Science Bulletin July/August 2014 | Page 4

4 Science Bulletin, July-August 2014

Over the past few years, more and more detailed images of the Hubble Deep Field, a small, void like area in the southern constellation of Fornax, have been released. Why, though, would the Hubble Spacecraft want to image such a boring area of the sky? The answer to this question lies in what can be seen in the Hubble Deep Field (below). Galaxies billions of years old are photographed in the image that would usually be washed out by bright starlight. Areas that appear as voids to our eyes are some of the most interesting places to photography with long exposure technology. The newest 2014 Hubble Ultra Deep Field image combines the full spectrum visible to the Hubble: visible, near-infrared, and ultraviolet light. The fainter and smaller galaxies shown are some of the oldest and distant galaxies in the observable universe. These objects are so far away that their light has only reached us now. New data gained from the intricate photograph is helping astrophysicists learn much more about early stellar formation.

-Grant Regen

Read more at: NASA.gov

Hubble Ultra Deep Field

ADVANCES

NASA/ESA/S. Beckwith(STScI) and The HUDF Team

STS-82 Crew, STScI, NASA