We’ve all been used by now to see extraordinary images photographed from space with advanced telescopes. Stars, galaxies, quasars, supernovae, nebulae, neutron stars, and more. But as for now, in 2021, very few such images can still leave us speechless.
However, one of those images that can take our breath away is a recent photo of the good old Hubble of a nebula that looks as it’s “eaten from within” by puzzling void.
Let’s set the stage for the N44 nebula!
N44 is the nebula that contains a lot of space objects and structures worth exploring. From stars to shiny hydrogen gas, they’re all there waiting for humanity to analyze them up-close one day. But nothing is so puzzling as the “superbubble” of the void that looks as it’s eating the nebula itself from within.
The good old Hubble has once again captured a memorable photo, and you are free to feast your eyes on it below:
There’s nothing like a good stellar mystery 🤔
In this newly released Hubble image of N44, a dark, starry gap spans about 250 light-years and its presence remains unexplained. Uncover more about this image: https://t.co/nEb1sbKyPn#NebulaNovember pic.twitter.com/RkR3q6W4Ba
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) November 2, 2021
The world is only a matter of weeks away until the next-generation James Webb Space Telescope will take Hubble’s place. After a glorious history of over three decades, Hubble is finally meeting its retirement.
Webb will be analyzing galaxies and other cosmic structures in much deeper detail than other telescopes had done it before. For instance, astronomers aim to use the next-generation telescope for diving deeper into the understanding of the supermassive black hole from the center of our Milky Way galaxy. It is suspected that pretty much every galaxy in the Universe has a supermassive black hole located in its center, and oddly enough, these cosmic monsters don’t have only a destructive role.
There are literally trillions of galaxies out there in the observable Universe, and scientists hope to learn a lot more about them using the James Webb Space Telescope.