Members of the Dominican Armed Forces participate in a commemorative act on the 170th anniversary of national independence at the esplanade of Santo Domingo, on February 27, 2014. (Photo by Orlando Barria/EPA)

Grey seal pup “Nikolaus” licks a window at the seal enclosure in Friedrichskoog, Germany, 19 December 2014. The pup was abandoned by his mother and would not have a chance at survival without human help. Nikolaus will be fed at the enclosure for two to three months until he has reached the minimum weight of 45 kilograms for being released. (Photo by Daniel Reinhardt/EPA)

A female bodybuilder apples oil to another performer backstage before an amateur competition in the Israeli city of Dimona, in this April 3, 2014 file photo. (Photo by Finbarr O'Reilly/Reuters)

Iraqis who have fled fighting between security forces and al-Qaida inspired militants in their hometown of Tal Afar arrive in a car at Germawa camp for displaced Iraqis, in a hot dusty plain in the largely-autonomous Kurdish area of Dahuk, 260 miles (430 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad Tuesday, June 17, 2014. (Photo by AP 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)

A man flies a kite on the Bund while buildings of Pudong's Lujiazui financial district stand across the Huangpu River as the sun rises in Shanghai, China, on Friday, October 2, 2015. (Photo by Qilai Shen/Bloomberg)

Singer Rihanna prepares for a photoshoot with photographer Annie Leibovitz in Havana, Cuba, May 28, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

The Jet Propulsion Lab team's RoboSimian robot turns on a valve at a simulated disaster-response course during day one of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Robotics Challenge finals in Pomona, California, June 5, 2015. (Photo by David McNew/Reuters)