A stunning photograph of a complete rainbow forming a perfect circle above a Chinese lake has been crowned the Weather Photographer of the Year 2025. Chinese photographer and engineer Geshuang Chen, working alongside Shuchang Dong, captured this rare meteorological phenomenon from 500 meters altitude above Lake Lugu in China's Yunnan Province using a drone.

"It was like a ring drawn by the sun on the lake," said Chen, who won the grand prize of the 2025 Standard Chartered Weather Photographer of the Year competition organized by the Royal Meteorological Society. The complete rainbow, which forms a perfect circle that the human eye can never see from ground level, represents an extremely rare alignment of weather conditions suspended between rain and sunshine.

For the tenth edition of this prestigious competition, more than 4,000 images from 84 countries were submitted. British photographer Jadwiga Piasecka secured second place with "Eunice III," capturing the giant waves and fury of Storm Eunice at Newhaven on England's south coast, where winds exceeded 130 km/h and the ocean displayed its raw power. Czech photographer Lukáš Gallo claimed third place and the public's favorite award for "Sky Surfing," a dazzling image of wave-like Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds surfing above the fields of Bohemia.

In the Mobile category, Burmese photographer Kyaw Zay Yar Lin was recognized for "Fishing in the Raining Season," showing two fishermen continuing their work under torrential rain on Lake Inle. Slovak photographer Tamás Kusza won second place in this category with "Path to the Heart of the Storm," capturing a suspended moment before lightning strikes.

The Young Weather Photographer of the Year 2025 award went to 15-year-old Adrian Cruz from the United States, who immortalized a flaming pink storm from an airplane between Washington DC and Orlando in his photograph titled "Sky in Eruption." Ellen Ross, also from the United States, took second place in the youth category with her image of a wall of clouds advancing over Lake Michigan.

A new Climate Award was introduced this year to connect weather photography with global environmental changes. American photographer Jonah Lange won this category with "West Texas Special," featuring a red tornado rising from the dust of the Texas plains. Philippine photographer Maria del Pilar Trigo Bonnin received an honorable mention for "Heading Home," a poignant image of two men returning to their devastated village after Typhoon Rai.

Additional notable entries included Himadri Bhuyan from India, whose photograph of ice fractals on a frozen lake in Arunachal Pradesh tells the story of climate disruption in the Himalayan freeze-thaw cycles. British photographer Shaun Mills captured third place in the public's favorite category with his image from Overstrand, where the sea explodes against sea walls, freezing the storm in a dance of foam.

"These images show both the beauty and gravity of our changing world," emphasized Liz Bentley, Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society. Marisa Drew from Standard Chartered Bank added, "They remind us of the necessity to act, adapt, and resist." The competition continues to highlight the incredible power and beauty of weather phenomena while drawing attention to the urgent climate challenges facing our planet.