For the last three years the Royal Observatory Greenwich, in association with Sky at Night Magazine, has sponsored the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. 2012 saw a record number of entries from all over the world. With the results to be announced in just a few hours, it would be well worth your while to check out some of the really remarkable entries in the competition. You can see a few at the Guardian website, and others at this Flickr page. Past winners can be seen at the Royal Observatory Greenwich website. Below are a couple of my favorites.
“Sky Away From The Lights” by Tunç Tezel. Taken at the Uludag National Park in Turkey, the photo shows the Milky Way hovering over lights from the various towns below.
“Full Moon Setting Behind the Alps” by Stefano De Rosa. This picture shows the full Moon behind the Alps and the Sacra di San Michele, a religious complex on Mount Pirchiriano in northern Italy.
Thirty-Two Minutes 