A tiger is painted on the backs of three models at the Three Lanes and Seven Alleys on January 3, 2012 in Fuzhou, China. (Photo by ChinaFotoPress/ChinaFotoPress)

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)

Bronze whaler shark (Carcharhinus brachyurus), caught in traditional seine net and released by fisherman, Muizenberg beach, Cape Town, South Africa on October 11, 2016. Action shots have captured fishermen trying to free a potentially deadly Bronze Whaler shark who was caught in their nets. The incredible images show the eight-foot-long 500-pound predator lunging its mouth towards the fishermen who are desperately trying to pull it back into the safety of the sea by its tail. Eventually they succeeded. (Photo by Chris and Monique Fallows/NPL)

A member of the USA Knights team is seen wearing a face-like helmet shield during the International Medieval Combat championships at the castle of Belmonte, May 4, 2014, in Belmonte, Spain. The steel armor the knights wear can cost up to $10,000 and weigh 80 pounds. (Photo by Juan Naharro Gimenez/Getty Images)

An enterprising Chinese man pulls a bicycle cart packed high with bags of recyclable plastic containers in Shanghai July 25, 2002. The man sells each kilogram (2.2 pounds) of plastic for 0.08 yuan ($.01) to a nearby depot. (Photo by Claro Cortes IV/Reuters)

Beachgoers watch the detonation of a 500 pound British bomb on the beach on May 19, 2014 in Wassenaar, Netherlands. The bomb was dropped by the British allied forces during the second world war over nearby Leiden where it was found on a building site. (Photo by Michel Porro/Getty Images)

A body surfer rides a high wave at the Wedge on September 1, 2011 in Newport Beach, California. Waves measuring up to 20 feet pounded the beach. A winter storm off the coast of Australia and New Zealand brought unusally hgh serve to the Southern California beaches. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)