The folks at the Chandra X-Ray Observatory recently held a contest on their web site, allowing viewers to vote for their favorite Chandra imagery spanning the telescope’s observations to date. (Even though the voting has officially ended, you can still make your picks if you’re so inclined.) Of the 48 nominees, here’s the final outcome:

The third place finish went to the 2006 image of planetary nebula Mz 3:

Second place went to supernova remnant E0102-72.3, imaged back in 2000:

Finishing first in the overall voting — none other than the Cat’s Eye Nebula, NGC 6543:

Since (as I’ve noted elsewhere since creating this site) this is my favorite astrophoto of all time, I must say that the participants in this contest have prominently displayed their impeccable taste. It’s hard to go wrong though; each of the selections is rather stunning. If you’d like to share their beauty with friends, make use of the e-card feature available on the site.