15-Dec-2008:

In this new Hubblecast Special episode, Dr. J guides us through the seventh chapter of Eyes on the Skies, the International Astronomical Union's movie celebrating the telescope's 400th anniversary in 2009.

The Eyes on the Skies movie explores the many facets of the telescope — the historical development, the scientific importance, the technological breakthroughs, and also the people behind this ground-breaking invention, their triumphs and their failures.

The telescope has been mankind's window on the Universe for four hundred years. It has provided scientists with unprecedented views of planets, stars and galaxies from our cosmic doorstep to the very depths of space and time. But despite their incredible performance, even the newest and most powerful telescopes leave room for improvement. Astronomers always want to venture beyond their current horizons. In this final chapter we take a look at things to come — the revolutionary ground-based telescopes and space observatories of the future. One thing is certain: there is much left to discover.

Links
Watch the Hubblecast 25
Eyes on the Skies website
International Year of Astronomy 2009
International Astronomical Union

Contacts

Lars Lindberg Christensen
Hubble/ESA, Garching, Germany
Tel: +49-89-3200-6761
Cellular: +49-173-3872-621
E-mail: lars@eso.org