The Whirlpool Galaxy M51 silhouettes a researcher during this week’s celebration of the Hubble Space Telescope.
Bruce
Margon, associate director for science for the Space Telescope Science
Institute in charge of Hubble, walks before an image of the M51 during an
unveiling ceremony at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.
The April 25
celebration saw the debut of two new images taken by Hubble as part of the
hardy telescope’s 15th anniversary.
Launched on
April 24, 1990, Hubble has been an immeasurable asset for astronomers seeking
to look deep into the universe’s past. The telescope, a joint project between NASA and the European Space Agency, has also served as gateway for the
public to see the stars from an unprecedented view.
Astronauts
have visited Hubble four times, first to service its initial fuzzy vision, then
later to upgrade or maintain its instruments. If left unserviced, the telescope - now pitted with impacts from micrometeorites - should wear itself out by 2007.
-- SPACE.com Staff
Credit: NASA/Renee Bouchard
