NASA has released the first images that the Hubble Space Telescope took after resuming full operations and they’re a doozy – a few different galaxies, including a rare spiral galaxy with three arms.
The first object, known as ARP-MADORE2115-273, is two galaxies 297 million light-years from earth that are intertwined.
‘Astronomers had previously thought this was a “collisional ring” system due to the head-on merger of two galaxies,’ NASA wrote in a description of the image.
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‘The new Hubble observations show that the ongoing interaction between the galaxies is far more complex, leaving behind a rich network of stars and dusty gas.’
The second image, ARP-MADORE0002-503, is a spiral galaxy 490 million light-years from Earth.
NASA released the first images that the Hubble Space Telescope took after resuming full operations. The first object (left), known as ARP-MADORE2115-273, is two galaxies 297 million light-years from earth that are intertwined. The second image, ARP-MADORE0002-503 (right), is a spiral galaxy 490 million light-years from Earth
Science operations on the Hubble resumed on July 17, following a month in which it was halted due to a technical malfunction
Unlike most spiral galaxies, which have even-numbered arms, ARP-MADORE0002-503 has three arms that reach out to a radius of 163,000 light-years, three times more expansive than the Milky Way.
A light-year, which measures distance in space, is roughly 6 trillion miles.
Other initial targets for Hubble included globular star clusters and aurorae on Jupiter, NASA said.
The US space agency released the images on Monday, much to the delight of star gazers, including NASA’s Administrator Bill Nelson.
‘I’m thrilled to see that Hubble has its eye back on the universe, once again capturing the kind of images that have intrigued and inspired us for decades,’ Nelson said in a statement.
‘This is a moment to celebrate the success of a team truly dedicated to the mission. Through their efforts, Hubble will continue its 32nd year of discovery, and we will continue to learn from the observatory’s transformational vision.’
Science operations on the Hubble resumed on July 17, following a month in which it was halted due to a technical malfunction.
Last week, NASA successfully performed a ‘very risky’ maneuver to switch the Hubble to its backup computer.
The switch ‘was performed to compensate for a problem with the original payload computer that occurred on June 13 when the computer halted, suspending science data collection.’
The switch, which started on July 15, involved bringing the backup Power Control Unit (PCU) online, as well as the backup Command Unit/Science Data Formatter (CU/SDF) on the other side of the Science Instrument and Command & Data Handling (SI C&DH) unit.
The PCU brings power to the SI C&DH components, while the CU/SDF sends and formats commands and data.
NASA added that other pieces of hardware on the Hubble were also switched to alternate interfaces to connect to the backup SI C&DH.
The backup payload computer was then turned on, loaded with software and normal operations mode.
Prior to Thursday’s events, the backup payload computer had not been powered on since it was installed in 2009 during Hubble’s last servicing mission.
Safely switching to a backup unit was a ‘very risky process,’ NASA previously said.
Since its launch in April 1990, the Hubble has taken more than 1.5 million observations of the universe, and over 18,000 scientific papers have been published based on its data
Hubble, a joint project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency, has been observing the universe for over three decades.
Since its launch in April 1990, it’s taken more than 1.5 million observations of the universe, and over 18,000 scientific papers have been published based on its data.
It orbits Earth at a speed of about 17,000mph (27,300kph) in low Earth orbit at about 340 miles in altitude, slightly higher than the International Space Station (ISS).
On June 14, flight controllers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland tried to restart the computer after they noticed it stopped working on June 13, but they ran into the same issue and could not get it to operate normally.
Launched in April 1990 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Hubble is showing more and more signs of ageing, despite a series of repairs and updates by spacewalking astronauts during NASA’s shuttle era.
The telescope is named after famed astronomer Edwin Hubble who was born in Missouri in 1889 and discovered that the universe is expanding, as well as the rate at which it is doing so.
The Hubble recently marked its 31st anniversary in space, doing so with an image of a giant star that is ‘on the edge of destruction’.
The US space agency is going to replace the Hubble with $10 billion James Webb Telescope, however it has run into delays recently.
Earlier this month, said it would delay James Webb because the European Space Agency-funded Ariane 5 rocket to launch it isn’t ready.
A NASA spokesperson told DailyMail.com last month the launch of the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope will happen ‘no earlier than October 31.’
It is still expected to launch for space this year and James Webb will spent at least 30 percent of its first year studying exoplanets.
Earlier this month, the space agency had to dismiss fears from former NASA space shuttle pilot Clayton C Anderson that Hubble is ‘beyond repair’ or would be decommissioned due to the issue.