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The making of a giant galaxy

Herschel Space Observatory Finds Galaxy Mega Merger

A massive and rare merging of two galaxies has been spotted in images taken by the Herschel space observatory, a European Space Agency mission with ...

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Artist's concept of the center of our galaxy

Milky Way Black Hole Snacks on Hot Gas

The supermassive black hole at the core of our Milky Way galaxy is gobbling up hot gas, according to a new study from the Herschel space observatory.

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Andromeda galaxy

Herschel Completes Its 'Cool' Journey in Space

The Herschel observatory, a European space telescope for which NASA helped build instruments and process data, has stopped making observations after ...

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This map shows the distribution of water in the stratosphere of Jupiter as measured with the Herschel space observatory

Herschel Links Water Around Jupiter to Comet Impact

Astronomers trace water in Jupiter's intermediate atmospheric layer back to the famous Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet impact of 19 years ago.

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Artist's impression of Starburst Galaxy

Astronomers Discover Massive Star Factory in Early ...

Busy-bee galaxy seen churning out stars when our universe was just a baby.

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Mission Images

The Making of a Giant Galaxy

The making of a giant galaxy

Several telescopes have teamed up to discover a rare and massive merging of two galaxies that took place when the universe was just 3 billion years old (its current age is about 14 billion years). ...

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Hustle and Bustle at Center of Milky Way

This artist's concept illustrates the frenzied activity at the core of our Milky Way galaxy

This artist's concept illustrates the frenzied activity at the core of our Milky Way galaxy. The galactic center hosts a supermassive black hole in the region known as Sagittarius A*, or Sgr A*, with ...

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Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 Approaching Jupiter in 1994

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 approaching Jupiter in 1994

This is a composite photo, assembled from separate images of Jupiter and comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, as imaged by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope in 1994.

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 was ...

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Mission Overview

    Herschel is a European Space Agency mission with significant participation from NASA. NASA played a key role in the development of two of the mission's three instruments, and will make important contributions to data and science analyses.
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