Hubble celebrates 35th year in orbit (Press Release)

[Jacson6]

https://esahubble.org/news/heic2505/

In celebration of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s 35 years in Earth orbit, an assortment of compelling images have been released today that were recently taken by Hubble. This stretches from the planet Mars to dramatic images of stellar birth and death, to a magnificent neighbouring galaxy. After over three decades of perusing the restless universe, Hubble remains a household word as the most well-recognized telescope in scientific history.

Astronomers knew that placing a telescope above Earth’s blurry atmosphere would allow for them to behold the Universe like never before. Hubble’s view would be ten times sharper than conventional ground-based telescopes of the time. Its high sensitivity would uncover objects more than one-billionth the brightness of the faintest stars seen by the human eye. Unfiltered by Earth's atmosphere, its broad wavelength coverage would stretch from ultraviolet to near-infrared light. Glorious celestial wonders would come into focus. Moreover, Hubble would be an audacious leap forward in human imagination, engineering prowess, and boundless curiosity.

Before Hubble, no generation ever had access to unimaginably vibrant views of space, stretching almost all the way back to almost the beginning of time. For most of history, the complexity and extent of the vast cosmos was left largely to human imagination. But Hubble entered the final sprint in the race to the edge of the visible Universe. In the early 1920s, the telescope’s namesake, astronomer Edwin Hubble, started this marathon with the discovery of galaxies outside of our Milky Way.

Hubble today is at the peak of its scientific return thanks to the dedication, perseverance and skills of engineers, scientists and mission operators. Astronaut shuttle crews gallantly chased and rendezvoused with Hubble on five servicing missions from 1993 to 2009. The astronauts, including ESA astronauts on two of the servicing missions, upgraded Hubble's cameras, computers and other support systems.

[lastlib]

1. What a monumental achievement it has been!

It has launched a genuine revolution in astronomy and related fields, and its deep-field photographs of the cosmos has wrought a profound change, not only in our cosmology, but in our philosphy and our understanding of our place in the universe. Congratulations and thanks to Hubble, and to all who made it possible!

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[oasis]

2. Interesting story. We learn every day!