NASA scientist answers how Hubble is still revolutionizing modern astronomy

Jennifer Wiseman, senior project scientist of Hubble answered questions on NASA's Hubble telescope that has been into the Earth's orbit for more than 30 years now. The 'question & answer' session video was posted on the official YouTube channel of the space agency where the scientist explained how Hubble is still revolutionizing modern astronomy for researchers.

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"The Hubble Space Telescope has been operating for 30 years, but it is still very powerful. I think we humans have a curiosity about how we fit into the natural world and how our planet fits into this much larger universe. We have a lot more to learn and one of the things that Hubble has told us through its observations is that our universe is really active and dynamic. The galaxies, the stars, the planets are not just sitting there stagnant. We actually have learned through Hubble observations that stars are still forming in these interstellar clouds," Wiseman said in the video.  

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"We have learned that our own solar system is incredibly dynamic. One of the earliest observations from Hubble showed a comet crashing into Jupiter. We've discovered actually, that the moons around the planets in our own solar system are interesting places in their own right. Hubble found evidence for water vapour plumes being ejected from the surface of the moon Europa around Jupiter. So Hubble continues to be at the forefront of astronomical exploration," Wiseman explained. 

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NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is the first major optical telescope to be placed in space. The Hubble telescope is placed above the distortion of the atmosphere, far above rain clouds and light pollution, and has an unobstructed view of the universe. Scientists have used Hubble to observe the most distant stars and galaxies as well as the planets in our solar system. The Hubble has been in service since its deployment in April 1990 and it is considered the most significant advance in astronomy since Galileo's telescope. 

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(Image Credit: NASA)