The Hubble Space Telescope The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was launched into low-earth orbit in 1990, and still remains in operation today. The Hubble Telescope is named after astronomer Edwin Hubble, and isn't the first telescope, but one of the largest. The Hubble Space Telescope can see a distance of 14 billion light years, allowing us to glimpse galaxies formed shortly after the Big Bang. Hubble features a 2.4 meters, 94 inches, mirror, and it has five main instruments that observe in the ultraviolet, visible, and near-infared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Hubble is the only telescope designed to be maintained in space by astronauts, and five space shuttle missions have repaired, upgraded, and replaced systems on the telescope, including all five main instruments.