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1RXS J052832.5+283824
VLT image of a dead star creating a shock wave as it moves through space
The central square image, taken with the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope, shows shock waves around the dead star RXJ0528+2838. When a star moves through space it can push away nearby material creating a so-called bow shock, which in this image is glowing in red, green and blue....
NGC 3621
The supernova SN 2024ggi in the NGC 3621 galaxy
This image shows the location of the supernova SN 2024ggi in the NGC 3621 galaxy. It was taken on 11 April 2024, just 26 hours after the initial detection of the supernova. The image was obtained with the FORS2 instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Among other capabilities, FORS2...
1RXS J052832.5+283824
VLT image of a dead star creating a shock wave as it moves through space
The central square image, taken with the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope, shows shock waves around the dead star RXJ0528+2838. When a star moves through space it can push away nearby material creating a so-called bow shock, which in this image is glowing in red, green and blue....
NGC 3621
A galaxy full of surprises — the spiral galaxy NGC 3621
This image, from ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), shows a truly remarkable galaxy known as NGC 3621. To begin with, it is a pure-disc galaxy. Like other spirals, it has a flat disc permeated by dark lanes of material and with prominent spiral arms where young stars are forming in clusters (the...
Baade Window
MOONS first light spectra
This image shows some of the first spectra captured by the MOONS instrument at ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). The background image was taken with the now-retired VIRCAM infrared camera, and shows Baade’s window, an area in the sky towards the centre of the Milky Way. The circles mark the...
1RXS J052832.5+283824
Wide-field view (PanSTARRS) of the area of the sky around the star RXJ0528+2838
This image from the PanSTARRS survey shows the region of the sky around the dead star RXJ0528+2838, which is located at the very centre of the image.
1RXS J052832.5+283824
Wide-field view (DSS) of the area of the sky around the star RXJ0528+2838
This image from the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) shows the region of the sky around the dead star RXJ0528+2838, which is located at the very centre of the image.
NGC 4410
Comparing Sky Surveys over Time
This image by NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory in 2025 shows RSCG 55, a captivating spectacle of gravitationally intertwined galaxies in the constellation Virgo.
NGC 4410
Comparing Sky Surveys over Time
This image by the Digitized Sky Survey II in 1994 shows RSCG 55, a captivating spectacle of gravitationally intertwined galaxies in the constellation Virgo.
NGC 4410
Comparing Sky Surveys over Time
This image by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey in 2000 shows RSCG 55, a captivating spectacle of gravitationally intertwined galaxies in the constellation Virgo.
M96
Messier 96 as Seen with DESI Legacy Survey
Among the nearly four billion objects in the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys’ map is Messier 96 (NGC 3368), a majestic spiral galaxy nestled in the constellation Leo approximately 35 million light-years from Earth. Spanning 100,000 light-years, slightly larger than our own Milky Way in size, it’s...
NGC 7253
Nā ʻUhane Māhoe Huki Pū i ke Ola
Nā ʻUhane Māhoe Huki Pū i ke Ola is the Hawaiian name given to this image of NGC 7253 — a pair of spiral galaxies caught in each other’s gravity. This image was captured by the Gemini North telescope on Maunakea, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, partly funded by the U.S....
SN 2026gzf
NSF–DOE Rubin image of the field around the progenitor to supernova SN 2026gzf
This image shows the field around the progenitor to supernova SN 2026gzf, detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026. The supernova progenitor appears as a bright blue dot within the galaxy located in the middle of the upper third at the center of this image. View a series of close-up...
Centaurus A
Centaurus A Full (NIRCam and MIRI Image)
This combined view of Centaurus A from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope pairs observations from the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI). Webb's infrared vision exposes a warped disk of gas and dust left behind by a collision with another galaxy billions of years ago.
Excerpt of the area around NGC 4261
A trail of celestial objects stretches across this excerpt from a First Look image captured by NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory. The most prominent feature is NGC 4261, the large elliptical galaxy in the top half of the image. In the bottom-left of the image is the lenticular galaxy NGC 4281....
Centaurus A
Centaurus A Full (NIRCam Only)
What may first appear as a grainy glow is actually a dense field of millions of individually resolved stars. By distinguishing different generations of stars embedded throughout the dusty center, Webb gives astronomers new clues to the galaxy's history and the processes that continue to shape it.
DECam image of the field around the progenitor to supernova SN 2026gzf
This image shows the field around the progenitor to supernova SN 2026gzf, detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026. The supernova progenitor appears as a bright blue dot within the galaxy located at the center of this image. View a series of close-up images that show the evolving...
Rubin image of SN 2026gzf host galaxy pre-explosion (May 2025–January 2026)
This image shows the host galaxy of the recently detected supernova SN 2026gzf. This supernova was first detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026. This image of the host galaxy, created by stacking multiple images taken between May 2025 and January 2026, reveals a bright blue source at...
DECam image of supernova SN 2026gzf (25 March 2026)
This image shows supernova SN 2026gzf, which appears as a bright blue point source in the upper right corner of the host galaxy. SN 2026gzf was first detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026, and this image was taken just a few days later on 25 March 2026. This image was captured with...
DECam image of supernova SN 2026gzf host galaxy pre-explosion (9 March 2016)
This image shows the host galaxy of the recently detected supernova SN 2026gzf. This supernova was first detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026. This archival image of the host galaxy from 9 March 2016 reveals a bright blue source at the location of the supernova. Scientists say this...
DECam image of supernova SN 2026gzf (3 April 2026)
This image shows supernova SN 2026gzf, which appears as a bright blue point source in the upper right corner of the host galaxy. SN 2026gzf was first detected by the Einstein Probe on 21 March 2026, and this image was taken a couple of weeks later on 3 April 2026. This image was captured with...
Portion of Virgo Cluster (without asteroids)
A close-up on two galactic members of the Virgo Cluster as imaged by NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory. During its observations Rubin captured a plethora of asteroids zipping across this portion of the night sky. The tiny streaks left behind from the asteroids have been removed from this image....
NGC 2392
Lion Nebula (MIRI image)
NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope observed planetary nebula NGC 2392 with its MIRI (Mid Infrared Instrument) instrument, revealing the presence of dust and its varying structures within this tumultuous environment. Nicknamed the Lion Nebula due to its appearance, this collection of gas and dust...
NGC 2392
Lion Nebula (NIRCam and MIRI Image)
NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope?s NIRCam (Near Infrared Camera) and MIRI (Mid Infrared Instrument) instruments recently imaged planetary nebula NGC 2392, which is nicknamed the Lion Nebula due to its distinct shape. This near- and mid-infrared composite image reveals the complex structure of...
FS Tau
FS Tau Side by Side (Webb and Hubble Image)
This side-by-side image compares NASA’s Hubble and James Webb space telescopes’ observations of star system FS Tau. Hubble’s observation provides a clear view of protostar FS Tau B, its dusty protoplanetary disk, and an astrophysical jet, assigned the color cyan in this image. However, the...
FS Tau
FS Tau (Webb Image)
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captures the infrared light from bright protostars in young star system FS Tau. FS Tau A, a pair of protostars that creates the largest diffraction pattern slightly to the left of center, is about half the mass of our Sun. FS Tau B, the orange protostar...
Centaurus A
Centaurus A Context Image (ESO and Webb Images)
The above ground-based image of nearby galaxy Centaurus A from the European Southern Observatory (top left) puts the near-infrared and mid-infrared views from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope image into context.
Centaurus A
Centaurus A Crop (NIRCam and MIRI Image)
This combined view of Centaurus A from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope pairs observations from the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI). Webb’s infrared vision exposes a warped disk of gas and dust left behind by a collision with another galaxy billions of years ago.
Centaurus A
Centaurus A (MIRI Image)
NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope?s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) reveals the nearby galaxy Centaurus A, exposing the dusty structures and hidden activity that shape this unusual system. Webb?s infrared vision pierces thick lanes of dust that obscure much of the galaxy in visible light,...
Abell S103
Abell S103 with Pullout of GLIMPSE-17775 (Unannotated NIRCam Image)
The little red dot that would come to be known as GLIMPSE-17775 was fortunately included in NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope?s field of view as it was observing galaxy cluster Abell S1063 for a different scientific purpose. GLIMPSE-17775 is located behind the galaxy cluster and has a...
Abell S103
Abell S103 with Pullout of GLIMPSE-17775 (NIRCam Image)
The little red dot that would come to be known as GLIMPSE-17775 was fortunately included in NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s field of view as it was observing galaxy cluster Abell S1063 for a different scientific purpose. GLIMPSE-17775 is located behind the galaxy cluster and has a...
Trifid Nebula
Trifid Nebula (Wide Field Camera 3 Image)
The colors in this image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope tell a story about density in the Trifid Nebula, a star-forming region about 5,000 light-years from Earth. The top left, where it is bright blue, has the smallest amount of dust. Here, powerful ultraviolet light stripped electrons from...
Cat's Eye Nebula
Euclid’s view of the Cat’s Eye Nebula
This is a zoom-in of Euclid’s Deep Field North, showing the Cat’s Eye Nebula in the center of the image, around 3000 light-years away. Also known as NGC 6543, this nebula is a visual ‘fossil record’ of the dynamics and late evolution of a dying star.
BDR J1750+3809
Infrared detection of the cold brown dwarf
An infrared image of the cold brown dwarf BDR J1750+3809 taken with Gemini North’s acquisition camera for the Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph (GNIRS) and Gemini’s Near InfraRed Imager and spectrograph (NIRI). The image is a color composite showing the infrared filters in chromatic order,...
Arp 143
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
Centaurus A
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 1672
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
II Zw 096
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
M33
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 4258
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 1569
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
M90
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
M104
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 4725
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 1385
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 660
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
M82
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 3256
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 3938
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
NGC 4631
Galactic Gems Glisten in New Gallery From NASA's Chandra
This gallery displays a collection of 16 galactic images from Chandra and other telescopes.
Betelgeuse
A bubbling Betelgeuse
Today’s Picture of the Week, taken with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), reveals one of the most detailed views yet of the surface of Betelgeuse — the famous orange star in the constellation of Orion, 600 light-years away. Unlike our own Sun, which is relatively smooth...
G1
New look at the stars around the Milky Way's centre
A new view on the heart of our Milky Way is presented in today's Picture of the Week. This stunning snapshot, taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), reveals the stars and gas surrounding an invisible giant — a supermassive black hole, located some 27 000 light-years away. This is a hugely...
Milky Way Galactic Centre
Wide-field view of the centre of the Milky Way
This visible light wide-field view shows the rich star clouds in the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer) in the direction of the centre of our Milky Way galaxy. The entire image is filled with vast numbers of stars — but far more remain hidden behind clouds of dust and are only revealed...
Copeland Septet
Copeland Septet group of galaxies
A group of galaxies nicknamed the Copeland Septet, in the constellation of Leo. Astronomers using images from Kitt Peak National Observatory and Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory have created the largest ever map of the sky, comprising over a billion galaxies. The final data release from...
V960 Mon
Combined SPHERE and ALMA image of material orbiting V960 Mon
At the centre of this image is the young star V960 Mon, located over 5000 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. Dusty material with potential to form planets surrounds the star. Observations obtained using the Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet REsearch (SPHERE) instrument...
Markarian 315
A double Nucleus in an active galaxy
A NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image of the core of the Seyfert galaxy Markarian 315 reveals two nuclei located approximately 6,000light-years apart. (Seyfert galaxies are a class of spiral galaxy with extremely bright nuclei that are thought to be powered by massive black holes accreting...
Betelgeuse B
VLT image of Betelgeuse’s companion
This image, taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), shows the clearest image ever of what likely is Betelgeuse B, a star orbiting Betelgeuse. The image was taken with the SPHERE instrument in December 2024, when the companion was predicted to be furthest apart from Betelgeuse as seen from...
Betelgeuse
Digitized Sky Survey image of Betelgeuse
This image is a colour composite made from exposures from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2). The field of view is approximatelly 2.0 x 1.5 degrees.
Gemini North and ALMA image of "Shadow Blaster"
This image shows the gravitationally lensed galaxy nicknamed "Shadow Blaster," which astronomers have identified as the likely source of the high-energy neutrino event IC 210922A, detected by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in 2021. Gravitational lensing occurs when a very massive foreground...
CD-35 2722
Wide-field view around the CD-35 2722 system
This image shows the region in the sky around CD-35 2722, a star orbited by a brown dwarf, which is itself orbited by an object at least as massive as Jupiter. CD-35 2722 is the star right at the centre of this image. The brown dwarf is not visible here, as it is embedded in the glare of the...
NGC 4654
One-sided spiral
The subject of this ESA/Hubble Picture of the Month is a spiral galaxy struggling against some of the titanic forces that appear on galactic scales in space. This is NGC 4654, an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo (the Maiden). “Intermediate” means that it lies between the...
Omega Centauri
Omega Centauri
Omega Centauri is visible from Earth with the naked eye and is one of the favourite celestial objects for stargazers in the southern hemisphere. Although the cluster is 17 700 light-years away, lying just above the plane of the Milky Way, it appears almost as large as the full Moon when seen...
Terzan 5
Terzan 5 (Webb and Hubble Image)
Terzan 5 is a stellar system orbiting within the Milky Way galaxy’s bulge, which is an incredibly bright, crowded central region of the galaxy. Not only are stars within the bulge tightly packed together — every bit of this region is laced with thick clouds of gas and dust. NASA’s James Webb...
Comet 3I/ATLAS
Comet 3I/ATLAS chemical contents (NIRSpec Image)
The NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) instrument on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope can map specific chemical and molecular signatures, as seen here in its three images of comet 3I/ATLAS, each highlighting a part of the comet’s contents. Researchers use NIRSpec’s Integral Field Unit,...
Saturn
Saturn (Webb NIRCam Image)
This infrared view of Saturn was captured Nov. 29, 2024, by NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope. Observing the planet in infrared wavelengths allows Webb to reveal details of Saturn?s atmosphere and rings that can?t be seen in visible light. In this view, Saturn?s rings appear exceptionally...
29 Cygni b
29 Cygni b (NIRCam coronagraphic image)
Astronomers used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to directly image 29 Cygni b, which weighs 15 times Jupiter. They found evidence for heavy chemical elements like carbon and oxygen, which strongly suggests it formed like a planet by accretion within a protoplanetary disk, and not like a star...
M82
Starburst Galaxy M82 (Webb and Hubble Close-up)
Edge-on spiral galaxy Messier 82 (M82) has been an object of study by many observatories over the years, including NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and most recently the James Webb Space Telescope. This side-by-side comparison shows the same region of M82 as seen by Hubble (left) and Webb...
M82
Starburst Galaxy M82 (Webb Image)
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently observed edge-on starburst galaxy Messier 82 (M82), nicknamed the Cigar Galaxy. Webb’s near-infrared-light view is a snapshot in time, revealing a scene that has been evolving over a couple hundred million years. In near-infrared light, astronomers can...
M82
Starburst Galaxy M82 (Webb and Hubble Image)
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently observed edge-on starburst galaxy Messier 82 (M82), nicknamed the Cigar Galaxy. Webb’s near-infrared data combined with Hubble visible-light archival data (assigned the color yellow) create a more comprehensive understanding of M82. With Webb’s...
PMR 1
NASA?s Webb Examines Cranium Nebula
The differences in what Webb?s infrared instruments reveal and conceal within the PMR 1 ?Exposed Cranium? nebula is apparent in this side-by-side view. More stars and background galaxies shine through the view of Webb?s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), while cosmic dust glows more prominently in...
Pandora Cluster
QSO1A NIRCam Close-up with IFU Radial Velocity Map
An image detail from NIRCam on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows the Little Red Dot Abell2744-QSO1, gravitationally lensed by Abell 2744, an enormous mega-cluster of galaxies also known as Pandora’s Cluster. Pulled out to the right is a map showing the speed that gas is moving toward or...
Pandora Cluster
Pandora Cluster with Pullouts of QSO1A, B, and C (NIRCam Image)
An image from NIRCam (the Near Infrared Camera) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows Abell2744-QSO1, magnified and triply imaged by galaxy cluster Abell 2744. Abell2744-QSO1 (QSO1) is a prototypical Little Red Dot, one of the first of now hundreds of tiny glowing flecks of infrared light...
Sextans A
Sextans A (MIRI Only Image)
Images from NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope of the dwarf galaxy Sextans A reveal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), large carbon-based molecules that can be a signifier of star formation. Sextans A is a nearby galaxy that is chemically primitive, meaning it has a very low content of...
Sextans A
Sextans A (NIRCam Only Image)
Images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope of the dwarf galaxy Sextans A reveal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), large carbon-based molecules that can be a signifier of star formation. Sextans A is a nearby galaxy that is chemically primitive, meaning it has a very low content of...
Sextans A
Sextans A Unannotated (NIRCam and MIRI image)
Images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope of the dwarf galaxy Sextans A reveal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), large carbon-based molecules that can be a signifier of star formation. Sextans A is a nearby galaxy that is chemically primitive, meaning it has a very low content of...
Sextans A
Sextans A Context image (Webb and KPNO)
NASA?s James Webb Space Telescope?s image of a portion of the nearby Sextans A galaxy is put into context using a ground-based image from the Nicholas U. Mayall 4-meter Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. The image from Webb shows the galaxy in both near- and mid-infrared light, while...
Sextans A
Sextans A PAHs Pull-out (NIRCam and MIRI image)
Images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope of the dwarf galaxy Sextans A reveal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), large carbon-based molecules that can be a signifier of star formation. The inset at the top right zooms in on those PAHs, which are represented in green. In Sextans A,...
MXDFz4.4
Galactic Pioneer MXDFz4.4 (Unannotated Hubble and Webb Image)
Oddball galaxy MXDFz4.4 existed only 1.4 billion years after the big bang, when the universe was still a ?swirl? of opaque and clear gas as the Era of Reionization was ending. Detailed visible-light images from NASA?s Hubble Space Telescope revealed that several bursts of younger stars...
MXDFz4.4
Galactic Pioneer MXDFz4.4 (Hubble and Webb Image)
Oddball galaxy MXDFz4.4 existed only 1.4 billion years after the big bang, when the universe was still a ?swirl? of opaque and clear gas as the Era of Reionization was ending. Detailed visible-light images from NASA?s Hubble Space Telescope revealed that several bursts of younger stars...
Comet C/2025 K1
Fragmentation of Comet C/2025 K1
This series of images from NASA?s Hubble Space Telescope of the fragmenting comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS), or K1 for short, was taken over the course of three consecutive days: Nov. 8, 9, and 10, 2025. Captured by Hubble?s STIS (Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph) instrument, the sequence shows the...
Crab Nebula
Crab Nebula (2024)
NASA?s Hubble Space Telescope captured the intricate detail of the Crab Nebula with its Wide Field Camera 3. The colors in the image trace Hubble?s detection of oxygen and sulfur gases in the nebula at varying densities and energies. The blue areas are the hottest and lowest density. While...
Cloud-9
Cloud 9, Starless Gas Cloud
This image shows the location of Cloud-9, which is 14 million light-years from Earth. The diffuse magenta is radio data from the ground-based Very Large Array (VLA) showing the presence of the cloud. The dashed circle marks the peak of radio emission, which is where researchers focused their...
GRB 250702B
GRB 250314A Pull-out (NIRCam Image)
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope identified the source of a super bright flash of light known as a gamma-ray burst: a supernova that exploded when the universe was only 730 million years old. Webb’s high-resolution near-infrared images also detected the supernova’s host galaxy. Its quick-turn...
Phoenix Cluster
Phoenix Cluster (Hubble, Chandra, VLA)
This image of the Phoenix cluster combines data from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope and shows how the supermassive black hole at the center promotes large amounts of star formation, instead of hinders it. X-rays from...
M13
Hubble’s Views of M13 (2010) and M3 (2019)
To investigate the physics underpinning white dwarf evolution, astronomers compared cooling white dwarfs in two massive collections of stars: the globular clusters M3 and M13. These two clusters share many physical properties such as age and metallicity but the populations of stars which will...
GRB 130603B
GRB 130603B __ July 3, 2013
A 2013 Hubble Space Telescope image of GRB 130603B, SDS J112848.22+170418.5.
GRB 130603B
GRB 130603B __ June 13, 2013
A 2013 Hubble Space Telescope image of GRB 130603B, SDS J112848.22+170418.5.
GRB 130603B
GRB 130603B Host and Surrounding Field
A 2013 Hubble Space Telescope image of GRB 130603B, SDS J112848.22+170418.5.
HD 44179
Dying Star HD 44179, the "Red Rectangle, " Sculpts Rungs of Gas and Dust
Astronomers may not have observed the fabled "Stairway to Heaven," but they have photographed something almost as intriguing: ladder-like structures surrounding a dying star. A new image, taken with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, reveals startling new details of one of the most unusual...
R136
Star Cluster R136 in Nebula 30 Doradus
A 1999 Hubble Space Telescope image of R136, 30 Doradus.
R136
Star Cluster R136 in Nebula 30 Doradus
A 1999 Hubble Space Telescope image of R136, 30 Doradus.
R136
Star Cluster R136 in Nebula 30 Doradus
A 1999 Hubble Space Telescope image of R136, 30 Doradus.
R136
Star Cluster R136 in Nebula 30 Doradus
A 1999 Hubble Space Telescope image of R136, 30 Doradus.
R136
R136: A Cluster of Massive Stars in Nebula 30 Doradus
A 1999 Hubble Space Telescope image of R136, 30 Doradus.
Hodge 301
The Hodge 301 Cluster: Multiple Generations of Stars in the Tarantula Nebula
In the most active starburst region in the local universe lies a cluster of brilliant, massive stars, known to astronomers as Hodge 301. Hodge 301, seen in the lower right hand corner of this image, lives inside the Tarantula Nebula in our galactic neighbor, the Large Magellanic Cloud. This...
MS1054-0321
Bright Knot of Light From Supernova in Galaxy Cluster MS1054-0321
The bright knot of light from the supernova and the fainter glow from the parent galaxy are shown
MS1054-0321
Galaxy Cluster MS1054-0321
The image shows the entire cluster of galaxies.
MS1054-0321
MS1054-0321
The image is a color composite taken by ground-based and X-ray observatories showing the entire galaxy cluster surrounded by background and foreground galaxies. The blue color in the center of the image represents the huge amount of hot gas that fills the space between the galaxies in the cluster.
MS1054-0321
Galaxy Cluster MS1054-0321
The image, taken by the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2, shows a clearer view of the galaxies in the heart of the cluster. The width of this massive cluster is a few million light-years.
TMR-1C
Follow-Up Observations Show Potential Planet TMR-1C is Really a Star
This NASA Hubble Telescope near-infrared image of newborn binary stars (image center) reveals a long thin nebula pointing toward a faint companion object (bottom left) which could be the first extrasolar planet to be imaged directly. The brightest objects in the image are the binary protostars,...
Saturn
Saturn
This color image of Saturn was taken with the HST's Wide Field and Planetary Camera (WF/PC) in the wide field mode at 8:25 A.M. EDT, August 26, 1990, when the planet was at a distance of 1.39 billion kilometers (860 million miles) from Earth. The color in the image is reconstructed by...
Beta Pictoris d
VLT image of the Beta Pictoris d exoplanet
This image, taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) shows Beta Pictoris d, a new planet found orbiting the star Beta Pictoris. The star is at the centre of the frame, and was subtracted when processing the data, revealing the environment around it. The new planet, indicated with an arrow,...
Beta Pictoris d
The Beta Pictoris d exoplanet observed over the years
This series of images shows observations of the exoplanet Beta Pictoris d over more than a decade. This planet was first discovered using the ERIS instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Astronomers were then able to find it in archival data taken with the SPHERE instrument, also at...
Beta Pictoris
Around Beta Pictoris
Beta Pictoris is located about 60 light-years away towards the constellation of Pictor (the Painter's Easel) and is one of the best-known examples of a star surrounded by a dusty debris disc. This image, based on data from the Digitized Sky Survey 2, shows a region of approximately 1.7 x 2.3...
Gemini North image of the field around "Shadow Blaster"
This image shows the field around the gravitationally lensed galaxy nicknamed "Shadow Blaster." This galaxy lies 11 billion light-years away and sits just behind the bright red galaxy at the center of this image. The red foreground galaxy acts like a cosmic magnifying glass, enlarging and...
ALMA image of "Shadow Blaster"
This image shows a close-up of the gravitationally lensed galaxy nicknamed "Shadow Blaster," which astronomers have identified as the likely source of the high-energy neutrino event IC 210922A, detected by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in 2021. Gravitational lensing occurs when a very...
RCW 94
Wide-field view around the RCW 94/95 nebulae
This image from the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) shows the region of the sky around the RCW 94 and RCW 95 nebulae, seen here at the centre of the image. The nebulae are part of a larger complex of clouds resembling a bat, with RCW 94 representing the right wing and RCW 95 the body, respectively.
RCW 94
The RCW 94/95 nebulae in visible light
This image shows a cloud of gas and dust, shaped like a cosmic bat. The image was obtained in visible light with the VLT Survey Telescope (VST), hosted at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. The intense red glow comes from hydrogen atoms ionised by the intense radiation of young stars within...
RCW 94
The RCW 94/95 nebulae in visible and infrared light
This image shows a cloud of gas and dust, shaped like a cosmic bat. The image was obtained mostly in visible light with the VLT Survey Telescope (VST), hosted at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. The intense red glow comes from hydrogen atoms ionised by the intense radiation of young stars...
Portion of Virgo Cluster (with asteroids)
A close-up on two galactic members of the Virgo Cluster as imaged by NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory. During its observations Rubin captured a plethora of asteroids zipping across this portion of the night sky, indicated by the tri-colored streaks scattered throughout this image. View a...
Tarantula Nebula
Binary star imaged by GRAVITY+
This image, one of the first obtained with VLTI/GRAVITY+ working with four lasers, shows a binary star in the central region of the Tarantula Nebula, a star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The binary was originally thought to be an extremely massive star, but the new observations...
3I/ATLAS
VLT image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS (18 January 2026)
This image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was taken on 18 January 2026 with the FORS2 instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). It is a stack of several images spanning 14 minutes. As the comet moves on the sky, the stars appear as trails in the background.
3I/ATLAS
VLT image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS (18 February 2026)
This image of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was taken on 18 February 2026 with the FORS2 instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). It is a stack of several images spanning 13 minutes. As the comet moves on the sky, the stars appear as trails in the background.
3I/ATLAS
VLT spectrum of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS
This image shows part of the spectrum of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, captured between 6 and 26 December 2025 with the UVES instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Using UVES, astronomers studied the spectral signatures of cyanide, a molecule comprised of a carbon atom and a nitrogen...
ALMA image of the ‘cosmic joust’
This image, taken with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), shows the molecular gas content of two galaxies involved in a cosmic collision. The one on the right hosts a quasar –– a supermassive black hole that is accreting material from its surroundings and releasing intense...
2M1510 (AB) b
2M1510 AB, a pair of brown dwarfs with an exoplanet in a perpendicular orbit
This image, taken in visible light, shows 2M1510 AB, a pair of brown dwarfs orbiting each other. The two brown dwarfs, A and B, are seen as a single source in this image, but we know there are two of them because they periodically eclipse each other. When monitoring their orbits, astronomers...
Wide-field view of the region of the sky around a ‘cosmic joust’
This wide-field view shows the region of the sky around a pair of interacting galaxies, nicknamed the 'cosmic joust', in which one of them is piercing the other with intense radiation. The galaxies appear as a tiny white dot at the centre of this image. The Atacama Large...
NGC 6723
Starry chandelier
The subject of today’s ESA/Hubble Picture of the Month is an ancient inhabitant of our galaxy. This sparkling scene is of a globular cluster: a collection of tens of thousands to millions of stars, all tightly bound together under the influence of gravity. Astronomers know of more than 150...
NGC 4594
Sombrero Galaxy: The Universe’s Dusty Brimmed Hat
Messier 104, nicknamed the Sombrero galaxy, is a popular target for amateur observing and astronomical research. Its recognizable extended halo and dust-filled disk are captured in this image from the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam) mounted on the U.S. National...
Gum 10
Celebrating the birth of new stars... and the VST!
Imagine for a moment you are lying back, gazing up at the red-orange celestial clouds in today’s Picture of the Week. What shapes do you see? A chicken pecking seeds on the ground, the head of a dragon, or something else entirely? These pareidolia-inducing clouds are a pair of nebulae —...
