Space Photos of the Week: Light a Candle for Hubble, Still Gazing Strong

The best way to mark the space telescope’s birthday is by looking at nebulae.

This week we celebrate the birthday of the Hubble Space Telescope. Believe it or not, it has been in Earth’s orbit studying the cosmos for 28 years. Most of our images of cloudy nebulae, stunning galaxies, and star clusters can be credited to the Hubble. What better way to honor it, then, than by gazing into outer space for a while.

Many of Hubble’s most famous photos are of nebulae—clouds of dust and gas that are breeding grounds for stars. It’s hard to get a sense of scale in these photos, but nebulae, especially those spotted and captured by Hubble, are enormous. For example, the renowned Pillars of Creation nebula has two large towers, each about 5 light years tall. This means that it takes five years for light to travel from one end to the other. That’s not all: Hubble has made some pretty astounding discoveries, from ascertaining the age of the universe to finding new moons for Pluto. (Remember Pluto?)

The Hubble Space Telescope deserves the biggest space cake all the galaxies can bake and frost, but since it can’t eat cake, let it feast on starlight instead. Happy birthday Hubble!

Want to have more fun across the universe? Check out the full collection of space photos here.