15 years in orbit

Sunday, April 24 marked the day when the Hubble Space Telescope had been in orbit for 15 years. The European Space Agency (ESA), heading the project together with American NASA, celebrates with a number of activities in collaboration with organizations across Europe. In addition, ESA has produced a DVD-film and a book about Hubble's 15 years in space. A link to the ESA site on Hubble is here.

The Hubble Space Telescope is perhaps the most well-known telescope in the world. The project has made a great impact both in scientific circles and among the general public. Hubble is able to observe the Universe in wavelengths from near-infrared to ultraviolet, and has led to several major discoveries. The space telescope is also known for its very sharp images, which have given a visual perspective on widely different areas, from the planets in the Solar system to distant galaxies in the early Universe. A selection of Hubble images is available at the Hubble Heritage Image Gallery.

Swedish astronomers have also been active in using the Hubble Space Telescope. At Stockholm University, Göran Östlin is one such astronomer, having taken several images of small compact galaxies with Hubble.