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Long before Galileo turned his telescope toward the night sky, people were studying the heavens. Today, powerful satellites are helping unlock the secrets of the universe. Satellites provide a clear view, undistorted by Earth’s atmosphere, of the Sun, stars, and distant galaxies.
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NASA’s Office of Space Science (OSS) operates NASA’s space-based observatories, including the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Researchers at OSS have calculated how quickly the universe is expanding, mapped Mars, witnessed a gamma ray burst, and discovered the source of fountains of electrified gas that flow from the Sun.
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The most famous astronomical satellite, the Hubble Space Telescope, has been in operation since 1990. The Hubble’s images have given us front-row seats to exploding stars and crashing comets. The Hubble is capable of “seeing” all forms of light, from ultraviolet to infrared. It was designed to meet four objectives: to investigate the composition and dynamics of celestial bodies; to examine the formation, structure, and evolution of stars and galaxies; to study the history of the universe; and to provide a research facility for optical astronomy.
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