This year, the beloved Hubble Space Telescope turned 30. Launched in 1990, it has been instrumental in helping us understand the expansion of the universe and has allowed us to peer out at objects far beyond our solar system.
Now, NASA has updated its Hubble Caldwell catalog, a collection of some of the most beautiful images Hubble has captured throughout the years. The Caldwell catalog project, which began in 1995, was a list originally compiled by astronomer Sir Patrick Caldwell-Moore as an addition to the traditional Messier catalog which lists astronomical objects that can be seen in the sky. The Caldwell catalog contains 109 objects including galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters which are visible to amateur astronomers.
Recommended Videos
For astronomers who want to refer to highly detailed images of the objects they’re observing, or simply for those who love to enjoy stunning images of space, the Hubble Caldwell catalog shows all of these objects in exquisite detail, as well as a map of where in the night sky each is located.
Small exoplanet could be hot and steamy according to Hubble
One of the big topics in exoplanet research right now is not just finding exoplanets but also looking at their atmospheres. Tools like the James Webb Space Telescope are designed to allow researchers to look at the light coming from distant stars and see how it is filtered as it passes by exoplanets, allowing them to learn about the composition of their atmospheres. But scientists are also using older telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope for similar research -- and Hubble recently identified water vapor in an exoplanet atmosphere.
“This would be the first time that we can directly show through an atmospheric detection that these planets with water-rich atmospheres can actually exist around other stars,” said researcher Björn Benneke of the Université de Montréal in a statement. “This is an important step toward determining the prevalence and diversity of atmospheres on rocky planets."
Hear the otherworldly sounds of interacting galaxies with this Hubble sonification
When two different galaxies get close enough together that they begin interacting, they are sometimes given a shared name. That's the case with a newly released image from the Hubble Space Telescope that shows two galaxies, NGC 274 and NGC 275, which are together known as Arp 140. not only is there a new image of the pair, but there's also a sonification available so you can hear the image as well as see it.
This new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image showcases a resplendent pair of galaxies known as Arp 140. NASA/ESA/R. Foley (University of California - Santa Cruz)/Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Hubble captures an exceptionally luminous supernova site
This week's image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows the aftermath of an epic explosion in space caused by the death of a massive star.
Some of the most dramatic events in the cosmos are supernovas, when a massive star runs out of fuel to fuse -- first running out of hydrogen, then helium, then burning through heavier elements -- and eventually can no longer sustain the outward pressure from heat caused by this fusion. When that happens, the star collapses suddenly into a dense core, and its outer layers are thrown off in a tremendous explosion called a Type II supernova.