Michael Harris's Ancient Light wins South Downs dark skies photo prize

Michael Harris takes the top prize in the South Downs National Park dark skies photography competition with Ancient Light, a Milky Way image framed above an abandoned barn in Balsdean Valley near Brighton, East Sussex. The annual contest, held to mark the 10th anniversary of the park's designation as an International Dark Sky Reserve, attracted more than 130 entrants.

Judge Dan Oakley, described as a dark skies expert and astro-photographer, singled out Ancient Light for its composition and realism, saying: "I think this is an incredible and realistic photo of what the South Downs Dark Skies experience is. It’s beautifully framed." Harris, who is from Brighton, placed the shot in historical context, noting the site’s past: "The site has had a long history with Roman occupation, as a medieval hamlet, use as accommodation during the Second World War and for farming. All of which have long since come and gone in the time it has taken for the light from the Milky Way above to reach us, which is approximately 26,000 years."

The competition introduced or included a space-focused category identified as South Downs To Deep Space or Deep Space, where Nigel Stanbury of Haslemere, Surrey, won with an image of the Jellyfish Nebula. Stanbury described the subject as "the so-called Jellyfish nebula located in the constellation of Gemini, the twins." The nebula is a supernova remnant roughly 5,000 light years away; Stanbury noted, "It has taken light 5,000 years to reach us so the image shows the object as it appeared 5,000 years ago." The Jellyfish Nebula entry required three nights of shooting and 22 hours of exposure to "bring out the colours and show the finer details of the faint structure." Oakley compared the nebula shot to science fiction, saying: "It looks like a jellyfish, but it’s not, it’s the remains of an exploding star. It looks straight out of Star Trek."

In the Life At Night category, Richard Murray from Waterlooville, Hampshire, won with Snail Trail To The Stars, a close-up showing a snail underneath The Plough asterism. Murray captured the moment after patient observation, saying: "The shot took a lot of patience and a surprising amount of suspense, waiting for the exact moment when my tiny, mucus-powered model lifted both antennae toward the cosmos above. Eventually, the stars, the snail, and the timing all lined up and I got the shot I’d been hoping for."

Other commended entries included a Belle Tout Lunar Eclipse image. Published image credits attached to coverage list Michael Steven Harris/South Downs National Park/PA for Ancient Light, Nigel Stanbury/PA for the Jellyfish Nebula shot, and Richard Murray/PA for the snail photograph, underscoring the range of subjects from local East Sussex landscapes to objects thousands of light years away showcased in this 10th anniversary competition.