A vivid photograph of the Shark Nebula has been named the winner of the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s prestigious Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. The winning image, created by Ali Alobaidly, was captured in the Jahra Governorate of Kuwait.
The selected work showcases a dark nebula located approximately 650 light-years from Earth. Composed of dense interstellar dust, the celestial formation is dense enough to obscure starlight, creating a silhouette that resembles a shark.
Steve Marsh, an art editor at BBC Sky at Night Magazine and one of the judges, praised the entry for its “flawless presentation, pin-sharp details and dynamic contrast.” He noted that while the Shark Nebula is inherently striking, the photograph’s ability to reveal distant, detail-rich galaxies through the dust cloud demonstrated exceptional quality.
Alobaidly receives a £10,000 grand prize for the overall victory. Speaking on his win, he expressed that the award was a “tremendous honour” and stated his ambition to utilize his photography to make astronomy more accessible and engaging through science communication and education.
The 2026 edition of the competition drew nearly 4,000 submissions from 66 countries, highlighting the global reach of astronomical imagery.
In the youth category, 15-year-old Nikolaos Strimpoulis from Athens, Greece, secured the ZWO Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year award. His image, titled Mineral Moon, features a close-up of the lunar surface taken in Palaio Faliro. The photograph highlights the moon’s dark maria and bright highlands, with orange and blue hues resulting from iron and titanium deposits. Marsh commended the young photographer for achieving perfectly developed coloring often missed by enthusiasts.
Dr. Greg Brown, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, remarked that the entries from the competition’s 18th year reflected both skill and innovation, alongside ongoing technological improvements.
Other category winners were also recognized for their contributions. Stefano Pellegrini took first place in the Skyscapes division with Botswana Star Trail, while Tom Williams won the Planets, Comets and Asteroids category for his image Saturnian Equinox, captured in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. Max Inwood claimed the People and Space prize for A Message from the Ancients, featuring rock art in California, and Radoslav Sviretsov won the Aurorae category with an image of the Northern Lights in Iceland titled The Crown.
An exhibition displaying the winning and highly commended images will be open to the public at the National Maritime Museum in London starting September 18.
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