Winner of the Main Category: Shuchang Dong and Geshuang Chen, The Glorious Ring. (Geshuang Chen / Shuchang Dong via SWNS)
By Lauren Beavis
This stunning photo of a full-circle rainbow is among the winners from a world weather photography competition.
The Royal Meteorological Society has announced the winners of this year’s Standard Chartered Weather Photographer of the Year Competition, which is celebrating its 10th year.
The amazing photo of a ‘complete circular rainbow’ awarded Geshuang Chen and Shuchang Dong the winner, and a £5,000 cash prize.
Chinese engineer and astronomy photographer Geshuang Chen, who captured the photo titled ‘The Gorgeous Ring’, said: “It was drizzling on Lugu Lake, in China’s Yunnan Province.
“I flew my drone to a height of 500 metres, passed through the rain curtain, with my lens facing away from the sun, and captured a complete circular rainbow, which was a ring given by the sun to the lake.”
Eunice III was taken from a sheltered place out of the reach of a storm in the UK. (Jadwiga Piasecka via SWNS)
The judges found this image particularly special, not just because it captured a rare view of a complete rainbow, but also a moment of ‘perfect alignment’, with the small island framed precisely at its centre.
Another powerful image, titled ‘Eunice III’, was taken from a sheltered place out of reach of the storm in Newhaven, on the south coast of the UK, where winds were gusting at over 80 miles per hour.
Jadwiga Piasecka, from the UK, won the main Category Runner Up award for the shot.
She said: “From my vantage point, I watched enormous waves battling against the sea wall, sending dramatic sprays of water high into the air, highlighting just how immense the storm’s fury truly was”.
Lukáš Gallo, from Czech Republic, won third place for their photo ‘Sky Surfing’ – which shows a perfectly timed shot of rare ‘wave’, or fluctus: clouds which are formed when there is a sharp difference in wind speed or direction between two layers of air, similar to the way wind can whip up waves on the surface of the sea.
Sky Surfing shows a perfectly timed shot of rare wave-shaped clouds. (Lukáš Gallo via SWNS)
The result is a spectacular series of cloud curls that look like breaking ocean waves, as well as a clear visual warning of turbulence.
Another stunning image captures the urgent feeling of being caught in a sudden downpour – with the motion blur of both the fishermen and the rain make the viewer feel part of the action, caught in the sudden intensity of a tropical storm.
The Standard Chartered Mobile Weather Photographer of the Year was awarded to Kyaw Zay Yar Lin, from Myanmar, with this photograph titled ‘Fishing in the Raining Season’.
Fishing in the rainy season. (Kyaw Zay Yar Lin via SWNS)
Myanmar’s monsoon climate brings heavy seasonal rains, and fishing remains a vital livelihood even during storms like this.
In the Climate category, created to highlight the connection between weather patterns and the broader impacts of climate change, a spiralling column of dust and wind dominates the Texas Plains in the winning striking image of a tornado.
Captured by photographer Jonah Lange on 25 April 2025 near Sudan, Texas, USA, he said: “This tornado picked up tons of dust as it landed.
“I peered on from the south side as it moved slowly off to the east.
“West Texas is known for dust … as shown here!”
The tornado churns with intense energy, its collar cloud clearly visible as it pulls red soil into the air.
A smaller satellite vortex dances nearby, while an impressive dark hail core looms behind the spiral. On the day this image was taken, hailstones up to three inches (7.6 cm) in diameter were reported.
West Texas Special. (Jonah Lange via SWNS)
Judge Mette Lampcov said, “In Texas, this is a very real image. You feel the power of weather and nature impacting the land.”
Judge and meteorologist Phillipa Drew said, “Everything is becoming more extreme.
“This is a good example of an extreme case.
“It highlights the vastness of weather.
“We don’t stand much of a chance against that.”
Climate change is amplifying extremes, turning open landscapes into arenas for ever more volatile and destructive weather.
Another powerful photo shows two men riding through a road strewn with debris, heading home to what remains after Typhoon Rai (locally named Odette) tore across Siargao Island, Philippines, in December 2021.
Photographer Maria del Pilar Trigo Bonnin took the shot from the back of another motorbike as they made their way through the devastation.
Heading Home. (Maria del Pilar Trigo Bonnin via SWNS)
Maria said: “I handheld the camera and captured the moment quickly the stillness, the chaos, and the long shadows told the story of what we had just lived through.”
Typhoon Rai struck as a Category five storm, with winds exceeding 250 km/h.
It rapidly intensified over warm ocean waters before landfall, a pattern that is becoming more common with climate change. For many in Siargao, the storm was unlike anything they had seen in decades.
Another image shows a dirt track cutting through the countryside in OžÄany, Slovakia, drawing the eye towards a sky heavy with dark, swirling clouds.
In the middle of the path, a mountain bike lies still, and its rider was momentarily grounded by the sight ahead.
Photographer Tamás Kusza, who was awarded the runner-up of the mobile category, said: “I have always been drawn to storms.
Path to the heart of the storm. (Tamás Kusza via SWNS)
“I love watching the sky darken, the clouds descend, and the majestic power of nature slowly unfold.
“Whenever I can, I hop on my bike and head for the border, where the sky and the earth meet, and where storms are born.
“That day I knew a special moment was coming. I rode the dirt road far enough until I had to stop: the sight was almost paralysing.
“I put my bike down and took out my camera. I stood there, facing the heart of the storm, where the power of nature and my own courage met.
“It was the moment before the silence. The world silently watched my steps. Would I stay and capture the storm, or turn back? But I knew: I was always heading toward the storm.”
Fast-moving summer storms like this are common in central Europe, often arriving with torrential rain, high winds and lightning.
Chosen from over 4,000 images received from both amateur and professional photographers from 84 countries, the judges’ winners were chosen by an international panel of experts from the fields of weather and climate, photography and journalism, including members of the ITV Weather team.