The images show an icy and dark molasses-colored, mottled world that is undergoing seasonal changes in its surface color and brightness.
Behind the Scenes Videos
Watch what it was like behind the scenes during Servicing Mission 4 with Mary Estación.
Astronauts Upgrade Hubble
STS-125: Atlantis
Images, videos and an interactive feature on the historic mission.
Featured Stories
New Hubble Maps of Pluto Show Surface Changes
Suspected Asteroid Crash Leaves Odd Debris Trail
The Hubble has observed a mysterious debris pattern that suggests a head-on collision between two asteroids. Such a smashup has never before been seen.
Hubble Catches End of Star-Making Party
Galaxies throughout the universe are ablaze with star birth. But for a nearby, small spiral galaxy, the star-making party is almost over.
Mission News
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NASA Provides Venerable Hubble Hardware to Smithsonian
Two key instruments from Hubble have a new home in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum after being returned to Earth aboard space shuttle Atlantis in May 2009.
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Servicing Mission Observatory Verification (SMOV) Update
Hubble is getting closer to completing the calibrations for most of its instruments, and each day it draws nearer to becoming a fully functioning observatory again. In fact, in the upcoming weeks, Hubble will concentrate on making high-priority science observations and then finish the remaining instrument calibrations by early fall.
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Servicing Mission Observatory Verification (SMOV) Update
As the first week of August comes to a close, most of Hubble’s science instruments have already completed or are close to completing their calibration activities. Each instrument has multiple channels that detect different wavelengths of light, and each channel must be tested and calibrated individually. While some instrument channels are still under evaluation, several others are already at work studying the universe.
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Hubble Space Telescope Status Report
Hubble engineers are encouraged by the recent restart attempt of an instrument that has been inoperable since Sept. 10, 2008.
Servicing Mission Feature Series
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The Hubble Space Telescope Observing Program
Unlike on many previous NASA space science missions, anyone can apply for observing time on the Hubble Space Telescope.
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Improving Hubble’s Space Armor
When astronauts return to Hubble for Servicing Mission 4 in 2009, they will be revamping and reenergizing the telescope for the final leg of its journey. One of the tasks they aim to complete is the installation of New Outer Blanket Layers, or NOBLs.
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Hubble Instruments Slated for On-Orbit 'Surgery'
When astronauts visit the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009 for its final servicing mission, they will be facing a task that has no precedence – performing on-orbit 'surgery' on two ailing science instruments that reside inside the telescope.
World Book at NASA
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Edwin P. Hubble
The work of American astronomer Edwin Powell Hubble revolutionized our understanding of the size and structure of the universe.
Related Links
Hubble Accomplishments
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Age of the Universe →
Thanks in part to the Hubble Space Telescope, we know the universe is 13.7 billion years old.
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At Galaxies' Cores →
Nearly all galaxies may harbor supermassive black holes.
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How Planets Form
The Hubble Space Telescope has helped scientists determine the process of how planets are born.
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Extrasolar Organic Matter
The Hubble Space Telescope detected the first organic molecule discovered on a planet outside our solar system.
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Dark Energy →
The Hubble Space Telescope detected a distant supernova that suggests the universe only recently began speeding up.
Hubble HD Video
Related Multimedia
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Return to Hubble
Coming soon to a telescope near you ...
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Hubble Gallery →
Hubble images of planets, stars, galaxies and more.
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Tonight's Sky →
Your guide to constellations, planets, events and more.
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Behind the Pictures →
Do Hubble pictures look like the objects would if we saw them ourselves?
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HubbleWatch →
Learn more about astronomy in our weekly Hubble Podcasts!
 "Hubble Servicing Mission 4")