Hubble and the Pale Blue Dot, 20 years later

(photo credit: Hubble Deep Field Photo, from NASA)

On this date April 24th, 1990 the Hubble Space Telescope was launched. After the initial trepidation over the misshapen mirror and the subsequent repair, the images from the Hubble Space Telescope have been inspiring wonder and amazement in me and millions of other fans and viewers for much of those 20 years (the above Deep Field image from Hubble is one of my favorites and I can continually gaze at in astonishment and reverie).

So Happy Birthday Hubble! My hope is that when the 'eyes of our Pale Blue Dot' is retired and replace with the James Webb Space Telescope, set for launch in 2014, that we will, for many more years to come, continue to see the universe in all its beauty, mystery, and glory.

Hubble Images
Hubble Deep Field slideshow

And while the Hubble Telescope did not take the famous 'Pale Blue Dot' photo (which also was taken over a series of months, 20 years ago), Carl Sagan's famous essay that describes his feelings upon seeing the image of Earth, as taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft as it was leaving the solar system, could easily reflect the perspective and humility granted by Hubble.

POSTED BY NUMINOUS AT 7:00 AM