Added on Aug 16, 2010

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Hubblecast 36: "Gifts from the sky - Honouring 20 years of Hubble Space Telescope". The best recognised, longest-lived and most prolific space observatory zooms past a milestone of 20 years of operation. On 24 April 1990, the Space Shuttle and crew of STS-31 were launched to deploy the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope into a low-Earth orbit. What followed was one of the most remarkable sagas of the space age. --- Please subscribe to Science & Reason: • www.youtube.com • www.youtube.com • www.youtube.com --- Hubbles unprecedented capabilities have made it one of the most powerful science instruments ever conceived by humans, and certainly the one most embraced by the public. Hubbles discoveries have revolutionised nearly all areas of current astronomical research, from planetary science to cosmology. And, its pictures are unmistakably out of this world. At times Hubbles starry odyssey has played out like a space soap opera: with broken equipment, a bleary-eyed primary mirror and even a Space Shuttle rescue/repair mission cancellation. But the ingenuity and dedication of Hubble scientists, engineers, and NASA and ESA astronauts have allowed the observatory to rebound time and time again. Its crisp vision continues to challenge scientists with exciting new surprises and to enthral the public with ever more evocative colour images. NASA, ESA and the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) are celebrating Hubbles journey of exploration with a stunning new picture. Another ...

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