighting up the foreground. To improve the sky, McKay captured a separate panorama utilizing a twin narrowband filter and blended it in to convey out the nebulae. Taken with a Nikon Z 6a digital camera, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount, Move Shoot Move Nomad star tracker, Sigma 40 mm Art lens, Optolong L-Para filter, 40 mm, Foreground: f/2.8, ISO 800, 30-second publicity; Sky: f/2, ISO 1600, a number of 15-second RGB exposures, a number of 2-minute exposures with filter.