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.

“What created this unusual hole in Mars? The hole was discovered by chance on images of the dusty slopes of Mars' Pavonis Mons volcano taken by the HiRISE instrument aboard the robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter currently circling Mars”. (Photo by NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)

These brave models show no fear as they pose with bears, tigers and wolves in scenes straight from the pages of a fairy tale. The snaps show the models cuddling up to the deadly animals and even taking naps with the often unpredictable creatures. Here: “Marina with a bear”. Stepan, a 700-pound grizzly bear, was adopted by a Russian couple when he was just 3 months old. (Photo by Olga Barantseva/Caters News Agency)

A giant sinkhole in Guatemala City, on May 31, 2010. More than 94,000 were evacuated as the storm buried homes under mud, swept away a highway bridge near Guatemala City and opened up several sinkholes in the capital. (Photo by Casa Presidencial/Reuters via The Atlantic)

WeHo Pride's Grand Marshal Icon rapper Janelle Monáe rides in the city of West Hollywood's Pride Parade on June 05, 2022 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by APEX/The Mega Agency)

American actress Aubrey Plaza (L) dances with American actress and model Madelyn Cline while sipping Avaline sparkling at Stella McCartney and Baz Luhrmann's Met Gala after party with Casamigos Tequila in Manhattan, New York on May 1, 2023. (Photo by Matteo Prandoni/BFA.com)

A palomino horse's mane is seen against the sky at Spancil Hill horse fair in Spancil Hill, Ireland June 23, 2018. (Photo by Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters)

A hiker walks in the Zillertal Alps during an autumn day near the village of Ginzling, Austria, October 15, 2019. (Photo by Lisi Niesner/Reuters)