{"id":851559,"date":"2026-09-18T01:12:20","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T01:12:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/851559\/"},"modified":"2026-09-18T01:12:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T01:12:20","slug":"the-31-out-of-this-world-winners-of-astronomy-photographer-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/851559\/","title":{"rendered":"The 31 Out-of-this-World Winners of Astronomy Photographer of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/p>\n

Photographer Ali Alobaidly won this year\u2019s Royal Observatory Greenwich ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year 18<\/a> competition. Alobaidly\u2019s incredibly detailed, ethereal photo of the predator-like Shark Nebula earned the photographer a \u00a310,000 prize, equivalent to nearly $13,400. <\/p>\n

Ali Alobaidly Is This Year\u2019s Astronomy Photographer of the Year <\/p>\n

Alobaidly\u2019s winning photo, The Quiet Predator, is a beautiful look at the Shark Nebula. The Shark Nebula (LDN 1235) is nearly 650 light-years away in the constellation Cepheus. It is a dark nebula comprised of dense, starlight-blocking dust, which creates its striking shark-like shape. <\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>\u2018The Quiet Predator\u2019 \u00a9 Ali Alobaidly <\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes a photograph comes alive through its flawless presentation, pin-sharp details and dynamic contrast of light and dark,\u201d says Steve Marsh, Art Editor at BBC Sky at Night Magazine and competition judge. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is such an image. The Shark Nebula is already a striking object, but when it is resolved to the point where even detail-rich distant galaxies can be seen through it, you know you\u2019re looking at something very special,\u201d Marsh continues. <\/p>\n

Alobaidly, whose winning photo also took the top spot in the contest\u2019s \u201cStars and Nebulae\u201d category, feels very honored to win such a prestigious astrophotography competition. <\/p>\n

\u201cReceiving this award is a tremendous honor. I am in awe of the extraordinary work of my fellow photographers, each deserving of this recognition,\u201d Alobaidly says. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe juxtaposition of an oceanic predator prowling the skies above the Kuwaiti desert is something I find deeply poetic, and it is what first drew me to this remarkable region of the sky. To me, it represents perfectly my love for both the Universe and the deserts of my ancestors,\u201d the photographer adds. <\/p>\n

Alobaidly says he hopes his astrophotography will inspire others to get outside and enjoy the night sky. The photographer also wants to contribute to scientific research through his photography and make astronomy more accessible and engaging. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis year\u2019s Overall Winner, The Quiet Predator by Ali Alobaidly, is a stunning blend of technical excellence and artistic vision. Showcasing the intricate structures of a rarely photographed nebula, the image combines remarkable detail with a striking composition and color palette, inviting viewers to explore the hidden beauty of the cosmos,\u201d says Sam Wen, Founder and CEO of ZWO, an astronomy equipment and telescope company and supporter of the annual Royal Observatory Greenwich Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. <\/p>\n

\u201cA result of exceptional skill, patience and dedication, this outstanding image also marks a historic milestone, as Ali is the first Overall Winner from Kuwait in the competition\u2019s history,\u201d Wen concludes. <\/p>\n

Nikolaos Strimpoulis Wins ZWO Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year Award <\/p>\n

15-year-old Nikolaos Strimpoulis of Greece is this year\u2019s ZWO Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year. His photo, Mineral Moon, delivers a stunningly colorful close-up of the Moon, a popular subject for countless photographers. <\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>\u2018Mineral Moon\u2019 \u00a9 Nikolaos Strimpoulis<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of us start our astrophotography journey with the Moon \u2014 some of us stay there forever! But often we don\u2019t delve deep into the subtle colors of its mineral deposits until much later,\u201d says Marsh. \u201cThis amazing young astrophotographer has achieved perfectly developed coloring in this photograph.\u201d <\/p>\n

Category Winners <\/p>\n

Alongside Alobaidly\u2019s overall win and Strimpoulis\u2019 big award, ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year 18 also features top three finishers across eight primary categories, plus top five finishers in the ZWO Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year section and two special awards. <\/p>\n

Each category winner and Strimpoulis won \u00a31,500. Each category runner-up gets \u00a3500, while highly commended entries earn photographers \u00a3250 each. Special prize winners get \u00a3750. <\/p>\n

Stars & Nebulae Aurorae Our Moon Our Sun
\n People and Space Planets, Comets, and Asteroids Skyscapes Galaxies ZWO Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer \"The<\/a>Winner \u2014 \u2018M1: Echoes of an Ancient Explosion\u2019 \u00a9 Haocheng Zhu The Annie Maunder Open Category \"A<\/a>Winner \u2014 \u2018Reverse Astronomy: Mother\u2019 \u00a9 Pawe\u0142 Pawe\u0142<\/p>\n

\u201cI never tire of seeing the new entries into the ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. For a sky that, at least in some ways, is remarkably unchanging from year to year, the skill and innovation of the entrants, coupled with improvements in technology, means that there is always a wealth of new sights to be seen even in targets that have been observed many times over,\u201d says Dr. Greg Brown, Royal Observatory Greenwich Astronomer and competition judge. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe images from this, the 18th year of the competition, continue to show the growth of a community whose passion to capture the stunning variety of our Universe knows as few bounds as the subjects of their images. The only issue, of course, is how difficult a job this makes for the judges \u2014 although, as issues go, it\u2019s a great one to have!\u201d <\/p>\n

All the winning photographs will be exhibited at the National Maritime Museum in London starting tomorrow, September 18, 2026. <\/p>\n

Image creditsRoyal Observatory Greenwich, ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year<\/a>. All photographers are credited in the individual captions.<\/p>\n

Affiliate Disclosure PetaPixel articles may include affiliate links; we may earn a commission if you buy through one. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Photographer Ali Alobaidly won this year\u2019s Royal Observatory Greenwich ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year 18 competition. Alobaidly\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":851560,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[228,226,227,229,88],"class_list":["post-851559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=851559"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851559\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/851560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=851559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=851559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=851559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}