Astronomy photographer of the year 2012: Winners are chosen

[Palinurus]

From this site: http://www.rmg.co.uk/visit/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/2012-winners/

Now in its fourth year, 2012 was another exceptional year for the competition with over 800 entries from astronomers and astrophotographers from around the world, with almost double the number of entrants to the Young category. As a centre for science education and communication, the team at the Royal Observatory are keen to encourage an interest in astronomy at a young age to embed a life-long interest in the subject.

With the help of our friends at Sky at Night Magazine and the photo-sharing website Flickr, we asked you to submit photographs in the categories of ‘Earth and Space’, ‘Our Solar System’, ‘Deep Space’ and ‘Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year’. The prizes for ‘Best Newcomer’ and ‘People and Space’ and ‘Robotic Scope’ featured again this year. After much deliberation, our judges selected the prize-winners which you can see here. Congratulations to all of them.

Overall winner (and also in category Deep Space):
M51 - The Whirlpool Galaxy by Martin Pugh (UK/Australia)

Young astrophotographers winner:
Pleiades Cluster by Jacob von Chorus (Canada)

Plenty of other splendid photographs on the mentioned site to enjoy !