8,000 times, zoomed in on 25,000 celestial objects, and taken more than 270,000 images (Weinstock 2000).
Hubble has provided astronomers with a broader understanding of the universe, including images of a comet hitting Jupiter and the detection of relatively young galaxies at what is thought the edge of the universe. As David Leckrone, Hubble Project Scientist at NASAÆs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, exclaims, ôNot since Galileo aimed a small telescope into the night sky in 1609 has humanityÆs vision of the universe been revolutionized so quickly by a single instrument,ö (Weinstock 2000, 1). HubbleÆs discoveries have been so profound and have provided such a broader knowledge of the universe and its celestial bodies that scientists are already at work on HubbleÆs successor, the New Generation Space Telescope, scheduled for launch in 2007. Until then, scientists are using the wealth of information provided by Hubble to gain a greater understanding of the universe.
The Hubble Space Telescope has a variety of instrumentation, including infrared cameras, spectrographs, guidance sensors, solar arrays, and radio communication technology. Hubble ôseesö through the use of a heat sensing Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS). The cameras are designed to detect objects in space in the near-infrared wavelengths which cannot be seen by humans. Infrared light is responsible for revealing many clues to the existence of stars, solar systems and galaxies. As Cowen (1998) maintains, ôUsing its infrared camera, the Hubble Space Telescope has peered deeper into space and farther back in time than ever before,ö (1).
The spectrographs on board Hubble provide images of the electromagnetic spectrum produced by as spectroscope. A spectroscope divides visible light into its different wavelengths. Each wavelength is associated with a different color in the spectrum. Hubble includes the Fai...