Best Newcomer 2026

At the centre of a black, star-spotted sky, there's a glowing nebula with red, pink, purple and blue streaks

Category winner

M1: Echoes of an Ancient Explosion by Haocheng Zhu

"I began astrophotography less than a year ago and M1 reshaped how I see the night sky. In 1054 CE, during China’s Song Dynasty, astronomers recorded a “guest star” bright enough to be visible even in daylight – a supernova whose remnant we now know as the Crab Nebula. Its tangled filaments still expand through space, carrying the energy of an explosion witnessed nearly 1,000 years ago. What appears faint today was once brilliant to the naked eye."

Taken in Qahar Right Rear Banner, Ulangab City, Inner Mongolia, China, 29 December 2025

Seven bright white stars shine brightly in a blue black sky dotted with many stars

Runner-up

The Seven Sisters by Tibor Marcsik

"This image depicts the open cluster M45 (the Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters). Taking advantage of the clear conditions in October, I spent two nights photographing this object. To process the photograph, I first calibrated and stacked the individual images. I also removed the stars, which allowed me to better concentrate on the fine details of the nebula. I then merged the images with and without stars in Photoshop."

Taken in Dombóvár, Southern Transdanubia, Hungary, 16 and 20 October 2025

A curve of white streaks across a light-brown sky with a clifftop and a building in the foreground

Highly commended

Beyond the Stars by James Rider

"This image was taken at the top of Haleakalā Peak and shows the Milky Way blurred behind star trails. In the foreground is the Haleakalā Observatory. My aim was to give a sense of the distance of the Milky Way by capturing it in the background of the photograph behind the stars."

Taken in Haleakalā Observatory, Maui, Hawaii, USA, 17 September 2025