The Hubble Space Telescope, since its launch in 1990, has served as a vital tool for astronomers around the world, redefining our understanding of the universe. However, the telescope is now steadily losing altitude and falling back to Earth. Faced with the reality of its eventual demise, NASA is at a crossroads. It must either boost the telescope to a higher orbit or let it continue falling until it crashes back to Earth. This decision is crucial as the Hubble has not only reshaped our understanding of the cosmos but has also played a critical role in training a generation of scientists and engineers1.
Even as the Hubble faces uncertain times, the year 2023 has been a productive one for both the Hubble and its more advanced successor, the James Webb Space Telescope. The two telescopes have provided us with breathtaking images of the cosmos, a selection of which has been featured in the 2023 ESA Hubble and Webb Calendar.
The calendar began with the image of a protostar, L1527, embedded within a cloud of material feeding its growth, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. The Hubble also contributed an image of the galaxy cluster Abell 611, located roughly 3.2 billion light-years from Earth. The James Webb Space Telescope also provided the first deep-field image of the galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 in the near-infrared2.
Later months showcased a variety of celestial images, from the Tarantula Nebula star-forming region to four galaxy mergers and Jupiter in near-infrared wavelengths. The Hubble telescope featured prominently in July, with an image of four globular star clusters: Liller 1, Terzan 9, Terzan 4, and NGC 65692.
The calendar continued to captivate with images of the densely packed groupings of galaxies HCG 40 and HCG 92, also known as Stephan’s Quintet. In September, the Hubble provided a colorful view of the region surrounding the Herbig-Haro object HH 505 in the Orion Nebula. October brought three views of M74, also known as the Phantom Galaxy, using both telescopes2.
The year ended with the famous Pillars of Creation, part of the Eagle Nebula, as revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope, and the spiral galaxy NGC 7038 displayed in great detail by the Hubble Space Telescope. This galaxy image was the result of over 15 hours of observations to expose distant stars and galaxies in the background2.
These images are not just beautiful; they are a testament to the invaluable contribution of these telescopes to our understanding of the cosmos. As we face the potential end of the Hubble’s mission, it’s clear that its legacy will live on in the minds of the scientists it has inspired and the breathtaking images it has captured.
