An employee places goods of Pokemon video game characters on display at a Pokemon store in Tokyo on February 26, 2021. Twenty-five years after Pokemon first began delighting children and adults alike, the phenomenon is still capturing hearts, with smartphone craze Pokemon Go enjoying record success in virus-hit 2020. (Photo by Behrouz Mehri/AFP Photo)

Gorgeous galaxies and stunning stars make up this selection of pictures from the shortlisted entries for this year’s Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year award. The winners will be announced on 15 September, and an exhibition of the winning images will be will be displayed in a free exhibition at the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Centre from 17 September. Here: “Seven Magic Points”. The rusty red swirls of the circular, iron sculpture Seven Magic Points in Brattebergan, Norway mirror the rippling aurora above. (Photo by Rune Engebø/Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2016/National Maritime Museum)

In this January 4, 2016 photo, the weapon of a rebel fighter for the 36th Front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, hangs from a branch serving as a makeshift clothesline, near a rebel camp, in Antioquia state, in the northwest Andes of Colombia. “We’ll lay aside our weapons, like the accord says, but never hand them over”, says Juan Pablo, a commander of the 36th Front. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)

An overview of “Closer”, an art projection by conceptual artist and photographer Wim Tellier, at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels on June 15, 2021. Tellier, a Belgian photographer and artist, is known for his installation projects using giant-size photographs. (Photo by James Arthur Gekiere/Belga/AFP Photo)

Lee Kiefer of the USA (L) and Inna Deriglazova of Russia (R) in action during the women's Foil Individual Gold Medal Bout of the Fencing events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Makuhari Messe convention centre in Chiba, Japan, 25 July 2021. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/EPA/EFE)

A model presents creations by Japanese designer Ayano Ichige from the Autumn/Winter 2022 collection for the label “NON TOKYO” during the Tokyo Fashion Week in Tokyo, Japan, 14 March 2022. The presentation of the Autumn/Winter 2022 collections runs from 14 to 19 March. (Photo by Franck Robichon/EPA/EFE)

A girl receives Covid-19 vaccine as Nepal Government begins vaccinating children aged 5-12 at a school in Kathmandu on June 23, 2022. (Photo by Aryan Dhimal/ZUMA Press Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

People smeared with “Gulal” or coloured powder during celebrations of Hindu spring festival “Holi” in Hyderabad, India on March 7, 2023. (Photo by Noah Seelam/AFP Phoot)