Among other accomplishments, Hubble has discovered dark energy, shown that nebulas are unique - like snowflakes, no two are alike, and helped astronomers determine a precise age for the universe (it’s about 13 to 14 billion years old – apparently narrowing down to a billion year range is precise in astronomy).
Maybe most important are the stunning visuals that Hubble has sent home – it’s hard not to be impressed with the majesty of our universe.
Following are the first 3 of the top 10 photos taken by Hubble as voted by astronomers in November 2006. See the remainder here and check out the HubbleSite for more information and a complete gallery of amazing pictures.
The Sombrero Galaxy - 28 million light years from Earth - was voted best picture taken by the Hubble telescope. The dimensions of the galaxy, officially called M104, are as spectacular as its appearance. It has 800 billion suns and is 50,000 light years across.
The Ant Nebula, a cloud of dust and gas whose technical name is Mz3, resembles an ant when observed using ground-based telescopes. The nebula lies within our galaxy between 3,000 and 6,000 light years from earth.
In third place is Nebula NGC 2392, called 'Eskimo' because it looks like a face surrounded by a furry hood. The hood is, in fact, a ring of comet-shaped objects flying away from a dying star. Eskimo is 5,000 light years from Earth.Btw, the beautiful colors in these photos are not natural. Per the FAQ section of the site:
The images are…downloaded as black and white, and color is added for a number of different reasons – for example, to show the dispersion detail of chemical elements and highlight features so subdued that the human eye cannot see them.Wouldn’t that be a cool job – deciding what space should look like?
Thanks to MJ for forwarding an email with the photos.
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