Exploring Space: Images from NASA

Hubble’s images sometimes appear to be missing part  of the picture. That’s because one of its instruments -  the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 -  records images with four cameras.  One of those four cameras (the planetary camera) magnifies what it sees,  while the other three (the wide field cameras) do not.

When a picture is created (by assembling the four sections from the four cameras), scientists reduce the magnified (detailed) area so it matches the other three sections. It’s rather like zooming-in on one area of an object - so we can better study it - and then zooming-out if we want to produce a synchronized image. But when we zoom-out, we use less space and - for Hubble -  that unused space has a stair-step appearance in the stitched-together picture. 

When Hubble’s first images were analyzed, scientists realized  that the telescope had blurred vision.   A shuttle mission, sent to repair the problem  a few years later, was successful.   Since then, Hubble has been sending incredible images backs to Earth. Its first ten years  (be patient while loading this Quick Time video clip) were amazing, but images from recent years have been no less sensational.

Let’s examine some of the space telescopes’ most beautiful images.