“Sky burial or ritual dissection was once a common funerary practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is cut in specific locations and placed on a mountaintop, exposing it to the elements or the mahabhuta and animals – especially to birds of prey. The location of the sky burial preparation and place of execution are understood in the Vajrayana traditions as charnel grounds. In Tibet the practice is known as jhator, which literally means, «giving alms to the birds»”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A burial master chops bones of a body to feed vultures during a celestial burial ceremony on April 19, 2006 in Dari County of Guoluo Prefecture, Qinghai Province, northwest China. Celestial burial is a traditional funeral of Tibetan people, which began in the 7th century. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

The Royal Observatory just announced its Astronomy Photographer Of The Year 2013 winners. Australian photographer Mark Gee was chosen among a thousand amateur and professional photographers around the globe to win the top title. His work is part of an exhibition of the winning photographers, which opened on Sept. 19 at the Royal Observatory Greenwich. The Royal Observatory shared with us the winners and notable mentions of the competition. Their descriptions of the prizewinners can be found below the images.

A jockey falls off during a traditional Barapan Kebo or buffalo races, in Taliwang, on the island of Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia November 22, 2015. Around 250 pairs of water buffalo took part in the Barapan Kebo ahead of the planting season, for prizes which included a top prize of a pilgrimage to Mecca. (Photo by Sigit Pamungkas/Reuters)

Members of pop Idol SHINee and Super Junior carry the coffin containing the body of Jonghyun of SHINee during the funeral at the hospital on December 21, 2017 in Seoul, South Korea. The lead vocalist of the K-pop group was found dead, in what is believed to have been a suicide at his apartment on December 18. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Ukrainian law enforcement officers restrain an activist of women's rights group Femen, who holds a protest outside the presidential administration headquarters while marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in Kyiv, Ukraine on November 25, 2020. (Photo by Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters)

Youths, who covered themselves from head to toe in silver paint to become “manusia silver” (silvermen), as part of their act to make a living, laugh as they ride on the back of a truck in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 31, 2021. (Photo by Willy Kurniawan/Reuters)

Dancers wait at backstage as they prepare for a dance performance during the Bali Arts Festival in Bali, Indonesia, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. The resort island of Bali is holding a month-long annual Bali Arts Festival from June 10 to July 8. (Photo by Firdia Lisnawati/AP Photo)

Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge plays a stroke of golf during a visit to meet young people supported by the Cheesy Waffles Project, a charity for children, young people and adults with additional needs across County Durham, at the Belmont Community Centre, in Durham, north east England on April 27, 2021. (Photo by Andy Commins/Pool via AFP Photo)