Prestigious competition draws entries from hopefuls all over the world

Stellar work from Chinese photographers including shots of the Northern Lights rising above Iceland and a meteor burning through the atmosphere over Qinghai province have been shortlisted for this year's staging of the world's top astronomy photography competition.

A total of eight images from Chinese photographers are in with a chance of winning the Royal Observatory's Insight Investment Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2019.

The competition, which is run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich in London, celebrates outstanding images of celestial objects, cosmic events, and regions of the night sky. It is widely considered to be the most prestigious competition of its kind in the world.

The shortlist for this year's competition, the 11th time it has been staged, contains 140 images, chosen from 4,600 entries submitted by amateur and professional photographers in 90 countries.

Winners in nine categories as well as the overall competition winner will be announced at a prize giving ceremony in September. The overall winner will receive 10,000 pounds ($12,600), and winners of all other categories will receive 1,500 pounds.