The competition, which is run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich in association with BBC Sky at Night Magazine, is now in its sixth year and has received over 2,500 entries. Photo: Centre of the Heart Nebula by Ivan Eder (Hungary). Situated 7500 light years away in the “W”-shaped constellation of Cassiopeia, the Heart Nebula is a vast region of glowing gas, energized by a cluster of young stars at its centre. The image depicts the central region, where dust clouds are being eroded and moulded into rugged shapes by the searing cosmic radiation. (Photo by Ivan Eder)

“Strike Through The Mothership”. Every May for the last 3 years I have driven down to Tornado Alley to capture some amazing storms. This supercell held so much promise to drop a tornado but one small shift in the atmosphere and all that it produced was an extreme lightning show. Photo location: Broken Bow, Nebraska. (Photo and caption by Vanessa Neufeld/National Geographic Photo Contest)

GDT Naturfotograf 2014 – “Die besten Naturfotografien des Jahres”. Radomir Jakubowski – Spieglein Spieglein. 2nd place: Mammals. (Photo by Radomir Jakubowski)

This image released by Esquire shows actress Penelope Cruz on the November 2014 cover of “Esquire” magazine. The magazine has named Cruz The Sexiest Woman Alive for 2014. (Photo by AP Photo/Esquire)

Young female Ibex on the fork of Disteis (2,200 m), near the top of the Jof di Montasio (Friuli, Italy). (Photo by Stefano Zocca)

Actress Olga Kurylenko poses for a photograph at the British Academy of Film and Arts (BAFTA) awards ceremony at the Royal Opera House in London February 16, 2014. (Photo by Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters)

An Edinburgh Fringe performer shows off his makeup on the Royal Mile, in the final weekend of this year's festival. The largest performing arts festival in the world has been running for the past three weeks and has enjoyed an increase in venues and visitors compared with previous years. (Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

Jill Olsen (R) has her picture taken inside a giant cocoon, from the “Falling Skies” TV series, during the 2014 Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, California July 24, 2014. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Reuters)