An aurora over golden fields, a comet trailing in the night sky, and a deep sky nebula are among the winning images in this years’ Reach for the Stars competition, Ireland’s biggest astrophotography competition, organised by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS).
The 2025 competition saw more than 170 entries from photographers across Ireland with photos taken between 26 April 2024 and 02 June 2025. The judging panel included: Professor Peter Gallagher, Head of Astrophysics at DIAS; Michael McCreary, President of the Irish Astronomical Society; Dr Lisa McNamee co-founder Space Medicine Ireland and Alan Betson, Irish Times photographer and multiple winner of the Press Photographer of the Year award.
The winners have been revealed and will receive their prizes at a private ceremony at DIAS on Wednesday, 20 August. This will be followed by an exhibition of winning and shortlisted photographs that will be open to the public from Thursday, 21 August.
Night Sky in Your Hand Category: Images taken with only a smartphone, and without telescopes, of an astronomical scene.
Winner: Anthony Lynch, Dublin for his image Comet Catcher. Taken in the Phoenix Park, the image shows the photographer standing under a tree reaching out to Comet 12P/Ponns-Brooks when it was low in the horizon in twilight.
Out of this World – Planetary: Images of the planets, sun and moon.
Winner: Brian O’Halloran of Annestown, Co. Waterford for his image Comet Tsuchinshan ATLAS, In All Its Glory. The image taken in Dunabrattin, Co. Waterford, captured the Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS as it passed perihelion in our sky. The judges on this entry, commended the clarity and purity of the Comet within the image.
Out of this World – Deep Sky: Images of celestial objects that exist outside our solar system such as nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies.
Winner: For the second year in a row, Martin McCormack, based in Dublin, was the winner of the Out of the World – Deep Sky category. His image, Winter Nebula in Bloom captured in Glasnevin, Dublin, displays the Rosette Nebula (NGC 2237), a massive emission nebula located 5,200 light-years from Earth. The technical ability on display to capture this nebula was ultimately what brought the judges to select this as the winner for the category.
Back on Earth – Landscape: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as nature, land or water.
Winner: Raluca Lica, Narraghmore, Co. Kildare was the winner of the Back on Earth Landscape category, for her image Aurora above the Golden Fields. The image captured a geomagnetic storm dancing across a golden field taken near Narraghmore, Co. Kildare. This category contained the highest number of shortlisted images and the winner was commended by the judges for providing a sense of being in the image.
Back on Earth – Landmark: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as cityscapes, buildings, houses, historical structures or monuments.
Winner: Dublin-based photographer, Liam Reddall, was the winner of the Back of Earth Landmark category, for his image The Voyager, taken in Laytown, Co. Meath. Using a fisheye lens under long exposure photography, he captured the Voyager Statute by Linda Brunker lit by surrounding streetlamps and the night sky to create a captivating image of the bronze statute taken on a golden glow.
People’s Choice Award: There was also a ‘People’s Choice’ award with the winning photograph selected by publicvote.
Winner: Anthony Lynch’s photograph Symmetry which captured a sweeping panorama of the milky way on top of train tracks in Lough Boora Park, Co. Offaly.
Commenting on this year’s competition, Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO and Registrar of DIAS, said: “The Reach for the Stars competition continues to reveal the incredible talent and dedication of Ireland’s astrophotographers. These images don’t just showcase technical skill, they allow us to see the universe from new perspectives and inspire a deeper curiosity about our night sky.”
Head of Astrophysics at DIAS and Chair of the judging panel, Professor Peter Gallagher said, “Now in its fifth year, the DIAS Reach for the Stars competition has reached new heights. It is exciting to see the competition grow. The rare appearances of the Aurora Borealis in Ireland’s skies have sparked fresh curiosity, encouraging more people to get involved in astrophotography. The talent and technical skill shown in each of the shortlisted entries is extraordinary, making the judges’ task of selecting winners more challenging than ever before.”
DIAS’ Reach for the Stars competition is run in partnership with The Irish Times and is sponsored by MKC Communications and the Astronomical Observatories of Ireland. The Irish Astronomical Society are initiative supporters.
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