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Celebrating Hubble's 30th

Aniversary.

The NASA Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA. AURA’s Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations.

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Stephan's Quintet: A Multi-wavelength Exploration

Computer Representation of the Stellar Motions in the Core of M4 Hundreds of small white blobs and tiny yellow dots on a black background.

WE ARE CELEBRATING 30'S YEAR ANIVERSARY OF HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE.

celebrating 30 Years of Discovery

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Orbiting high above the Earth, the Hubble Space Telescope has a clear view of the universe free from the blurring and absorbing effects of the atmosphere. In addition to observing visible and near-infrared light, Hubble detects ultraviolet light, which is absorbed by the atmosphere and visible only from space. The telescope has beamed hundreds of thousands of celestial images back to Earth during its time in space. Orbiting high above the Earth, the Hubble Space Telescope has a clear view of the universe free from the blurring and absorbing effects of the atmosphere. In addition to observing visible and near-infrared light, Hubble detects ultraviolet light, which is absorbed by the atmosphere and visible only from space. The telescope has beamed hundreds of thousands of celestial images back to Earth during its time in spac

Hubble is a Cassegrain reflector telescope. Light from celestial objects travels down a tube, is collected by a bowl-like, inwardly curved primary mirror and reflected toward a smaller, dome-shaped, outwardly curved secondary mirror. The secondary mirror bounces the light back to the primary mirror and through a hole in its center. The light is focused on a small area called the focal plane, where it is picked up by its various science instruments. Hubble is a Cassegrain reflector telescope. Light from celestial objects travels down a tube, is collected by a bowl-like, inwardly curved primary mirror and reflected toward a smaller, dome-shaped, outwardly curved secondary mirror. The secondary mirror bounces the light back to the primary mirror and through a hole in its center. The light is focused on a small area called the focal plane, where it is picked up by its various science instruments.

About the Hubble Space Telescope

Orbiting high above the Earth, the Hubble Space Telescope has a clear view of the universe free from the blurring and absorbing effects of the atmosphere. In addition to observing visible and near-infrared light, Hubble detects ultraviolet light, which is absorbed by the atmosphere and visible only from space. The telescope has beamed hundreds of thousands of celestial images back to Earth during its time in space.


Hubble is a Cassegrain reflector telescope. Light from celestial objects travels down a tube, is collected by a bowl-like, inwardly curved primary mirror and reflected toward a smaller, dome-shaped, outwardly curved secondary mirror. The secondary mirror bounces the light back to the primary mirror and through a hole in its center. The light is focused on a small area called the focal plane, where it is picked up by its various science instruments.

hubble
Hubble’s 1,825 pound, 7.8-foot (2.4-meter) diameter primary mirror collects light from its astronomical target and reflects it to a 12-inch (0.3-meter) diameter secondary mirror located in the optical tube. This secondary mirror then reflects the light through a hole in the primary mirror to form an image at the telescope’s focal plane. There it is intercepted by pick-off mirrors that pass it into the scientific instruments. Hubble’s mirrors are made of ultra-low expansion glass kept at a “room temperature” of about 70°F (21°C) to avoid warping. The reflecting surfaces are coated with a 3/1,000,000-inch layer of pure aluminum and protected by a 1/1000,000-inch layer of magnesium fluoride that also makes the mirror more reflective to ultraviolet light.


Hubble's current suite of instruments includes the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS), Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) and Fine Guidance Sensors (FGS).

International Partners

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD., manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, MD., conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., in Washington, DC.

As lead agency, NASA has overall responsibility for the Hubble Space Telescope. ESA’s contributions to HST include among other things, the Faint Object Camera, the first two solar wings that powered the spacecraft and a team of space scientists and engineers at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, MD. Europe's contribution to HST entitles European astronomers to 15% of the telescope's observing time.

About the Space Telescope
Science Institute

The mission of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) is to help humanity explore the universe with advanced space telescopes and ever-growing data archives. STScI is a multi-mission science operations center for NASA’s flagship observatories and a world-class astronomical research center.
Established in 1981, the institute has developed and executed the science and mission operations for the Hubble Space Telescope since its launch in 1990 and will conduct the science and mission operations for the James Webb Space Telescope. The institute will also be the science operations center for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, formerly known as the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, launching in the mid-2020s.
The institute also supports other astronomy programs and its science staff conducts world-class scientific research. STScI is the home of the Barbara A. Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST), where the data of over 20 astronomical missions is curated and disseminated for use by the global astronomy community. The institute brings astrophysics to the public through internationally recognized news, education, and public outreach programs.
The institute is located on the campus of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) for NASA.
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The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, is home to the science programs of the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, and the data archives of other NASA missions. CREDIT: Zoltan G. Levay.

About Communications and
Outreac

Public outreach is at the heart of STScI’s mission. The communications and outreach team finds innovative ways to share complex scientific discoveries with the public. An interdisciplinary group of communications professionals and scientists works together to prepare and disseminate news items, as well as posters, exhibits, and other informal education products in print and electronic formats.

HubbleSite.org is produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute's Office of Public Outreach (OPO).
The NASA Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA. AURA’s Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations.
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