Photography site Capture the Atlas has published the seventh edition of its Galaxy Photography of the Year collection.

The Milky Way is about 50,000 light years across and contains more than 100 billion stars. Milky Way season runs from February to October in the northern hemisphere and from January to November in the southern hemisphere. The best time to view and photograph the Milky Way is usually between May and June, when visibility is at its maximum in both hemispheres – away from light-polluted areas like cities and preferably high up in the sky.

Capture The Atlas  selected the winners from 5,000 entries from around the world. Here are the 15 best photos of the Milky Way.

“LIGHTNING LAKE” – TOM RAE

  • Aoraki, Mount Cook National Park, New Zealand

“THE LIONS DEN” – LORENZO RANIERI TENTI

  • Atacama Desert, Chile

“BLUE LAGOON UNDER THE STARS” – YURI BELETSKY

  • Atacama Desert, Chile

“ATMOSPHERIC FIREWORKS” – JULIEN LOOTEN

  • Dordogne, France

“BLUFF HUT” – RACHEL ROBERTS

  • Mungo River Valley, West Coast, New Zealand

“DESERT BLOOM” – MARCIN ZAJAC

  • Goblin Valley State Park, Utah

“CARADHRAS – MILKY WAY ARCH ABOVE VRSIC PASS” – MATEJ MLAKAR

  • Vrsic Pass, Slovenia

“BLOOMING BOTTLE TREE” – ROSITSA DIMITROVA

  • Socotra island, Yemen

“MUNGO DREAMTIME” – JOHN RUTTER

  • Mungo National Park, NSW, Australia

“THE VANITY OF LIFE” – MIHAIL MINKOV

  • Wadi Rum Desert, Jordan

“LUPINE DREAMS” – BRANDT RYDER

  • Eastern Sierra, California

“A CLEAR WELCOME” – FRANCESCO DALL’OLMO

  • Laguna de los Tres, Patagonia, Argentina

“STARRY HOODOO WONDERLAND” – STEPHANIE THI

  • Kanab, Utah, USA

“STARLIGHT THERAPY” – KAVAN CHAY

  • Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park, New Zealand

“ROAD TO WINTER PARADISE” – ANDREA CURZI

  • Passo Giau, Italy