Week 9: Space + Art

Space, is probably the biggest mystery that humans have been trying to solve for thousands of years. Yet comparing to the great unknown universe, human's discovery so far still seems like nothing, even though we have already taken a huge leap forward in the study of space.

On the left is one of the Beijing ancient observatory, one of the oldest in the world. Built during the Ming Dynasty(about A.D. 1442), the Beijing ancient observatory engaged in astronomical observations for nearly 500 years, from the Ming dynasty to 1929. It has maintained the longest continuous observation records among all the existing observatories in the world.





And on the right is the world's most famous telescope, Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990. It was launched by NASA and European Space Agency, and currently orbiting earth. Hubble is the first major optical telescope to be placed in space. Above the distortion of the atmosphere, far far above rain clouds and light pollution, Hubble has an unobstructed view of the universe. Scientists have used Hubble to observe the most distant stars and galaxies as well as the most distant stars and galaxies as well as the planets in solar system. Hubble's launch in 1990 marked the most significant advance in astronomy since Galileo's telescope.

With today's scientific progress, we have already been able to answer a lot of questions concerning the universe. For example, by using data from NASA's Great Observatories, astronomers have found the best evidence yet for cosmic seeds in the early universe that should grow into supermassive black holes. New finding suggest that some of the first black holes formed directly when a cloud of gas collapsed, bypassing any other intermediate phases, such as the formation and subsequent destruction of a massive star.


Obviously, the universe is too great for human being to explore it all at this stage. The space explorations the humankind has had so far is still like a drop in the sea.

Citations:

 Vesna, Victoria. "8 Space Pt1 1280x720." YouTube. Uconlineprogram, 2013. Web. 29 May 2016.

Garner, Rob. "About the Hubble Space Telescope." NASA. NASA, 11 Apr. 2016. Web. 29 May 2016.

Chou, Felicia, and Sean Potter. "NASA Telescopes Find Clues For How Giant Black Holes Formed So Quickly." NASA. NASA, 24 May 2016. Web. 29 May 2016.

Kelly. "Beijing Ancient Observatory — One of the Oldest in the World." ChinaHighlights. 5 Nov. 2015. Web. 29 May 2016.

 Moseman, Andrew. "The 5 Most Powerful Telescopes, and 5 That Will Define the Future of Astronomy." Popular Mechanics. 2009. Web. 29 May 2016.