'Hubble's back': NASA Hubble Space Telescope captures 'rarely observed' galaxies

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope is back in action of exploring the universe near and far after a month-long technical glitch in its payload computer. The computers and instruments have returned to fully operational format and have released some pictures taken from the giant equipment. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the images captured are of two unusual galaxies.

Pair of interacting galaxies

NASA released Hubble's images of a pair of interacting galaxies in the southern hemisphere, named ARP-MADORE2115-273 (left) and ARP-MADORE0002-503 (right). These snapshots, from a program led by Julianne Dalcanton of the University of Washington in Seattle, feature a galaxy with unusual extended spiral arms and the first high-resolution glimpse at an intriguing pair of colliding galaxies. Other initial targets for Hubble included globular star clusters and aurorae on the giant planet Jupiter, NASA informed. “I’m thrilled to see that Hubble has its eye back on the universe, once again capturing the kind of images that have intrigued and inspired us for decades,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said on July 20, Tuesday. “This is a moment to celebrate the success of a team truly dedicated to the mission. Through their efforts, Hubble will continue its 32nd year of discovery, and we will continue to learn from the observatory’s transformational vision.”

NASA resolves technical glitch after a month

The Hubble Space Telescope shut down on June 13 due to a glitch in the payload computer.  As identified, the technical issues pertaining to the Hubble occurred due to the spacecraft's Power Control Unit (PCU). As initial problems, NASA discovered issues with the computer memory and prepared to study the Standard Interface Hardware (STINT) and the central processing module (CPM).

NASA shares image of a star trapped inside a bubble

In order to commemorate its outstanding performance, NASA has shared two pictures on Instagram which were taken by the Hubble telescope in 2016. "To celebrate, we’re taking you back to 2016 when our dear Hubble captured perhaps one of the most intriguing objects in our Milky Way galaxy: a massive star trapped inside a bubble! The star inside this Bubble Nebula burns a million times brighter than our Sun and produces powerful gaseous outflows that howl at more than four million miles per hour," read the post with caption- 'Our universe is FULL of strange and surprising things.' It further wrote, "Based on the rate the star is expending energy, scientists estimate in 10 to 20 million years it will explode as a supernova. And the bubble will succumb to a common fate: It’ll pop."

(Input: NASA/TWITTER/INSTAGRAM)