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1st Place, "Beauty of the Night Sky" Category
A dazzling green aurora frames the arc of the Milky Way over Jökulsárlón, the largest glacier lake in Iceland, on March 10
2nd Place
tree seems to bend in a galactic breeze in a July 2010 picture of the central bulge of the Milky Way taken from Australia.
Our solar system lies in one of the galaxy's spiral arms, about halfway from the galactic center. Recent studies show that the Milky Way's dusty heart houses a supermassive black hole.
"The position of the Milky Way in this image—lying horizontally, just above the horizon—gives the sense that it's just beyond arm's reach. Walk to the horizon, and instead of falling off the edge of the Earth, you can step into the rest of the galaxy," said contest judge Mike Simmons, president of Astronomers Without Borders, a TWAN co-founder, and a contributing editor at Sky & Telescope magazine.
3rd Place
A July 2010 panoramic picture of the French island of Réunion captures the Milky Way over Piton de la Fournaise, or "peak of the furnace," an active volcano. The small island lies in the Southern Hemisphere, in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Madagascar.
The shot includes the constellation known as the Southern Cross at upper right, as well as the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds hovering at the lower right. These "clouds" are actually dwarf satellite galaxies of the Milky Way
4th Place
Seen in April 2011, a gate in the Great Wall of China "seems to echo the timelessness of the Milky Way above," Astronomers Without Borders' Simmons said. Built and rebuilt between the 5th century B.C. and the 17th century A.D., the Great Wall is actually a vast network of structures designed to impede foreign invaders. Despite its legendary longevity, the world landmark represents a blink of an eye in cosmic time.
"The Milky Way stood above this spot, just as in this image, long before this historic gate was built, and it will remain long after the gate is gone," Simmons said.
5th Place
Stars seem to spin around the celestial north pole in a December 2010 picture taken from the shores of California's Mono Lake.
Surrounded by limestone towers, the mineral-rich waters are home to many species of "extreme" bacteria, which can survive in conditions hostile to most other life on Earth—such as high heat or high acidity. The lake therefore acts as a living laboratory for scientists studying the types of life that might arise on alien worlds. (Related: "New Bacteria Makes DNA With Arsenic.")
1st Place, "Against the Lights" Category
Twinkling stars over the Austrian Alps compete against the bright glow of a mist-covered town near Lake Traunsee in a February 17, 2010, picture.
2nd place
The bright city lights of Isfahan, Iran, become the gold at the end of the Milky Way's "rainbow" in an April 2010 picture. The image shows how light pollution can drown out even the dense gathering of stars in the galactic plane.
3rd Place
Crisscrossing light trails create a visual cacophony over a bridge in Lisbon, Portugal, in a February 2010 long-exposure picture. Faint star trails and the thicker path of the crescent moon wheel toward the western horizon, while airplanes leave horizontal streaks of light as they fly to or from the Lisbon airport.
4th Place
Even the lights from small towns can block out views of the cosmos, as illustrated by a September 2010 panorama taken from the mountains on France's island of Réunion. As Venus twinkles brightly, colorful village lights stain the fog over a valley. Even on clear nights, the glare from those lights may mean only the brightest stars and planets are visible from the villages.
5th Place
Light from Portland, Oregon—50 miles (80 kilometers) away—reflects off clouds in December 2010. Stars just manage to peak through the edges of the cloud cover.
Even when clouds aren't blocking the stars, "stray lights always brighten the sky to some extent," Astronomers Without Borders' Simmons said. "We can't control the weather, but we can keep our lights from shining upward, where it does us no good."
Elanam rep+
1st Place, "Beauty of the Night Sky" Category
A dazzling green aurora frames the arc of the Milky Way over Jökulsárlón, the largest glacier lake in Iceland, on March 10
2nd Place
tree seems to bend in a galactic breeze in a July 2010 picture of the central bulge of the Milky Way taken from Australia.
Our solar system lies in one of the galaxy's spiral arms, about halfway from the galactic center. Recent studies show that the Milky Way's dusty heart houses a supermassive black hole.
"The position of the Milky Way in this image—lying horizontally, just above the horizon—gives the sense that it's just beyond arm's reach. Walk to the horizon, and instead of falling off the edge of the Earth, you can step into the rest of the galaxy," said contest judge Mike Simmons, president of Astronomers Without Borders, a TWAN co-founder, and a contributing editor at Sky & Telescope magazine.
3rd Place
A July 2010 panoramic picture of the French island of Réunion captures the Milky Way over Piton de la Fournaise, or "peak of the furnace," an active volcano. The small island lies in the Southern Hemisphere, in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Madagascar.
The shot includes the constellation known as the Southern Cross at upper right, as well as the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds hovering at the lower right. These "clouds" are actually dwarf satellite galaxies of the Milky Way
4th Place
Seen in April 2011, a gate in the Great Wall of China "seems to echo the timelessness of the Milky Way above," Astronomers Without Borders' Simmons said. Built and rebuilt between the 5th century B.C. and the 17th century A.D., the Great Wall is actually a vast network of structures designed to impede foreign invaders. Despite its legendary longevity, the world landmark represents a blink of an eye in cosmic time.
"The Milky Way stood above this spot, just as in this image, long before this historic gate was built, and it will remain long after the gate is gone," Simmons said.
5th Place
Stars seem to spin around the celestial north pole in a December 2010 picture taken from the shores of California's Mono Lake.
Surrounded by limestone towers, the mineral-rich waters are home to many species of "extreme" bacteria, which can survive in conditions hostile to most other life on Earth—such as high heat or high acidity. The lake therefore acts as a living laboratory for scientists studying the types of life that might arise on alien worlds. (Related: "New Bacteria Makes DNA With Arsenic.")
1st Place, "Against the Lights" Category
Twinkling stars over the Austrian Alps compete against the bright glow of a mist-covered town near Lake Traunsee in a February 17, 2010, picture.
2nd place
The bright city lights of Isfahan, Iran, become the gold at the end of the Milky Way's "rainbow" in an April 2010 picture. The image shows how light pollution can drown out even the dense gathering of stars in the galactic plane.
3rd Place
Crisscrossing light trails create a visual cacophony over a bridge in Lisbon, Portugal, in a February 2010 long-exposure picture. Faint star trails and the thicker path of the crescent moon wheel toward the western horizon, while airplanes leave horizontal streaks of light as they fly to or from the Lisbon airport.
4th Place
Even the lights from small towns can block out views of the cosmos, as illustrated by a September 2010 panorama taken from the mountains on France's island of Réunion. As Venus twinkles brightly, colorful village lights stain the fog over a valley. Even on clear nights, the glare from those lights may mean only the brightest stars and planets are visible from the villages.
5th Place
Light from Portland, Oregon—50 miles (80 kilometers) away—reflects off clouds in December 2010. Stars just manage to peak through the edges of the cloud cover.
Even when clouds aren't blocking the stars, "stray lights always brighten the sky to some extent," Astronomers Without Borders' Simmons said. "We can't control the weather, but we can keep our lights from shining upward, where it does us no good."
Elanam rep+
