'Giant Space Squid' Wins Astronomy Institute Contest Grand Prize

[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] The Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute announced the results of the 28th Astrophotography Contest on the 24th.

The grand prize was awarded to Jang Seung-hyeok's "Giant Cosmic Squid" among 182 submitted works. Jang captured the planetary nebula OU4 located in the Cepheus constellation, known as the "Squid Nebula," earning the honor of the grand prize.

The theme of this contest was divided into Deep Sky, Earth and Space, and Solar System categories, with 23 works selected as winners. Especially this year, to encourage youth participation, an additional review was conducted exclusively for youth entries, selecting the "Dream Tree Award."

The judges stated, "Considering the variety of astrophotography entries across different fields, it is judged that astrophotography is becoming popular beyond just a niche hobby." They added, "In particular, compared to the deep sky category where the quality of results depends heavily on the level of equipment and technique, many creative works utilizing diverse subjects were submitted in other categories."

The winning works of the contest can be viewed on the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute's website.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.