NGC 5256 (ground-based view): This wide-field image shows the pair of galaxies known as NGC 5256 and their surroundings as seen from the ground. In the upper left corner two planes crossed the image. Due to the long exposure their position lights cause long streaks in the final image.

Name: NGC 5256
Type: Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Interacting
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Ursa Major
Distance: 350 million light years
Release date: 14 December 2017, 16:00
Credit: ESA, NASA, Digitized Sky Survey 2 Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Northern part of Abell 1758: This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the northern part of the galaxy cluster Abell 1758, A1758N. The cluster is approximately 3.2 billion light-years from Earth and is part of a larger structure containing two cluster sitting some 2.4 million light-years apart. But A1758N itself is further split into two sub-sections, known as East (A1758NE) and West (A1758NW). There appear to be disturbances within both of these sub-sections — strong evidence that they are the result of smaller clusters colliding and merging.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Local Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: ESA/Hubble, NASA

Northern part of Abell 1758: This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the northern part of the galaxy cluster Abell 1758, A1758N. The cluster is approximately 3.2 billion light-years from Earth and is part of a larger structure containing two cluster sitting some 2.4 million light-years apart. But A1758N itself is further split into two sub-sections, known as East (A1758NE) and West (A1758NW). There appear to be disturbances within both of these sub-sections — strong evidence that they are the result of smaller clusters colliding and merging.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Local Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: ESA/Hubble, NASA

Wide-field view of Abell 1758 (ground-based view): This image shows a ground-based wide-field view of the region around the galaxy cluster Abell 1758 from the Digitized Sky Survey 2.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Wide-field view of Abell 1758 (ground-based view): This image shows a ground-based wide-field view of the region around the galaxy cluster Abell 1758 from the Digitized Sky Survey 2.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Wide-field view of Abell 1758 (ground-based view): This image shows a ground-based wide-field view of the region around the galaxy cluster Abell 1758 from the Digitized Sky Survey 2.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Wide-field view of Abell 1758 (ground-based view): This image shows a ground-based wide-field view of the region around the galaxy cluster Abell 1758 from the Digitized Sky Survey 2.

Name: Abell 1758
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Canes Venatici
Distance: 3 billion light years
Release date: 18 January 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Multi-filter image of NGC 3344: This image of the spiral galaxy NGC 3344, located about 20 million light-years from Earth, is a composite of images taken through seven different filters. They cover wavelengths from the ultraviolet to the optical and the near-infrared. Together they create a detailed picture of the galaxy and allow astronomers to study many different aspects of it.

Name: NGC 3344
Type: Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Spiral
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Leo Minor
Distance: 20 million light years
Release date: 14 February 2018, 16:00
Credit: ESA/Hubble, NASA

Wide-field image of NGC 3344 (ground-based image): This ground-based image shows the spiral galaxy NGC 3344 and its surroundings.

Name: NGC 3344
Type: Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Spiral
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Leo Minor
Distance: 20 million light years
Release date: 14 February 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2; Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin.

Wasp-39b and its parent star (artist’s impression): A team of British and American astronomers used data from several telescopes on the ground and in space — among them the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope — to study the atmosphere of the hot, bloated, Saturn-mass exoplanet WASP-39b, about 700 light-years from Earth. The analysis of the spectrum showed a large amount of water in the exoplanet’s atmosphere — three times more than in Saturn’s atmosphere. WASP-39b is eight times closer to its parent star, WASP-39, than Mercury is to the Sun and it takes only four days to complete an orbit.

Name: WASP-39b
Type: Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material : Planetary System
Category: Exoplanets
Distance: 700 light years
Release date: 1 March 2018, 19:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, and G. Bacon (STScI)

Comprehensive Spectrum of WASP-39b: Using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescopes as well as data gathered by other telescopes in space and on the ground astronomers have analysed the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-39b. It is the most complete spectrum of an exoplanet’s atmosphere possible with present-day technology. By dissecting starlight filtering through the planet’s atmosphere into its component colours, the team found clear evidence for water vapour. Although the researchers predicted they would see water, they were surprised by how much water they found — three times as much as Saturn has. This suggests that the planet formed farther out from the star, where it was bombarded by icy material.

Name: WASP-39b
Type: Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material : Planetary System
Category: Exoplanets
Distance: 700 light years
Release date: 1 March 2018, 19:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, G. Bacon and A. Feild (STScI), and H. Wakeford (STScI/Univ. of Exeter)

Crash in progress: Arp 256 is a stunning system of two spiral galaxies, about 350 million light-years away, in an early stage of merging. The image, taken with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, displays two galaxies with strongly distorted shapes and an astonishing number of blue knots of star formation that look like exploding fireworks. The star formation was triggered by the close interaction between the two galaxies. This image was taken by Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) and the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). It is a new version of an image already released in 2008 that was part a large collection of 59 images of merging galaxies taken for Hubble’s 18th anniversary.

Name: Arp 256
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Type : Interacting
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Cetus
Distance: 350 million light years
Release date: 8 March 2018, 16:00
Credit: ESA/Hubble, NASA

Wide-field view of Arp 256 (ground-based image): This ground-based image shows the two spiral galaxies of the Arp 256 system and their surroundings.

Name: Arp 256
Type: Early Universe : Galaxy : Type : Interacting
Category: Galaxies
Constellation: Cetus
Distance: 350 million light years
Release date: 8 March 2018, 16:00
Credit: NASA, ESA, Digitized Sky Survey 2; Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin