HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE- A WONDER!!!

 The Hubble Space Telescope is telescope in space. It was launched by NASA in the year 1990 to explore and take pictures of the stars and galaxies.  It is named after the American Astronomer Edwin Hubble and has a 94 inch diameter lens. It cost about USD 5 billion at the time of its launch. It has already completed 30 years of service and is likely to be operational till the year 2030-40. It cost NASA USD 5 billion in 1990 and if built today and deployed its cost would be about USD 20 billion. Subsequently further expensive instrumentation was added by the space missions later. It orbits the earth 547 Km away in space. It has so far made more than a million observations.

Now why does one require a Telescope in space?  It is stationed far above the clouds, beyond light pollution and atmospheric distortions. 5 space missions had reached the Hubble Telescope over the 30 years of its operation which maintained and upgraded its instruments. Hubble Telescopes range extends from Ultraviolet through the Visible and into the near Infrared. This has allowed the telescope to deliver stunning images of stars and galaxies that have inspired people all over the world and changed our understanding of the Universe. Over 18,000 peer reviewed scientific papers have been published on its discoveries.

The Hubble Telescope has changed our understanding of the Cosmos forever by its spectacular path breaking discoveries. It takes pictures of stars and galaxies at huge distances. Actually it takes monochromatic or black & white pics which are later colored as per the elements present and their luminosity by scientists after estimations.   

Following are a few illustrations of Hubble Telescope discoveries: As one sees them, one understands the insignificance of man all the more. One feels eerie to see the “Pillars of Creation” as it is called which is a cloud of dust and gas where innumerable new stars are forming and is 5 light years across. This is considered the most popular photograph taken by the Hubble Telescope. This was how our sun as one of the stars originally formed about 460 crore years ago.  

“PILLARS OF CREATION” IN THE EAGLE NEBULA IN THE CONSTELLATION OF SERPENS. 7000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM THE EARTH. THIS IS A NEBULA MADE OF GAS AND DUST WHERE THOUSANDS OF NEW STARS ARE FORMING. THE LENGTH OF THAT CLOUD IS 5 LIGHT YEARS WHICH IS MORE THAN THE DISTANCE TO THE NEAREST STAR TO US.

HERBIG HARO 901 IS A MASSIVE PILLAR OF GAS AND DUST IN THE CARINA NEBULA, A HUGE STAR FORMATING REGION IN OUR GALAXY SEVERAL LIGHT YEARS ACROSS. 7500 LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM US. IT CONTAINS AFEW MASSIVE YOUNG STARS. THIS PIC IS FAMOUSLY KNOWN AS “MYSTIC MOUNTAIN” . HERBIG HARO OBJECTS ARE BRIGHT PATCHES OF GAS AND MATTER ASSOCIATED WITH NEWBORN STARS.

SPIRAL GALAXY NGC 691-LOCATED 120 MILLION LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH. IT IS BIGGER THAN OUR GALAXY AND IS 130,000 LIGHT YEARS ACROSS COMPARED TO 100,000 LIGHT YEARS FOR MILKY WAY.  

    STAR CLUSTER NGC 330-IN THE SMALLER MAGELANNIC CLOUD- THIS IS A CLUSTER OF STARS 182000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY.

SPIRAL GALAXY NGC 3254-LOCATD 118 MILLION LIGHT YEARS AWAY IN THE CONSTELLATION OF LEO MINOR. THIS IS A “SEYFERT GALAXY” WHICH HAS AN EXTREMELY ACTIVE CORE WHICH RELEASES AS MUCH NENERGY AS THE REST OF THE GALAXY TOGETHER. SUCH GALAXIES HAVE SUPER MASSIVE BLACKHOLES AT THE CENTER.  

 STAR CLUSTER NGC 330-IN THE SMALLER MAGELLANIC CLOUD- THIS IS A CLUSTER OF STARS 182000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY.

SPIRAL GALAXY NGC 2276 IS A GALAXY IN THE CONSTELLATION OF CEPHEUS. LIES 120 MILLION LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM US.

 GALAXY CLUSTER ACO S 295. THIS IS A CLUSTER OF GALAXIES (AND NOT STARS) LOCATED AN ASTOUNDING 3.5 BILLION LIGHT YEARS AWAY. THE IMAGE OF THE CLUSTER IS PEPPERED WITH STARS IN THE FOREGROUD. THE CLUSTER HAS A MASS THAT IS THOUSANDS OF TIMES MORE THAN THE MILKY WAY.

GLOBULAR CLUSTER NGC 6380- STAR CLUSTER IN THE CONSTELLATION OF SCORPIO. DISTANCE 35500 LIGHT YEARS. GLOBULAR CLUSTERS ARE A GROUP OF STARS IN SPHERICAL SHAPE HELD TOGETHER BY GRAVITY. THE VERY BRIGHT STAR ON THE TOP LEFT IS HD159073 WHICH IS ONLY 4000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM THE EARTH IN FRONT OF THE GALAXY.

DIAMOND NECKLACE-INTERCATION OF 2  DOOMED STARS. PN G054.2-03.4 ALso KNOWN AS NECKLACE NEBULA LOCATED 15000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY FROM US. FORMED BY TWO CLOSELY ORBITING SUNLIKE STARS. WHEN ONE OF THE TWO STARS AGED AND EXPANDED THE OTHER SMALLER ORBITED IT. THE MASSIVE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN THE TWO PROXIMATE STARS HAVE GIVEN RISE TO THE DIAMOND EFFECT.