Hubble Space Telescope
Mission overview
The Hubble Space Telescope is a NASA–ESA optical/ultraviolet observatory that has transformed astronomy since 1990.
Mission data
Identity and engineering data from Wikidata (type-verified match · Q2513) · launch date 1990-04-24 confirmed
| International designator | 1990-037B | Wikidata · catalogued |
Full field-level provenance
- International designator: Wikidata (Wikimedia Foundation) — community-curated structured knowledge base · Wikidata · wdt · P247 · catalogued value · retrieved 2026-07-11
Sourced from Wikidata (community-maintained structured data, whose statements link to their own citations where provided); each value carries its Wikidata QID. A field with conflicting Wikidata values is omitted. Launch date is used only to cross-check the catalogue, never to override it. Fields Wikidata did not provide, or where conflicting values exist, are omitted, never invented.
Derived values
Computed from source-backed inputs via standard formulae — not observations. Every input and constant is traced below.
- Time since launch36.2 yearscalculated
Formula & inputs
Formula: Δt = reference − launch (v1.0.0, impl v1.0.0)
Inputs:
- launchDate = 7418 days (JD-like) · NASA
Limitations: A time-dependent value: it is elapsed time as of the stated reference instant, not a fixed total.; Elapsed time since launch is not the same as time spent operating at the target.
Uncertainty: not propagated (inputs carry no catalogued uncertainty)
Computed as of 2026-06-29.
Outcome & discoveries
Refined the expansion rate of the universe and imaged the deep cosmos.
- ★Helped measure the accelerating expansion of the universe
- ★Hubble Deep Field views of the early universe
Scientific instruments
- Wide Field Camera 3Ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared imaging
Knowledge connections
- Operated byNASA
- Operated byESA
- Named afterEdwin Hubble
- StudiesAndromeda Galaxy
- StudiesCrab Nebula
- StudiesEagle Nebula
- StudiesWhirlpool Galaxy
- StudiesSombrero Galaxy
- StudiesLagoon Nebula
- Carries instrumentWide Field Camera 3
- Operated bySpace Telescope Science Institute
- ObservesUltraviolet
- ObservesVisible light
- ObservesNear-infrared
- ObservedEagle Nebula
- Has instrumentAdvanced Camera for Surveys
- Has instrumentCosmic Origins Spectrograph
- Has instrumentSpace Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
- Conducts surveyHubble Deep Field
- Conducts surveyHubble Ultra Deep Field
- Discovered2MASS J04414489+2301513 b
- DiscoveredCFHTWIR-Oph 98 b
- DiscoveredCHXR 73 b
- DiscoveredPSR B1620-26 b
Related missions
| Mission | Type | Agency | Launch | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom 7 (Mercury-Redstone 3) | Crewed suborbital | NASA | 1961-05-05 | Completed |
| Friendship 7 (Mercury-Atlas 6) | Crewed orbital | NASA | 1962-02-20 | Completed |
| Apollo 8The Moon | Crewed lunar orbit | NASA | 1968-12-21 | Completed |
| Apollo 11The Moon | Crewed lunar landing | NASA | 1969-07-16 | Completed |
| Apollo 13The Moon | Crewed lunar (aborted) | NASA | 1970-04-11 | Completed |
| Apollo 17The Moon | Crewed lunar landing | NASA | 1972-12-07 | Completed |
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.