“Aurora over a glacier lagoon”. A vivid green overheaded aurrora pictured in Iceland's Vatnajokull National Park reflected almost symetrically in Jokulsrlon Glacier lagoon. A complete lack of wind and currrent combin in this sheltred lagoon scene to crete an arresting mirror effect giving the image a sensation of utter stillness. Despite theis there is motion on a suprising scale, as the loops and arcs of the aurora are shaped by the shifting forces of the Earth's magnetic field. James Woodend of Great Britain won the grand prize with the image, beating out more than 2,500 other entries. The Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014 contest is judged by the Royal Observatory Greenwich and BBC Sky at Night magazine. (Photo by James Woodend/The Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014 Contest)

Monkeys climb onto tourists during the annual Monkey Festival in Lopburi province, Thailand on November 26, 2023. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

An actor performs during the show “Paris de Nuit” in Santiago, Chile, 20 September 2016. The show is a combination of cabaret and circus, produced by the Recirquel Contemporary Circus Company from Budapest, and will be performed at the Mapocho Cultural station from 20 to 25 September. (Photo by Mario Ruiz/EPA)

Ernie Lotinga, looking terrified as a gun is pointed in his face, in a scene from the play “My Wife's Family”, at the Garrick Theatre, London. (Photo by Sasha/Getty Images). 24th February 1941

Guests enjoy a dinner at the table “Santa in the sky” lifted by a crane and elevated at 50 meters in the air and decorated to match the appearance of a “Santa Sleigh”, as part as the Christmas festivities in Brussels, Belgium, November 25, 2016. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

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.

This image made available by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 depicts NASA's Solar Probe Plus spacecraft approaching the sun. On Wednesday, NASA announced it will launch the probe in summer 2018 to explore the solar atmosphere. It will be subjected to brutal heat and radiation like no other man-made structure before. (Photo by Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory via AP Photo)

A participant at London Pride 2022 parade takes a mocking selfie next to Christian extremists protesting the parade in Piccadilly on July 2, 2022. (Photo by Vuk Valcic/ZUMA Press Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)