Hubble Space Telescope - NASA Science (original) (raw)

Celebrating 35 Years of Discovery

Hubble's Night Sky Observing Challenge

Celebrate 35 years of Hubble observations with our year-long stargazing adventure!

Each month in 2025, the Hubble team will release a new set of objects for you to explore. Compare your view to Hubble’s, then submit your observations to the Astronomical League to earn recognition for your achievement.

Join the celebration

Two astronauts on a space walk in front of the Hubble Space Telescope. One of Hubble's instrument bays is open.

Celebrating Servicing Mission 3A

Dec 19 to Dec 27, 2024
Originally a routine mission, SM3A became critical when a fourth of Hubble’s six gyroscopes failed, leaving the telescope locked in “safe mode.”

Read More

Thumbnail image from the Hubble Inside the Image video about protoplanetary disks. The image holds a collage of images of protoplanetary disks in Orion.

Hubble's Inside the Image: Protoplanetary Disks

In this video, Dr. Padi Boyd explains Hubble's stunning images of protoplanetary disks—dynamic, swirling structures of gas and dust surrounding young stars.

Watch on YouTube

Colorful swirls of pink, purple, orange, red, and blue against a black background. NASA Logo in the upper right corner. White text that says, "The Veil Nebula" on the top line and "Hubble's Inside the Image" on the bottom line.

Hubble's Inside the Image: The Veil Nebula

Dr. Ken Carpenter delves into the stunning details of the Veil Nebula and explains how Hubble's observations shed light on the complex processes involved in the aftermath of a star's explosive death.

Watch on YouTube

Titles in white: Shoemaker-Levy 9: Interplanetary Impact" and the NASA Meatball logo at the top of the image. The image is of Jupiter and one of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9's impact sites on the planet. We see half of Jupiter its cloud bands extending from the lower left to the upper right. The impact site looks like a dark-maroon bull's eye.

Hubble Science: Shoemaker-Levy 9 Interplanetary Impact

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 left an indelible mark on our understanding of the solar system when it collided with Jupiter. Discover the crucial role Hubble played in capturing this dramatic impact.

Watch on YouTube

The galaxy cluster Stephan's Quintet is imaged behind this video thumbnail. The cluster holds galaxies in colors of reddish-yellow and bright white.

Hubble’s Inside the Image: Stephan's Quintet

Dr. Jennifer Wiseman explores the intricate details of Stephan's Quintet and discusses how Hubble's observations continue to deepen our understanding of galactic behavior and the universe.

Watch on YouTube

Screenshots from the NASA App.

Hubble on the NASA App

NASA's free mobile application puts Hubble interactives, resources, and information at your fingertips, including an augmented reality model exclusive to the NASA app. Use this app to stay up to date on all things Hubble!

Explore More

Framed colorful lighted galaxy images hanging along a tan wall.

Hubble Posters

Downloadable versions of Hubble's iconic images ready to print and hang on your classroom, office, science center, or home walls.

Explore More

Rings of lavender, blue, and pink surround a central star. The NASA logo is in the upper-right corner. The title is in white: "Cat's Eye Nebula" on one line, "Hubble's Inside the Image" on the second line.

Hubble's Inside the Image: Cat's Eye Nebula

In this video, Dr. Ken Carpenter delves into the beauty of this cosmic jewel and discusses the critical role Hubble plays in unraveling the secrets of stellar evolution and the lifecycle of stars.

Watch on YouTube

Mosaic of the Pillars of Creation visualization model, composed of 4 rectangular strips oriented 45 degrees clockwise from vertical. Strips alternate between Hubble and Webb views of the visualization model, with each strip labeled: “Hubble” at lower right corners of first and third strips; “Webb” at upper left corners of the second and fourth strips. Webb strips have drop shadows that make it look like they are overlaid on top of larger Hubble image. Mosaic shows 3 vertical structures (pillars) of thick smoke-like material. Pillar edges are glowing, with thin wisps of material moving away into space. In Hubble strips, pillars are dark brown and opaque, on greenish blue background. In Webb strips, pillars are bright orange to brown with a distinct area of bright red at the top of middle pillar. A red star appears at the tip of a peak in the left pillar and the background is deep blue.

Pillars of Creation Visualization from Hubble and Webb Telescopes

Made famous in 1995 by Hubble, the Pillars of Creation in the heart of the Eagle Nebula have captured imaginations worldwide with their arresting, ethereal beauty.

Watch on YouTube

Illustration of various space-based and ground-based telescopes.

Hubble's Partners in Science

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has a long history of working with other observatories to explore our universe.

Read More

Background image: a field of galaxies against a black background. Text in white: Refsdal: Hubble's Inside the Image

Hubble's Inside the Image: Lensed Supernova Refsdal

Dr. Brian Welch explains Hubble's image of a massive galaxy cluster creating a gravitational lens that magnified the same supernova exploding four different times!

Watch on YouTube

Video Thumbnail text: Hubble's Inside the Image: Herbig-Haro Jet HH24. Background image holds clouds of yellow, white, gold, grey, and black. A bright jet of material runs appears to emerge from a bright cloud near image center. It runs from the cloud to the upper left and the lower right. NASA meatball logo is in the upper-right corner.

Hubble's Inside the Image: Herbig-Haro Jet HH 24

A dark, Jedi-like cloak of dust obscures a newborn star that is shooting twin jets out into space. Dr. Kenneth Carpenter explains this breathtaking image.

Watch on YouTube

Video thumbnail for a video about Hubble's clock rollover. Background holds a calendar with red numbers. The foreground holds an image of the Hubble Space Telescope. Title reads: It's Time to Change Hubble's Clock

It's Time to Change Hubble's Clock

Remember that Y2K thing a few years ago? Well, it turns out Hubble has something similar, only Hubble’s clock restarts every 6,213 days, 18 hours, 48 minutes, and 31.875 seconds, or roughly every 17 years.

Watch on YouTube

More Hubble Online Activities

See All

NASA’s Hubble Sees a Stellar Volcano

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has provided a dramatic and colorful close-up look at one of the most rambunctious stars in…

Read the Story

A bright binary star surrounded by a colorful loops of nebula on the black background of space. One loop is vertical the other is horizontal across the center of the image.

A New View of the Universe

How did a telescope become a household name and change how we look at the cosmos forever?

With over 1.5 million observations and 20,000+ papers published on its discoveries, Hubble is the most productive science mission in the history of NASA. Yet the story of Hubble’s success starts before NASA even existed. It includes adversity, human ingenuity, heroic spacewalks, risk taking, and discovery. Learn the background of one NASA’s most famous missions.

Learn More

Science, Technology, Culture: Hubble's Growing Legacy

From cultural touchstone to technological influencer, Hubble has left its mark on Earth

Hubble science has rewritten astronomy textbooks as its discoveries continually provide deeper explanations of astronomical objects and unveil new phenomena. But science isn’t the only way Hubble has impacted our world. From image detectors that are now used in the fight against breast cancer to science images that are used in Hollywood blockbuster movies, Hubble is embedded in our everyday lives and pop culture.

Learn More

Discovering the Unimagined

Hubble has not only furthered our knowledge of the known universe, it's shocked the astronomical world with never-before-seen phenomena.

When Hubble was launched, no planets around other stars had been discovered, Pluto had only one known moon, and dark energy was not even a concept. With over three decades of observations, Hubble has changed humanity’s understanding of the universe. We now know that black holes exist at the center of almost all galaxies, Jupiter’s massive storm – the Great Red spot – is now shrinking, light can echo just like sound, and the universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. Learn about Hubble’s great discoveries, understand the basics behind Hubble’s scientific capabilities, and explore its incredible images of the cosmos.

Learn More

An Observatory for the Ages

Even after three decades in the harsh environment of space, Hubble is still at the peak of its scientific capability

Designed and built in the 1970’s and 1980’s, Hubble has far surpassed its 15-year life expectancy and produced science never thought possible at the time of its launch. Learn about Hubble’s unique design, the human spaceflight missions that have extended its life, and the ground operations that keep it as productive as ever.

Learn More

NASA’s Hubble Watches Jupiter’s Great Red Spot Behave Like a Stress Ball

Astronomers have observed Jupiter’s legendary Great Red Spot (GRS), an anticyclone large enough to swallow Earth, for at least 150…

Read the Story

Eight Hubble images showing Jupiter's Great Red Spot as it changes over time from December 2023 to March 2024.

Hubble Images

Illustration of the Hubble Space Telescope (left) and the James Webb Space Telescope (right) on a grey background.

On The Shoulders of a Giant

What's the same and what's different? Compare these two NASA flagship missions.

Read More

Hubble view of an expanding halo of light around star V838 Monocerotis. Center of the ball-like cloud holds a bright star surrounded by red gas. The outer region of the "ball" is a tan color dotted with stars. Black background dotted with stars.

Hubble Science Highlights

Hubble has affected every area of astronomy. Its most notable scientific discoveries reflect the broad range of research and the breakthroughs it has achieved.

Read More

Hubble Nebula - Crab Nebula

Explore the Night Sky

Your backyard telescope and binoculars may not have the capabilities of Hubble, but you can still see amazing objects. Compare what you see with the images Hubble has taken.

Read More

Hubble Space Telescope

Hubble E-books

Investigate the mysteries of the universe with Hubble. Learn Hubble's history. E-books dive deeper into Hubble discoveries and more.

Read More