The Greenwich Observatory in London (United Kingdom) announced the winners of the 'Astronomer of the Year' 2026 contest last Thursday (the 17th). This award gathered images of various cosmic phenomena and landscapes, including galaxies, nebulae, and other sky shots.
In its eighteenth iteration, the competition attracted nearly four thousand entries from 769 photographers across 66 countries.
The main winner was the photograph 'The Quiet Predator,' taken by Ali Al Obaidli. This shot depicts a cluster of dark cosmic clouds known as the Shark Nebula.
To create this winning photograph, Al Obaidli spent two nights camping in the Kuwaiti desert before being able to capture the image.