The winning images of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 14 competition have been announced by the Royal Observatory Greenwich.
The top prize in the 2022 awards goes to Gerald Rhemann for his image 'Disconnection Event', which shows the tail of Comet Leonard being carried away by the solar wind.
Comet Leonard wowed observers and astrophotographers alike in December 2021, and photographer Rhemann took advantage of its bright appearance in the dark winter skies to capture the shot.
Rhemann said of his shot: "This award is one of the highlights of my astrophotography work. All the effort that went into making this image a success was worth it."
Melissa Brobby, APY 14 judge and science communicator said: "When I first saw this image of Comet Leonard, I was blown away. This picture of a recent visitor to our Solar System has been captured so beautifully.
"The stars in the background give the comet’s tail a magical appearance. I could stare at this image all day."
The top images from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 14 competition will be on display at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. Credit: National Maritime Museum, London
Astronomy Photographer of the Year is the world's biggest astrophotography competition and each year welcomes thousands of entries from imagers across the globe.
The competition is run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich, and this year's winning images will be on display in an exhibition at the National Maritime Museum in London alongside a selection of shortlisted images, opening on Saturday 17 September 2022.
