29 Finalists Announced for 2026 Astronomy Photographer of the Year
The ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition, run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich and supported by ZWO and BBC Sky at Night Magazine, has announced 29 finalists for its 2026 edition. Nearly 4,000 entries were submitted from 66 countries. The shortlist includes images of auroras, galaxies, planets, and the moon. Notable entries include Samuel Morse's aurora over Utah, Martin Giraud's supermoon over Paris, Jakob Sahner's comet over the Swiss Alps, and Tom Williams' composite of Mars. The overall winner receives £10,000 ($13,467), with category winners getting £1,500 ($2,020). Winners will be announced on September 17, followed by an exhibition at the National Maritime Museum in London.
Key facts
- 29 finalists for 2026 ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year
- Nearly 4,000 entries from 66 countries
- Competition run by Royal Observatory Greenwich
- Supported by ZWO and BBC Sky at Night Magazine
- Overall winner receives £10,000 ($13,467)
- Category winners receive £1,500 ($2,020)
- Winners announced on September 17
- Exhibition at National Maritime Museum in London starting September 18
Entities
Artists
- Samuel Morse
- Martin Giraud
- Jakob Sahner
- Tom Williams
- Jennifer Rogers
- Julien Cadena
- Chuhong Yu
- Zuoming Wang
- Yijing Zhu
- Xinghan Yang
- Richard Addis
- Jean-François Gely
- Rafael Schmall
- James McBeath
- Mario Cogo
- AJ Smadi
- Uroš Fink
- Fredric Walder
- Evan McKay
- Takanobu Kurosaki
- Yoshiki Abe
- Matteo Strassera
- ZhiPu Wang
- João Yordanov Serralheiro
- Humbert Cédric
- Ani Shastry
- 与晨 林
- Yifan Cao
- Ksawery Wrobel
- Sam Wen
Institutions
- Royal Observatory Greenwich
- ZWO
- BBC Sky at Night Magazine
- National Maritime Museum
- Royal Museums Greenwich
- Colossal
- PetaPixel
- KEH.com
- Moment
- FJ Westcott
- Blue Moon Camera and Machine
Locations
- Weber County, Utah, USA
- United States
- Paris, France
- France
- Swiss Alps
- Switzerland
- Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England
- United Kingdom
- Flakstad, Lofoten, Norway
- Norway
- Lyngen, Troms, Norway
- Zhuanghe City, Liaoning Province, China
- China
- Ürümqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China
- Meudon, Île-de-France, France
- Wallasey, Merseyside, England
- Arvieux, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
- Somogy County, Southern Transdanubia, Hungary
- Hungary
- Leeds, West Yorkshire, England
- Monticello Conte Otto, Vicenza, Italy
- Italy
- Seattle, Washington, USA
- Velika Planina, Kamnik-Savinja Alps, Slovenia
- Slovenia
- San Francisco, California, USA
- West Wheal Owles, Cornwall, England
- Tujetsch, Graubünden, Switzerland
- Aldeburgh Beach, Suffolk, England
- Sanming, Fujian Province, China
- Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain
- Spain
- Asahi, Toyama Prefecture, Japan
- Japan
- Cathedral Cove, Waikato, North Island, New Zealand
- New Zealand
- Kitsuki, Ōita Prefecture, Japan
- Elqui Province, Coquimbo, Chile
- Chile
- London, England
- London
- Cathedral Cove
- Waikato
- North Island
- Aotearoa New Zealand
- El Sauce Observatory
- Río Hurtado
- Tujetsch
- Graubünden
- Xiamen
- Fujian Province
- Flakstad
- Lofoten
- Koireb
- Windhoek Rural
- Namibia
- Goðafoss Waterfall
- Þingeyjarsveit
- Iceland
- Meudon
- Île-de-France
- Elqui Province
- Coquimbo
- Leeds
- Lofoten Islands
- Paris
- Eiffel Tower
- Sacré-Cœur Basilica
- Funakawa River
- Mount Asahi
- Big Dipper
- Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon)
- Nata Beach
- Greenwich
- England
- USA
- UK
- Germany
- Portugal
- Aotearoa
- Seattle