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.

Anti-balaka militia originally sprang up to protect the Christian population of the Central African Republic, but now stand accused of human rights abuses themselves. Last month, the African Union branded militia targeting Muslims in Central African Republic as “terrorists” and said they would be treated as enemy combatants, a day after killing a Congolese peacekeeper and amid deepening international frustration at continuing violence in the impoverished and landlocked country. Photo: A female member of the anti-balaka, a Christian militia, patrols with other militiamen outside village of Zawa April 8, 2014. (Photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Steamed Chinese-style buns, known locally as salapao, are decorated with faces during the start of the annual 10-day vegetarian festival in Bang Saphan, southern Thailand on October 13, 2015. (Photo by Matthew Richards/Courtesy Image)

Members of the Iraqi Army fire towards Islamic State militant positions at the south of Mosul, Iraq December 10, 2016. (Photo by Alaa Al-Marjani/Reuters)

Iraqi rapid response forces take a selfie picture outside a hospital damaged by clashes during a battle between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in the Wahda district of eastern Mosul, Iraq, January 8, 2017. (Photo by Alaa Al-Marjani/Reuters)

A picture taken on March 9, 2017, shows a boy playing with a cat next to a 1948 Buick parked outside the home of Mohammad Mohiedine Anis in the formerly rebel-held al-Shaar neighbourhood. (Photo by Joseph Eid/AFP Photo)

Shamans perform a ritual of predictions for the upcoming US election with posters of presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton at the Agua Dulce beach in Lima on November 7, 2016. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump launched into the frenzied final day of their historic fight for the White House Monday, with blow-out rallies in the handful of swing states that will decide who leads the United States. (Photo by Ernesto Benavides/AFP Photo)

People, carry food and water, past a tractor stuck in mud, stones and debris that were piled in a flood in the mountain village of Sipkovica, just above the town of Tetovo, in northwestern Macedonia, on Tuesday, August 4, 2015. A small number of people including children have died in floods that erupted after an hour of heavy torrential rains and strong winds that hit Tetovo and northwestern region of Macedonia late on Monday. (Photo by Zoran Andonov/AP Photo)