SXSW Interactive 2015
Hubble: Touching the Universe
The Hubble Space Telescope is widely regarded as the most important scientific instrument that humans have built. Through its breathtaking images, Hubble has opened our eyes to the wonders of the Universe and placed our world into a context of 100 billion stars in 100 billion galaxies. Hubble has imaged planets outside of our Solar System, has revealed the lifecycles of stars, has captured galaxies engulfing one another, and has measured the rate at which the Universe itself is expanding. Launched in the spring of 1990, Hubble remains our most powerful telescope and continues to tackle the biggest challenges on the grandest scales. This panel at SXSW 2015 will celebrate Hubble’s 25th anniversary by showcasing the biggest scientific discoveries and its impact on culture, reveal new capabilities that now make Hubble more powerful than ever to tackle new science challenges, and discuss how we explore beyond Hubble with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, set to launch in 2018.
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Takeaways
- What are Hubble's 5 most important discoveries? Hubble's scientific reach has shown no bounds. The first panel presentation will transport the audience through space and time with breathtaking Hubble imagery, cutting-edge visualizations, and fly-throughs of celestial wonders. From detailed examination of a comet’s impact with Jupiter to ultra deep images of newborn galaxies in the distant Universe, Hubble's greatest discoveries have revealed our place in the Universe as never before.
- Why has Hubble been so successful, for so long? In 1993, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2009, the full capabilities of NASA including its hero astronauts and iconic Space Shuttle visited Hubble to rescue, restore, and update its capabilities. Hear a personal perspective and see stunning images of servicing Hubble from one of Hubble's astronauts, Dr. John Grunsfeld. As a result of these servicing missions, the scientific productivity of Hubble has remained at a peak throughout its history.
- What's next for Hubble? Since the 2009 servicing mission, Hubble's instruments are functioning amazingly well. Hubble will now embark on new inspirational campaigns. Hubble will search for new bodies in the farthest reaches of our own Solar System, will chart the positions and motions of stars across the Milky Way, and will look deeper into the Universe than ever before using cosmic lenses. A leading NASA scientist will describe the future vision of this resilient telescope.
- How has Hubble impacted humans? The images from Hubble, targeting planets, stars, galaxies, black holes, dark matter, and dark energy, have transcended the boundary between science and culture. Through an impressive suite of visualizations, we will explore Hubble’s unique impact on science and its cultural expression through music, film, and art.
- What telescope will follow the footsteps of Hubble? NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is the successor to the iconic Hubble, and will be 100x more powerful. The Webb Telescope, with mirrors taller than a four-story building and a giant tennis court-sized sunshield, will be launched 1 million miles from Earth in 2018. Webb will reveal the Universe's first stars and galaxies, will uncover newborn Solar Systems, and will examine the detailed makeup of the atmospheres of other rocky worlds.
Speakers
- Jason Kalirai, Astrophysicist, Space Telescope Science Institute
- John Grunsfeld, Astronaut and NASA AA for Science, NASA
- Amber Straughn, NASA Astrophysicist, Deputy Project Scientist for JWST Outreach, NASA
- Blake Bullock, Director, Civil Air and Space, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems
Organizer
Jason Kalirai, Astrophysicist, Space Telescope Science Institute
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