The end of childhood is when things cease to astonish us.
—Eugene Ionesco
AN "ORDINARY" GALAXY SUCH AS OUR OWN MILKY WAY contains about 100 billion stars. The beautiful Sombrero Galaxy in this picture holds about 800 billion! It is so huge (50,000 light-years across) that the folks at NASA had to stich together six Hubble photos just to make this one image.
Since its launch in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has made it possible for Earthlings to stroll around the farthest reaches of the universe with a really powerful camera in hand. What else can we all keep saying but "Wow, look at that!" as scientists snap yet another mind-altering photo? Visit the Hubble Site to:
- access a huge gallery of amazing images
- sign up for Inbox Astronomy, their email newsletter highlighting the latest Hubble photos & news
- learn how you can help save the Hubble project from inpending budget cuts, and
- find out more about Hubble: Galaxies Across Space & Time, a new short film coming soon to an IMAX theater near you.
Other Information
- "Death Sentence for the Hubble?" February 13, 2005. This New York Times editiorial spells out some of the political realities affecting the continuation of the Hubble Mission.
