Overall competition winner 2024. Our Sun category winner 2024. 

Distorted Shadows of the Moon's Surface Created © Ryan Imperio

Astronomy Photographer of the Year is an annual competition featuring the world’s greatest space photography. Photographers from across the globe compete to take home the prestigious title.

"This is a sequence of continuously captured images showing the progression of Baily's beads at 3rd contact during the 2023 annular eclipse.

Baily's beads are formed when sunlight shines through the valleys and craters of the moon's surface, breaking the eclipse's well-known ring pattern, and are only visible when the moon either enters or exits an eclipse. These are a challenge to capture due to their brevity and precise timing.

Being that timing was everything, I was lucky to capture the transition of beads as they formed and disappeared during the end of annularity (3rd contact). Representing approximately 10 seconds, the stacked sequence was shot at 3 frames per second and includes the 'Ring of Fire' at maximum annularity starting on the left. As the sequence progresses, a sort of exaggerated projection is created of the moon's surface rough topography. For this image, I decided a cropped version was best allowing the viewer to appreciate the distorted lunar peaks and valleys." Ryan Imperio

• 21 x 29.7cm finished size including border | 8.3 x 11.7in
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