The Royal Observatory, Greenwich is proud to present another round of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year, showcasing some incredible images of the sky, from within our solar system to deep space.
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2011 has competition categories for everyone, including young astro-photographers, and there are some great prizes to be won.
And this year there are also three special awards – one for newcomers, another for shots that creatively capture people and space, and a third for images that have been taken by robotic/remote telescopes and that have been processed by yourself.
Astronomy Photography at its Best
There are four main competition categories, including the special competition category for under 16s: Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year.
- Earth and Space
This is for photos that include landscape, people and other ‘Earthly’ things. Your picture should also include an astronomical subject – for example the stars, the Moon, or near-Earth phenomena such as aurora. - Our Solar System
This is for photos of our Sun and its family of planets, moons, asteroids and comets. - Deep Space
This is for photos of anything beyond our Solar System, including stars, nebulae and galaxies. - Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year
This is the competition category for under-16s.
You can also nominate your entry for the following special prizes:
- People and Space
This is for photos that include people in a creative and original way. - Best Newcomer
This is for photos taken by people who have taken up the hobby in the last year and have not entered an image into the competition before. - Robotic Scope
This is for images that have been taken by robotic/remote telescopes and that have been processed by yourself.
Be the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2011
Judges will select one winner, one runner up and two highly commended entries from each category, before deciding an overall winner to be crowned Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2011.
And this year there are also three special awards – one for newcomers, another for shots that creatively capture people and space, and a third for images that have been taken by robotic/remote telescopes and that have been processed by yourself.
The overall winner – the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2011 gets a grand prize of £1500.
Competition Requirements
Entrants may submit up to five photos per month to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Flickr group and five photos in total to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition – this includes entries via the official website by Young entrant.
By adding a photo to the group on Flickr or submitting images via this website by Young entrants you confirm to the Royal Observatory Greenwich that it:
- was taken and processed by you
- is consistent with the Flickr Community Guidelines
- is your original work
- does not infringe the copyright or any other rights of any third party
- does not contain any obscene or defamatory content or material
- was taken within two years immediately prior to the competition closing date
The following images are not eligible for entry to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition:
- Photos that have already been previously published or submitted to a print publication or its associated online media brand
- Photos that have won a prize in a major competition (one receiving more than 500 photos)
- Photos taken more than two years before the competition closing date (i.e. taken before 13 July 2009)
- Photos that use a substantial amount of data from a previously published image
How to Submit Your Astronomy Photos?
To enter the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition you will first need to add your photos to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year group on the photo-sharing website, Flickr.
Once you have done this, fill in the online application form on the official website. Through this form you will be able to nominate your chosen category and consideration for any of the relevant special prizes.T
