Βραβευμένες εικόνες από μεγάλο διαγωνισμό αστρονομικής φωτογραφίας. Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014 Winners Announced

Το βόρειο σέλας πάνω από μια παγωμένη λιμνοθάλασσα στην Αρκτική. Ο φωτογράφος Τζέιμς Γούντεντ είναι νικητής στην κατηγορία Γη και Διάστημα. Winner: Earth and Space. Aurora over a Glacier Lagoon by James Woodend, UK. The pale-green glow of the aurora comes from oxygen atoms high in the atmosphere, energized by subatomic particles blasted out by the Sun. The particles are funnelled down towards the north and south poles by the Earth’s magnetic field, which is why these spectacular light shows are so often juxtaposed with the frozen scenery of the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Here the photographer has skilfully captured the delicate, icy colouration of land, water and sky.

Eντυπωσιακές φωτογραφίες του ουρανού αναδείχθηκαν νικητές στο φετινό διαγωνισμό Astronomy Photographer of the Year, τον οποίο οργανώνει το Βασιλικό Αστεροσκοπείο του Γκρίνουιτς σε συνεργασία με το BBC και το Flickr.

Winner: Deep Space. Horsehead Nebula (IC 434) by Bill Snyder, USA. The Horsehead Nebula is one of the most-photographed objects in the night sky, but
this astonishing image succeeds in showing it in
a brand-new light. Rather than focusing solely on
the black silhouette of the horsehead itself, the photographer draws the eye down to the creased and folded landscape of gas and dust at its base,
and across to the glowing cavity surrounding a bright star. By pushing the compositional boundaries of astrophotography, this image expands our view and tells a new story about a familiar object.

Στο φετινό διαγωνισμό υποβλήθηκαν συνολικά 1.700 συμμετοχές από 50 χώρες σε όλο τον κόσμο.

Winner: Our Solar System. Ripples in a Pond by Alexandra Hart, UK. The Sun’s boiling surface curves away beneath us in this evocative shot, which powerfully conveys the scale and violence of our parent star. The tortured region of solar activity on the left could swallow
up the Earth several times with room to spare. The photographer’s comparison with stones dropped into a pond is an apt one: the Sun’s outer layers do indeed behave like a fluid, but one that is constantly twisted and warped by intense magnetic forces.

The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer: winner. Coastal Stairways by Chris Murphy, New Zealand. ‘Deep time’ seems to be the subliminal message of this moody scene, with each layer of the foreground rocks recording thousands of years of geological history. Meanwhile, in the sky, time and distance are inextricably entwined, as the light from the stars takes decades, centuries or even millennia to reach us across the immense gulf of space.

People and Space: winner. Hybrid Solar Eclipse 2 by Eugen Kamenew, Germany. This rare example of a hybrid solar eclipse began at sunrise over the western Atlantic as an annular eclipse, in which the Moon does not entirely block the Sun, leaving a bright ring or annulus uncovered. As the Moon’s shadow swept eastwards across the ocean, the eclipse became total, with the whole of the Sun concealed from view. By the time the eclipse reached Kenya the Sun was once again emerging from behind the Moon, producing this spectacular crescent shape at sunset.

Winner: Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year. The Horsehead Nebula (IC 434)  by Shishir and Shashank Dholakia, USA, Aged 15. This is a superb image of the Horsehead Nebula. It shows clearly the well-known red glow that appears to come from behind the horsehead. This glow is produced by hydrogen gas that has been ionized by neighbouring stars. The image draws particular attention to the cloud of heavily concentrated dust within the horse’s head. This is silhouetted against the red glow because it blocks so much of the light that is trying to get through.

Robotic Scope: winner. NGC 3718 by Mark Hanson, USA. Found in the constellation Ursa Major, NGC 3718 is known as a peculiar barred spiral galaxy. Gravitational interactions with its near neighbour NGC 3729 (the spiral galaxy below and to the left) are the likely reason for the galaxy’s significantly warped spiral arms, while a dark dust lane wraps around the centre.

Βραβεία απονέμονται σε τέσσερις βασικές κατηγορίες (Γη και Διάστημα, Το Ηλιακό Σύστημα, Βαθύ Διάστημα και Νέος Φωτογράφος Αστρονομίας της Χρονιάς), καθώς και σε τρεις ειδικές κατηγορίες (Άνθρωποι και Διάστημα, Ρομποτικό Τηλεσκόπιο και Βραβείο Νεοεισερχόμενου «Σερ Πάτρικ Μουρ»).

Οι νικητές εκθέτουν τώρα τις εικόνες τους στους χώρους του Βασιλικού Αστεροσκοπείου.