Raise a glass to Hubble!

On the 24th April 1990 the Hubble Space Telescope was launched from the Kennedy Space Center and to mark the orbiting observatory’s 20th anniversary they’ve released this suitably stunning image – there’s a Hubblecast video outlining the telescope’s history here. And the BBC have put together a wondrous Hubble 20th anniversary audio-slideshow with Professor Alec Boksenberg.

Hubblecast gets in on the act with a tribute to the telescope’s discoveries in those 20 years.

And here’s an approximated 3-D view into a giant “mountain” of cool hydrogen and dust in the Carina Nebula based on Hubble images released for the 20th Anniversary – via NASAexplorer.

The Hubble website hosts a video of astronomers who have worked on the Hubble Space Telescope over the past 20 years talk about their discoveries.

Although you might want to add a caveat to some of the discussions on ‘dark’ matter and energy…

And the BBC’s Spaceman, Jonathan Amos, has a great post on Hubble’s past and future role.  And that of the telescopes to come.

I think it’s probably true to say the old telescope has exceeded everyone’s expectations. Raise a glass.

Indeed.

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