'Beauty of Night Sky' category winners from the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest

"The Enchanted Forest" by Lyubov Tribonova - The first winner in Beauty of Night Sky category,
the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest (click image to read more information).

Earlier this week (2015 June 16), The winners of the 6th International Earth and Sky Photo Contest on Dark Skies Importance were announced. Organized by international program, The World at Night contest is a collaboration with outreach and education group of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory and Global Astronomy Month, the Astronomers Without Borders annual world-wide program in April. The contest was founded by TWAN and Dark Skies Awareness project in 2008 as a regional program. It was expanded to a global program in 2009 during the International Year of Astronomy, and it is growing each year. According to the contest criteria the submitted images are taken during 2014-2015 and are all created in the “TWAN style”—showing both the Earth and the sky—by combining elements of the night sky set in the backdrop of the Earth horizon, often with a notable scenery or landmark. Known as nightscape imaging (or landscape astrophotography) this is similar to general night photography but with a special attention to the sky, astronomical perspectives, and celestial phenomena. The contest focus on preserving night sky as part of our natural heritage is to support global efforts in controlling light pollution (see the International Dark Sky Association). More complete information (including winners in all the categories) can be found on this page: twanight.org/contest.

Please note that I've only shown here the five winners from the 'Beauty of Night Sky' category. Be sure to visit this page to see the winners and mentions in all categories, and view the contest video.

"Moonlit Darklings" by Brad Goldpaint - The second winner in Beauty of Night Sky category,
the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest (click image to read more information).

"A Raising of the Hackles" by Ben Coffman - The third winner in Beauty of Night Sky category,
the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest (click image to read more information).

"The Dome" by Sigurdur William Brynjarsson - The fourth winner in Beauty of Night Sky category,
the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest (click image to read more information).

"Stroll in the Star Rover" by Caren Zhao - The fifth winner in Beauty of Night Sky category,
the 2015 International Earth & Sky Photo Contest (click image to read more information).

               Royce's 2015 NightScape Workshop Schedule