An exquisite whirlpool of two galaxies held together by invisible bonds was this year's winning image. And the Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year captured the beauty of the Pleiades, a cluster of hot blue stars surrounded by a delicate haze of reflective dust. A feast for the eye.

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2012

This picture by Thomas Sullivan was "highly commended" in the section for young photographers. It shows a bristlecone pine, which is thousands of years old, one of the oldest single organisms on Earth. In the sky is the Milky Way. He's chosen the title "Origins of Life on Earth" because we are all made of chemicals that originated in stars.

The Whirlpool galaxy could pass for artwork. If we didn't know better, we might think there was a Creator.

Beautiful picture. It certainly makes you think.