Math & science · 1990

Hubble Space Telescope

A 2.4 m telescope above the atmosphere gives the sharpest views of the universe.

After a 1993 repair of its mirror flaw, it measured the expansion rate, found supermassive black holes and made the Deep Field images. It remains one of the most productive instruments in science.

See it in the living tree Wikipedia

Arcs above join it to what it stood on, arcs below to what it led to. The bar places this stretch on the tree's whole timeline.

What it built on 3

Space Shuttle 1981
Liquid-fuel rocket 1926
Telescope 1608

What it led to 4

Accelerating universe 1998
James Webb Space Telescope 2021
Rubin Observatory first images 2025
Roman Space Telescope launches 2026

Watch

30 Years of Science with the Hubble Space TelescopeEuropean Space Agency, ESA · YouTube Hubble’s 30th Anniversary ImageNASA Goddard · YouTube

Related measurements

The dashed line marks when it first worked.

Objects launched into space Latest: 4.51k per year (2025) Source: Our World in Data

Payloads in low Earth orbit Latest: 14.5k objects (2025) Source: Our World in Data