LONDON, Oct. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Royal Meteorological Society has announced the winners of this year's Standard Chartered Weather Photographer of the Year Competition, chosen by a panel of judges with expertise in meteorology, photography and journalism.

In addition, the public voted online for the 'Public Favourite'.

©Wang Xin, ‘Sprites Dancing in the Dark Night’, Winner, Standard Chartered Weather Photographer of the Year 2024

The Winner of Standard Chartered Weather Photographer of the Year Title Prize is Wang Xin of China, for 'Sprites Dancing in the Dark Night', a magnificent example of red sprite lightning, which only lasts a few milliseconds, requiring patience and skill to photograph.  Xin wins a £5000 prize.

Main Title Runner Up, is Andy Gray, from the UK, whose image, 'Hoarfrost Heaven', depicts spectacular hoarfrost in the Peak District. Andy's prize is £2500. Third place goes to Jamie Russell for 'Evening Shower over the Needles', showing a downpour and rainbow over the Isle of Wight.

The Winner of Standard Chartered Smartphone Weather Photographer of the Year is Nur Syaireen Natasya Binti Azaharin of Malaysia, for 'Volcanoes', depicting subtle weather features amongst smoking volcanoes in East Java, Indonesia.

Smartphone runner up was Lesley Hellgeth of the US, with 'African Dust over Athens', capturing Saharan dust surrounding the Parthenon in Athens.  Smartphone Third Place is awarded to Peter Reinold from the US, who captured 'Circular Rainbow' from his aeroplane seat.

The Winner of Standard Chartered Young Weather Photographer of the Year for under-18s is Austrian Angelina Widmann.  'Rain Aria' shows an opera singer singing through a downpour during an open-air opera performance. Second Place goes to Ellis Skelton for 'Saturated Earth and Sky's Promise'. Third Place in the Young category is awarded to Lincoln Wheelwright from the US for 'Fire and Ice', a dramatic shot of a thunderstorm rolling in.

The Standard Chartered Climate Award

New to this year's competition is the Standard Chartered Climate Award. The winner is Gerson Turelly of Brazil. Gerson wins a prize of £1000 for his image, 'Rowing', which shows a kayaker attempting to rescue stranded people in Porto Alegre, Brazil, during the devastating floods of Spring 2024, 'Rowing' also wins the title of Public Favourite, following a public vote on the Royal Meteorological Society website.

The 2024 competition saw an increase in entries raising awareness of the impact of climate change on our weather patterns around the world.

View the Winners' Gallery.

Read Notes to Editors.   

Download high-res or low-res images, captions and image copyright attribution here.