Announcements

6 December 2013: Last month saw the inauguration of a new Hubble observing program: Frontier Fields. This will use the powerful magnifying properties of massive galaxy clusters to peer even deeper into the space around us. Hubblecast 70 takes a look at this phenomenon — known as gravitational lensing — exploring how it works, and how it can help us to uncover the secrets of the very distant Universe. Credit: ESA/Hubble Directed by: Nicola GuttridgeVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWritten by: Nicola Guttridge & Georgia BladonPresented by: Joe Liske (Dr J)Narration: Sara Mendes da CostaImages and animations: ESA/Hubble, NASA, Martin Kornmesser Clips from Hubble IMAX 3D video “Hubble: Galaxies Across Space and Time”. Credit: NASA, ESA and F. Summers (STScI) The Hubble Deep Fields Milky Way animation, gravitational lens animations: M. Kornmesser Gravitational lensing in action: NASA, ESA & L. Calçada Image of Abell 383 (heic1106a): NASA, ESA, J. Richard (CRAL) and J.-P. …

4 December 2013: A new book exploring Hubble and its discoveries, written by Oli Usher and Lars Lindberg Christensen [1], has now been published by Wiley and Springer. Entitled "The Universe Through the Eyes of Hubble", the book is a guided tour of the Universe, beginning with Hubble's history, technology, and optics, continuing on to explore Hubble's role in observing planets — both in our Solar System and beyond — stars, nebulae, galaxies, black holes, the dark cosmos, and mind-bending optical illusions. Finally, it looks to the future of Hubble: What is next for the space telescope? Hubble's most beautiful images — some of which have never before been published or seen outside the scientific community — are displayed alongside a mix of cutting-edge science that highlights the key discoveries of the past few years, and how they fit into Hubble's growing list of scientific achievements. The book is published in both English …

14 November 2013: The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has observed many star clusters. As well as being scientifically interesting, these clusters produce stunning images, appearing like sparkling baubles in the sky. This episode of the Hubblecast looks at how Hubble has studied and imaged these beautiful objects, also introducing a striking new image of Messier 15, one of the oldest globular clusters in our skies. This is the best ever image of this cluster, which contains over 100 000 stars, a planetary nebula known as Pease 1 (otherwise named PN Ku 648 or Kürster 648), and something more exotic: at its core, it is thought to host a rare type of black hole. Credit: ESA/Hubble Directed by: Nicola Guttridge Visual design and editing: Martin Kornmesser Written by: Nicola Guttridge Narration: Sara Mendes da Costa Images: ESA/Hubble and NASA;View of the Milky Way: Nick Risinger (skysurvey.org)ESO/MPE/VISTA/J. Emerson/Digitized Sky Survey 2Animations: M. Kornmesser, L. Calçada, …

17 October 2013: The October issue of the ESA/Hubble Science Newsletter is now available, bringing information on the upcoming “Science with the Hubble Space Telescope IV” conference in Rome in spring 2014, European involvement in Hubble, and the launch of the new Frontier Fields observing programme. The ESA/Hubble Science Newsletter promotes technical and operational news about the Hubble Space Telescope to European users and the scientific community. Released quarterly, this newsletter contains information about the scientific activities taking place with Hubble, calls for proposals, news on observing and programmatic developments, upcoming conferences, and other updates. This newsletter augments the information presented in public scientific press releases and announcements. It is also intended to create a communication channel between the European Hubble user community, and the staff scientists at ESA who support Hubble science operations. You can subscribe to the ESA/Hubble Science Newsletter here, or get in touch at [email protected]. If you are a …

2 September 2013: The Hubblecast, ESA/Hubble's video podcast series, has been awarded a Parsec Award for best "Fact Behind the Fiction" podcast series. From a final shortlist of 5, an international panel of judges considered the Hubblecast to best portray the facts — including the science, history, culture, and mythology — that influence and inspire speculative fiction podcasting. Exploring Hubble's discoveries, stunning images, complex topics within astronomy, the future of the space telescope and more, the Hubblecast releases 10 episodes annually and maintains an exceptionally high standard of visual and audio production. It was previously recognised for its excellence in 2011 by the MEDEA awards (ann1123), when a panel of judges "highly commended" the series for its innovation and good practice in the use of media in education. The Parsec Awards were established in 2006 by Mur Lafferty, Michael R. Mennenga, and Tracy Hickman to celebrate speculative fiction podcasting. Fans can nominate their …

30 August 2013: For episode 68 of the Hubblecast, Hubble transforms into more than just a telescope — it becomes a time machine! How can Hubble "look back in time" to see the Universe as it was billions of years ago? Dr. J explores the vast scale of our Universe, explaining how Hubble can be used to grasp cosmic distances, view very distant galaxies, and even explore our own past. Credit: ESA/Hubble Directed by: Nicola GuttridgeVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWritten by: Nicola GuttridgePresented by: Joe Liske (Dr J)Narration: Sara Mendes da CostaImages and animations: ESA/Hubble and NASA, M. Kornmesser Clips from Hubble IMAX 3D video “Hubble: Galaxies Across Space and Time”. Credit: NASA, ESA and F. Summers (STScI) Milky Way animation: Nick Risinger Supernova animation (hubblecast64b): ESA/Hubble (L. Calçada) Time machine model: Hameed Music: Zero ProjectWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaCinematography: Peter Rixner (www.perix-media-gmbh.de)Executive producer: Lars Lindberg Christensen

26 July 2013: ESA/Hubble have launched a new newsletter to promote technical and operational news about the Hubble Space Telescope to European users and the scientific community. Released quarterly, this newsletter will contain information about the scientific activities taking place with Hubble, calls for proposals, news on observing and programmatic developments, upcoming conferences, and other updates. This newsletter augments the information presented in public scientific press releases and announcements. It is also intended to create a communication channel between the European Hubble user community, and the staff scientists at ESA who support Hubble science operations. You can subscribe to the ESA/Hubble Science Newsletter here, or get in touch at [email protected]. If you are a media representative we recommend subscribing to the ESA/Hubble Media Newsletter, a weekly embargoed newsletter sent 48 hours prior to the publication of press releases. This newsletter is aimed exclusively at journalists. If you are a member of the public, …

20 June 2013: This episode of the Hubblecast explores the violent world of galactic mergers, as shown by the cosmic duo Arp 142 in a stunning new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Galaxies spend most of their life drifting through the cosmic expanse in isolation. But, every so often, two unfortunate galaxies stray a little too close to one another — as is the case with Arp 142. Showcased in a stunning new image from Hubble, these two galaxies uncannily resemble a penguin guarding its egg. The galaxies are in middle of a violent merger, with clouds of gas and dust colliding at breakneck speeds and triggering bursts of star formation. Credit: ESA/Hubble Directed by: Nicola GuttridgeVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWritten by: Nicola GuttridgeNarration: Joe Liske (Dr J)Images: ESA/Hubble, NASA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) Music: Toomas ErmWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaExecutive producer: Lars …

23 May 2013: This episode of the Hubblecast explores the Ring Nebula (Messier 57). Although this nebula is one of the most famous objects in our skies, more than 200 years after its discovery astronomers are still unveiling some of its secrets. The Ring Nebula was discovered in the late 18th century, but its true shape and structure has remained unclear. Now, a team of astronomers has used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, alongside existing ground-based data, to explore the Ring Nebula in depth. The astronomers wanted to better understand the nebula’s structure, evolution, physical conditions, and motion — and it turns out that the Ring Nebula is not actually very ring-shaped after all. Hubblecast 66 showcases stunning new Hubble images of this beautiful object, showing the bright, colourful centre of the nebula, and the dramatically turbulent space that surrounds it. Credit: ESA/Hubble Directed by: Nicola GuttridgeVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWritten by: …

19 April 2013: This episode of the Hubblecast celebrates 23 years of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, with the unveiling of a beautiful and striking new Hubble image of the Horsehead Nebula. Our host Dr Joe Liske (aka Dr J) explains the secrets of nebulae, cosmic clouds of gas and dust that have been the subjects of some of Hubble’s most striking astronomical images. The Horsehead Nebula is one of the most distinctive, and is now shown in a whole new light thanks to a stunning new infrared image — revealing the delicate wisps of gas that are normally hidden by the thick dust that makes up the Horsehead’s famous and familiar shape. Credit: ESA/Hubble Visual design and editing: Martin Kornmesser Web and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi Shida Written by: Nicola Guttridge Presented by: Joe Liske (Dr J) Narration: Sara Mendes da Costa Images: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage …

3 April 2013: Most stars in the Universe are small and insignificant, and they will — eventually — fizzle out without much drama. But a few light up the sky when they die, and in the process, they don’t just tell us about the lives of stars: they create the building blocks of life, and help us to unravel the whole history of the Universe. These are the stars that end their lives as supernovae, explosions that are among the most violent events in the Universe. Over more than 20 years in orbit, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has proved to be an invaluable tool with which to unveil the secrets behind these stellar remnants. Join Dr J, aka Dr Joe Liske, in this explosive episode of the Hubblecast, and discover more about the violent side of the Universe. Credit ESA/Hubble Directed by: Oli Usher and Nicola Guttridge Visual design and editing: Martin …

6 March 2013: This episode of the Hubblecast explores how conceptual artist Tim Otto Roth has been inspired by scientific data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to create a unique work of art. Credit: ESA/HubbleVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaWritten by: Oli UsherNarrator: Sara Mendes da CostaImages: NASA, ESA, Denis Finnin (AMNH), Tim Otto Roth, Bob FosburyFootage: Herbert Zodet, Mary Estacion, Tim Otto Roth, Bob FosburyInterviews: Oli Usher, Mary EstacionMusic: Toomas ErmDirected by: Oli UsherExecutive producer: Lars Lindberg ChristensenSpecial thanks: Tim Otto Roth Bob Fosbury (ESO) Antonella Nota (ESA/STScI) Ken Sembach (STScI) Mike Shara (AMNH) Benjamin Staude Connie Fitzgerald (AMNH) Mary Estacion (STScI/OPO) Denis Finnin (AMNH) Frank Summers (STScI/OPO) The staff of STScI Office of Public Outreach The staff of the American Museum of Natural History

5 February 2013: Despite its appearance, which looks much like countless other galaxies, Messier 106 hides a number of secrets. In this episode of the Hubblecast, Dr Joe Liske (aka Dr J) takes us on a tour of the galaxy. Thanks to a new image, which combines data from Hubble with observations by amateur astronomer Robert Gendler, the galaxy’s secrets are revealed as never before. Credits ESA/HubbleVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaWritten by: Nicky Guttridge and Oli UsherNarrator: Dr Joe Liske (Dr J)Images: NASA, ESA, R. Gendler, J GaBany, Digitized Sky Survey 2Music: Toomas ErmDirected by: Oli UsherExecutive producer: Lars Lindberg Christensen

18 December 2012: In this episode of the Hubblecast, Dr Joe Liske (aka Dr J) invites us to tour NGC 5189, a planetary nebula in our galaxy. The nebula looks like a ribbon in space, with a complex structure that comes from the dying throes of a Sun-like star at its centre. Credits ESA/HubbleVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaWritten by: Oli UsherNarrator: Sara Mendes da CostaPresented by: Dr Joe Liske (Dr J)Images: NASA, ESA,, Digitized Sky Survey 2Music: John StanfordDirected by: Oli UsherExecutive producer: Lars Lindberg Christensen

14 December 2012: A calendar featuring Hubble’s most amazing pictures of the last year is now available to download for free. With pictures of galaxies, stars and nebulae, the 2013 Hubble Space Telescope calendar is guaranteed to brighten up every month. The calendar is available to download in a number of formats including PDF, JPEG and TIFF, and can easily be printed at home or at a print shop, as it is made available under a Creative Commons License.

6 December 2012: Episode 60 of the Hubblecast explores NGC 922, a galaxy that has been hit square-on by another. Ripples of star-formation are still propagating out across thousands of light-years of space over 300 million years after the collision, making it a prime example of what astronomers call a collisional ring galaxy. Credit ESA/HubbleVisual design and editing: Martin KornmesserWeb and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi ShidaWritten by: Oli UsherNarrator: Sara Mendes da CostaImages: NASA, ESA, Chandra X-ray Observatory, Digitized Sky Survey 2Visualisations and animations: B. Conn (MPIA), R. Smith (University of Concepción), R. Taylor (Arecibo Observatory); M. KornmesserMusic: Toomas ErmDirected by: Oli UsherExecutive producer: Lars Lindberg Christensen

27 November 2012: The Hubblecast, ESA’s popular vodcast which explores the Universe through the discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope, is now available with subtitles. Future episodes will be published with embedded subtitles in English, plus a selection of other languages submitted by a team of volunteer translators. Work on subtitling the archive of past episodes has already begun and will be ongoing during the coming year. To view subtitles, just click the “CC” (closed captioning) button, or select “audio and subtitles” from the control menu in iTunes. (You may need to re-download certain episodes to get the latest subtitles.) Full information on how to watch Hubblecast with subtitles, how to make them work with alternative software, and on how to contribute translations, is on the subtitles web page. To sign up to our volunteer translators' email list and get notice of new episodes, click here.

12 November 2012: In this episode of the Hubblecast, we do away with Hubble’s stunning pictures of the cosmos, and focus on one of the telescope’s most important — but least known — functions. Like a digital camera, Hubble’s cameras produce colour images by sampling just a handful of colours and combining them together into one picture. The detail is extraordinary — but while the colours are accurate enough for the human eye, they are not good enough for some kinds of scientific work, such as the study of distant galaxies and extrasolar planets.  For much of their research, astronomers use Hubble’s spectrometers, devices that split up light into a rainbow of component colours, to reveal many of the hidden properties of the Universe. These observing methods may not produce attractive images, but they lie behind some of the most profound science that Hubble does. In this episode, presenter Joe Liske (aka Dr …

16 October 2012: In this episode of the Hubblecast, Joe Liske (aka Dr J) shows how a team of astronomers has used Hubble and a battery of other telescopes to discover the secrets of massive galaxy cluster MACS J0717. They have discovered that an invisible filament of dark matter extends out of the cluster. This is our first direct glimpse of the scaffolding that gives the Universe its structure.

24 August 2012: An updated version of the popular ESA/Hubble Top 100 Images app is now available to download from iTunes. The new version takes full advantage of the third generation iPad’s retina display and quad core graphics. The free app transforms the iPad into an exciting window to the Universe and allows users to enjoy one hundred of the best images taken with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, as well as giving users the chance to learn more about astronomy from captions and extra information that is just a tap away. Thanks to the super-sharp retina display technology (containing 1 million more pixels than HDTV) these pictures look more spectacular than ever. Other new features include an index, allowing users to skip to individual images, as well as a smoother, cleaner slide show option accompanied by a brand new soundtrack from John Stanford. Feel the Universe at your fingertips by downloading the …