Show I 0 2 o D 0 o I o j X j 0 l. l 0 J Iio Ii X o i 1 j 0 m L La t. t c CO 7 o 0 m II a D CO COCO o Q CO m HI w HICO Q CO m z New Hubble Space Telescope photos of the Whirlpool Galaxy are among the largest and sharpest Images the telescope has yielded The Hubble is one of the most important scientific instruments ever built 15 Years of Exploration Guy Gugliotta The Washington Post They named it after American astronomer Edwin Hubble who confirmed the theory of an expanding universe universe universe uni uni- verse and the Hubble Space Telescope the Telescope the Hubble as asit asit asit it is known to countless admirers has admirers has done him proud Monday the Hubble marked its anniversary in orbit a remarkable period in which it has helped fix the age of the universe at billion years confirmed the presence of black holes in inthe inthe inthe the middle of galaxies discovered discovered discovered dis dis- dis- dis covered dust disks that lead to the formation of planets around young stars taken snapshots of the universe shortly after it was formed in inthe inthe inthe the Big Bang determined the atmospheric composition of a planet orbiting another star and made crucial contributions contributions contributions contri contri- to the study of the dark energy responsible for accelerating the expansion expansion expansion sion of the universe Its scientific findings and images images of of stars planets nebulae galaxies quasars brown dwarfs supernovae and other cosmic exotica exotica- have astounded astronomers and amateur stargazers alike More than scientific papers have been produced from Hubble research making making making mak mak- ing the telescope one of the most important scientific instruments ever built Launched from the space shuttle Discovery on April 24 1990 Hubble orbits the Earth at an altitude of miles It weighs pounds and stands feet tall tail about the size of a large school bus After maintaining the telescope telescope telescope tele tele- scope and upgrading it periodically periodically periodically peri peri- with new instruments instruments instruments ments since its launch NASA in 2004 canceled Hubble's fifth shuttle servicing servicing servicing ing mission The decision is now being reviewed but if it is not reversed the telescopes telescope's gyros or batteries will give giveout giveout giveout out sometime after 2007 and Hubble will shut down To see Hubble images visit |