Hubble Deep Field
December 18, 1995
The Hubble Deep Field image revealed thousands of galaxies in a tiny patch of sky, fundamentally changing our understanding of the universe's scale and the number of galaxies it contains.
This image was assembled from 342 separate exposures taken with the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 over ten consecutive days.
Pillars of Creation
April 1, 1995
These towering tendrils of cosmic dust and gas in the Eagle Nebula are a stellar nursery where new stars are forming. The tallest pillar is about 4 light-years high.
Recent observations suggest the pillars may have already been destroyed by a supernova explosion, but we won't see this from Earth for another thousand years due to the speed of light.
Perseverance Rover
February 18, 2021
NASA's Perseverance rover landed in Jezero Crater on Mars to search for signs of ancient microbial life and collect samples for future return to Earth.
The rover carries the Ingenuity helicopter, the first aircraft to achieve powered, controlled flight on another planet.
First Black Hole Image
April 10, 2019
The Event Horizon Telescope collaboration released the first-ever image of a black hole's shadow in the center of galaxy M87, located 55 million light-years away.
The black hole is 6.5 billion times more massive than our Sun, with an event horizon larger than our entire solar system.
James Webb Space Telescope
December 25, 2021
The most powerful space telescope ever launched, JWST observes the universe in infrared light, allowing it to see the first galaxies that formed after the Big Bang.
Its 6.5-meter primary mirror is made of 18 hexagonal segments that unfolded after launch, protected by a tennis court-sized sunshield.
Parker Solar Probe
August 12, 2018
NASA's mission to "touch the Sun" is studying the solar corona and solar wind at closer distances than any previous spacecraft.
The probe uses Venus gravity assists to gradually shrink its orbit, eventually coming within 6.2 million km of the Sun's surface, protected by a revolutionary heat shield.
SpaceX Starship Prototype
2020-Present
SpaceX's fully reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle designed for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. When complete, it will be the most powerful rocket ever built.
The stainless steel design uses Raptor engines burning methane/oxygen, chosen for potential in-situ resource utilization on Mars.
Neutron Star Merger
August 17, 2017
• Two ultra-dense star corpses (20km wide but 1-2 Suns mass)
• Spiral together at 60% light speed before collision
• For milliseconds, forms the densest matter in universe
• Ends as black hole or massive neutron star