The Pillars of Creation
Captured by the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995, this iconic space image shows the multi-colored glow of the gas clouds, tendrils of dark cosmic dust, and the famous rust-colored pillars that are part of the Eagle Nebula. Photo by NASA, ESA/Hubble and the Hubble Heritage Team
The Orion Nebula
Hubble gives astronomers ringside seats to watch stars come to life in the Orion Nebula (M42). This dense cloud of gas, dust, and young stars lies just 1,500 light-years from Earth. The hottest, most massive stars already have emerged from their natal cocoons. Photo by NASA/ESA/M. Robberto (STScI/ESA)/ The Hubble Space Telescope Orion Treasury Project Team
The Antennae
Galaxies NGC 4038 and NGC 4039 are merging. This cosmic collision is giving birth to billions of new stars, most of which belong to bright blue star clusters. The large yellowish globes at upper right and lower left are the cores of the original galaxies. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Sharpless 2-106
This hourglass-shaped stellar nursery spans 2 light-years and lies less than 1° from the Milky Way’s plane in the constellation Cygnus. The young star just below center (where the bluish lobes come together) sculpts the surrounding nebula’s intricate shape. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
The Sombrero Galaxy
This giant spiral galaxy lies about 35 million light-years from Earth on the edge of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies. The Sombrero (M104) looks like a traditional Mexican hat because we view its dusty disk from just 6° north of the galaxy’s equator. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Star Cluster NGC 602
The hot young stars in NGC 602 have carved out a cavity in a surrounding cloud of gas and dust located on the outskirts of the Milky Way’s satellite galaxy, the Small Magellanic Cloud. This image combines Hubble observations (shown as red, green, and blue) with X-ray (purple) and infrared (red) data. Photo by NASA/ESA/CXC and the U. of Potsdam/JPL-Caltech/STScI
The Cat’s Eye Nebula
Mass loss in aging stars doesn’t always follow one pattern. The Cat’s Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) shows at least 11 concentric shells surrounding its central white dwarf, each one ejected at 1,500-year intervals. But about 1,000 years ago, the process changed and forged the bright irregular shells on the inside. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
The Eskimo Nebula
Astronomers nicknamed this planetary the Eskimo Nebula (NGC 2392) because it looks like a human face surrounded by a parka hood through earthbound telescopes. Hubble resolves the parka’s “fur” into myriad streamers of gas that resemble giant comets pointing toward the nebula’s center. Photo by NASA/A. Fruchter and the ERO Team (STScI)
The Helix Nebula
The intricate shapes of ¬planetary nebulae, like the Helix Nebula (NGC 7293) and the others on this spread, make them among Hubble’s most dramatic subjects. These objects are the death throes of Sun-like stars, which puff off their outer ¬layers — often several times — when they exhaust their nuclear fuel. Photo by NASA/NOAO/ESA/The Hubble Helix Nebula Team/M. Meixner (STScI)/T. A. Rector (NRAO)
Arp 273
When spiral galaxies interact, tidal forces warp their normal stately shapes. In this pair, the spiral arms of the top galaxy have been stretched and distorted. The bright blue star clusters at the top reflect a firestorm of star formation initiated by the encounter. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Supernova remnant N49
The remnants of this massive star is located within the Large Magellanic Cloud, 160,000 light-years from Earth. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Omega Centauri
The Milky Way’s largest globular star cluster, Omega Centauri (NGC 5139), holds 10 million stars in a sphere some 150 light-years across. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
The Horsehead Nebula
In visible light, this cloud of cold gas and dust appears dark against bright emission. But at the near-infrared wavelengths captured here, the nebula glows as its gas reradiates energy it absorbs from embedded young stars. Photo by NASA/ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
The Cone Nebula
Massive stars off the top of this image emit ultraviolet radiation that erodes the edges of the Cone Nebula (NGC 2264). This process liberates gas, and the ultraviolet light then excites this hydrogen-rich material, causing it to glow with a characteristic red color. Photo by NASA/ESA/ The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
NGC 1300
Like the Milky Way, NGC 1300 is a barred spiral galaxy that spans a bit more than 100,000 light years. In such galaxies, spiral arms wind out from the ends of a star-filled bar. Photo by NASA/ESA/ The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)