FireFly

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1: HUBBLE'S UNIVERSE
Chapter 2: HUBBLE'S TOP SCIENCE ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Chapter 3: THE MESSAGE OF STARLIGHT
Chapter 4: CRUCIBLES OF CREATION
Chapter 5: STARRY TAPESTRY
Chapter 6: BLAZE OF GLORY
Chapter 7: HUBBLE'S INVISIBLE UNIVERSE
Chapter 8: EMPIRES OF STARS
Chapter 9: NEIGHBOR WORLDS: THE PLANETS
Chapter 10: HUBBLE'S STRANGE UNIVERSE
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS
RESOURCES
INDEX

INTRODUCTION

In addition to being one of the greatest scientific instruments of all time, the Hubble Space Telescope has given humanity a spectacular legacy of beautiful images of the universe. The best of these are displayed--and explained--in this book.

As a teenager in the 1950s, I was captivated by the science fiction of the brilliant visionary Arthur C. Clarke. Browsing the local library, I stumbled upon Clarke's early nonfiction work The Exploration of Space, published in 1951. Half a century later, The New York Times described this classic text as "a seamless blend of scientific expertise and poetic imagination that helped usher in the space age."

It was in the pages of Clarke's book that I first encountered the concept of a telescope in orbit around our planet. This telescope would peer at the universe from well above the interference of the Earth's ever turbulent atmosphere, which relentlessly blurs the view in ground-based telescopes and makes stars twinkle. Ahead of his time, Clarke outlined the advantages of an orbiting telescope compared with a telescope that might, at some future point, be installed on the Moon's surface, as had been suggested decades earlier. "Even the Moon's extremely tenuous atmosphere might affect certain delicate observations," he wrote. "[Moreover,] an observatory in space would be able to survey the complete sphere of the sky."

The orbiting scope should even be able to detect planets of nearby stars, enthused Clarke, "something quite out of the question with Earth-based equipment." I couldn't wait! During breaks at my first summer job in the shipping department of a publishing house, I made endless pencil sketches on large sheets of brown paper. I imagined just what the photos from that great eye-in-the-sky would look like--images that would show surface details on the moons of Jupiter, views deep within the core of the globular cluster M13, and so on--until my boss saw what I was up to and cautioned me not to waste any more shipping paper.

Today, the orbiting telescope Clarke envisioned is known as the Hubble Space Telescope, and it has been in service since 1990. That telescope has captured stupendous full-color images that depict the subjects of my crude brown-paper sketches and hundreds more of objects I hadn't yet conjured. What a pleasure it has been to select more than 300 of Hubble's best cosmic portraits for this book. While many of these images have never before appeared in print outside scientific journals and research publications, some were released by the Space Telescope Science Institute as recently as spring 2012. All are accompanied by captions and text that will serve as navigational tools as you undertake this breathtaking journey.

Hubble's Universe is a celebration of the astonishing achievements of a remarkable discovery machine. Enjoy the excursion!

--Terence Dickinson

 

Part gorgeous coffee-table book, [part] mesmerizing astronomy book, Dickinson's latest is a treasure map to the majesty of our universe.
-   Publisher's Weekly  2012 09 17

Hubble's Universe....a reminder that the finest telescope in space might also be the greatest camera ever created.
-   The Wall Street Journal  2012 09 29

Superbly well-produced. Any engagement with this "cosmic portfolio," from picture gazing to deep reading, is grandly rewarded.
- Donna Seaman  Booklist  2012 12 01

A visually breathtaking array of Hubble's images in an extraordinary new volume...a book to fill readers with wonder.
- Steven W. Beattie  Quill and Quire  2012 11 29

{starred review) Dickinson details the Hubble Space Telescope's contributions to science in both text and images. The book's precise descriptions and captions brilliantly complement the nearly 300 full-color Hubble images that form the bulk of the work. Its ten chapters showcase a selection of Hubble's most significant images with explanations of the discoveries they helped make. Especially fantastic are the images of solar wind stripping away large gas clouds that harbor stellar nurseries; images of Hubble's deep field, revealing galaxy clusters from halfway across the universe; and sublime images of vast, colorful nebulas.... Dickinson explains how all the photographed objects fit into scientists' understanding of cosmology, adding extra context to the pictures. Even if you only look at the pictures, this is an amazing book. The accompanying text and photo captions make the work outstanding.
- Jeffrey Beall, University of Colorado Denver Library  Library Journal  2013 01 01

Stunningly colourful and surreal photos of cosmic columns, spiral galaxies, nebulas and pulsating stars...accompanied by clear, accessible explanatory text.
-   Globe and Mail, Christmas 2012 Gift Book List  2012 12 08

You won't find a better celestial tour guide than Dickinson. Pick up Hubble's Universe and enjoy the ride.
- John McPhee  Halifax Chronicle Herald  2012 12 09

The science in it is excellent, as a layman's introduction to some otherwise difficult concepts.... Highly recommended.
- John O. Christensen  Science Books and Film  2012 11 01

The array of pictures is simply awesome... This book is basically a feast of astrophotography.
- Evan Gough  Universe Today  2012 12 05

This catalogue of discoveries made thanks to the Hubble telescope works just as well as an otherworldly art book.
- David Fuller  Winnipeg Free Press  2012 12 01

There's a new Hubble picture book every year, but this year we're lucky to have one authored by the guy who wrote NightWatch and The Universe and Beyond.
- Alan Boyle  Cosmic Log on NBC News.com  2012 12 19

Dickinson showcases extraordinary late-breaking pictures, many of which have yet to receive wide distribution...and presents a breathtaking portfolio drawn from an archive of over 500,000 existing Hubble images. The accompanying text balances accuracy with accessibility, Dickinson's hallmark. And thanks to the author's familiarity with Hubble's history and discoveries and his access to top Hubble scientists for insight and accuracy, the text includes facts and tidbits not found in any other book. Combined with hundreds of brilliant images, the clear narrative brings to life the fascinating forces at work in the universe.
-   Lunar and Planetary Information Bulletin  2012 11 01