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59 big bangs - Hubble space telescope snaps galaxies as they smash into each other
Last updated at 16:54pm on 24th April 2008

New images taken by the Hubble space telescope show galaxies spinning, sliding and smashing into each nother, wreaking stellar destruction that will give birth to new and larger galaxies. A portfolio of 59 new Hubble images was released today to celebrate the telescope's birthday. "This new Hubble atlas dramatically illustrates how galaxy collisions produce a remarkable variety of intricate structures in never-before-seen detail," Nasa said in a statement. When galaxies collide: Two images released today show different star systems merging- "Astronomers observe only one out of a million galaxies in the nearby universe in the act of colliding. "However, galaxy mergers were much more common long ago when they were closer together, because the expanding universe was smaller." The colour images, released by the Nasa-affiliated Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, are a look back in time. It takes hundreds of millions of years for galaxies to merge and the light from their stars has travelled for hundreds of millions of years across space.
Because it orbits outside the Earth's atmosphere, Hubble's cameras can take extremely sharp images. Scroll down for more... Galactic tango: Today's shots were released to mark Hubble's 18th birthdayThe telescope was launched on the Space Shuttle Discovery 18 years ago today. Its fate has been a matter of controversy, as the device requires regular servicing by Space Shuttle astronauts to stay in working condition. After the 2003 Columbia Shuttle disaster, a servicing mission initially planned for 2004 was cancelled. Nasa had planned at one point to abandon the telescope, hugely popular among astronomers. But after an outcry, the U.S. space agency relented and a final Hubble servicing mission is scheduled for August. In 2013, the more powerful infrared James Webb Space Telescope is scheduled to replace Hubble.