On this day in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope entered orbit in the cargo bay of the space shuttle Discovery. Shortly thereafter, it began its continuing mission to capture images of our universe from low Earth orbit, free of the obstructions of clouds and the distortions of the atmosphere. Like its namesake, the great astronomer Edwin Hubble, the Hubble Space Telescope has transformed our understanding of the cosmos. Some of the telescope"s greatest contributions include its Deep Fields images, which peer back billions of light-years and help astronomers measure the size and age of the universe and test theories about its origin. It"s also produced jaw-dropping images of objects closer to home, like the one on today"s homepage. Here we"re looking at a maelstrom of glowing gas and dark dust within one of the Milky Way"s satellite galaxies, the Large Magellanic Cloud.
Celebrating 30 years of eye-opening images
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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A crane for good luck in today’s big game
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A dying breed of tree thrives in an American park
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A ‘city’ within Valencia
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Ready, set, read
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Marine Day in Japan
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Evidence of human habitation
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50 years of Earth Day
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The island fox’s incredible comeback
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Stari Most in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
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That s quite a schnoz, baby tapir
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From Sputnik to extraterrestrial storms
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Happy Pi Day!
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At the foot of Dubrovnik s Gibraltar
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Rock of ages
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Happy 50th for the National Trails System!
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A viewer with a view
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Corfe gets creepy
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Lobster tales
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GOAL!
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The moon rises for Mid-Autumn Festival