On April 24, 1990, the Space Shuttle Discovery released a marvel into low-Earth orbit: the Hubble Space Telescope. Named after the pioneering astronomer Edwin Hubble, this orbital observatory has since transformed our understanding of the universe. Now, 35 years later, NASA commemorates Hubble’s enduring legacy with the release of four breathtaking images that encapsulate its journey through the stars.
Hubble’s enduring legacy
Since its deployment in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has orbited Earth more than 1.5 million times and returned over 1.5 million observations of more than 50,000 celestial objects. Its revolutionary data has contributed to some of the most significant astronomical discoveries of the modern era — from measuring the rate of cosmic expansion to observing the deepest galaxies ever seen.
One of Hubble’s greatest triumphs was providing evidence for the accelerating expansion of the universe, which led to the discovery of dark energy and earned the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics. It has studied planets inside and outside our solar system, peered into black holes, tracked comet collisions, and produced some of the most iconic images of our cosmos, including the Pillars of Creation and the Hubble Ultra Deep Field.
Hubble’s longevity is not just a story of robust engineering but of international cooperation. Jointly operated by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), and maintained by periodic servicing missions by NASA astronauts (five in total), Hubble remains a monument to scientific collaboration and perseverance. Its instruments have been upgraded and repaired in space, allowing it to keep up with, and in many cases surpass, modern observatories.
Mars in ultraviolet: The red planet’s frosty facade
In December 2024, as Mars approached opposition, Hubble captured a rare ultraviolet image of our neighboring planet. This composite, taken between December 28 and 30, reveals thin water-ice clouds drifting over the Martian surface, giving the planet a surreal bluish hue. At approximately 61 million miles from Earth, this vantage point offers a unique perspective on Martian atmospheric conditions, showcasing Hubble’s capability to study planetary weather patterns beyond our own.
NGC 2899: The moth-shaped nebula
Venturing beyond our solar system, Hubble turned its gaze to NGC 2899, a planetary nebula located in the southern sky. This vibrant, moth-shaped structure is the result of a dying white dwarf star expelling its outer layers, creating a colorful display of ionized gas. The intricate patterns and vivid hues captured in this image highlight the complex processes involved in stellar evolution and death. Though rarely imaged with such clarity, planetary nebulae like NGC 2899 offer crucial insights into the fate of stars similar to our Sun.
The Rosette nebula: A stellar nursery
Hubble’s lens also focused on a portion of the Rosette Nebula, a vast star-forming region approximately 5,200 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. This image reveals dark clouds of hydrogen gas spewing into space, where dense knots of material collapse to form new stars. These regions, also known as Bok globules, represent the raw building blocks of stellar birth. The Rosette Nebula’s intricate structures and glowing gases help astronomers understand the life cycle of stars and the dynamics of the interstellar medium.
NGC 5335: The flocculent spiral galaxy
Completing the anniversary set is NGC 5335, a flocculent spiral galaxy located about 130 million light-years away. Unlike classic spirals with well-defined arms, flocculent spirals have patchy, discontinuous arms — more like cotton balls than pinwheels. Captured by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3, this image showcases the galaxy’s fluffy appearance and prominent central bar, which may influence its star formation patterns. Galaxies like NGC 5335 provide valuable context for understanding the diversity and evolution of galactic structures.
The Hubble-Webb continuum
With the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) now operational, the two telescopes offer a powerful, complementary view of the universe. While Webb excels in the infrared, peering through dust and into the earliest epochs of time, Hubble remains unmatched in the visible and ultraviolet spectrum. Together, they are unraveling the mysteries of galaxy formation, stellar birth, and even the atmospheres of exoplanets.
Hubble’s continuing mission complements Webb’s strengths, proving that this 35-year-old workhorse still has plenty to offer. Many scientific campaigns are designed to use data from both telescopes to provide a more complete picture of celestial phenomena.
Looking forward, looking up
As Hubble celebrates its 35th anniversary, it continues to inspire. These four new images — Mars in shimmering ultraviolet, the glowing wings of NGC 2899, the turbulent clouds of the Rosette Nebula, and the soft swirls of NGC 5335 — are not just visual feasts. They are monuments to human ingenuity, tools of scientific progress, and invitations to curiosity.
Hubble’s legacy is more than its data or discoveries. It lies in how it reshaped our relationship with the cosmos, making space exploration not just the domain of scientists and astronauts but also of artists, educators, students, and dreamers. With every orbit, Hubble continues to ask: What else is out there? And how far can our vision reach?
Whether it’s a glimpse of a galaxy 10 billion light-years away or a frosty cloud on a neighboring world, Hubble’s view of the universe reminds us that even from 547 kilometers above Earth, the sky is not the limit.
High-resolution anniversary images and more on Hubble’s legacy can be found here.
Clear skies!
