First Pictures of a Planet in the Fomalhaut System

Extrasolar planets are being discovered by astronomers routinely these days. It's now a fact that out galaxy is rich with planets of different sizes and distances from their parent stars. It's just like what science fiction writers have envisioned all this time. But while we used to only read about such discoveries and pictures of the new planets are always unavailable.

Now, for the first time, astronomers have shown pictures of a planet (Fomalhaut b) of the Fomalhaut (Arabic for "mouth of fish") system. The picture of the star, which is surrounded by a ring of gas that looks like the Eye of Sauron in the Lord of the Rings movies, was taken way back in 2006, but the discovery of Fomalhaut b was released only on November 13, 2008.

It is one of the first visible-light images of a planet that's 25 light years from our Sun. The camera used to capture it is mounted on the Hubble Space Telescope. Astronomer Paul Kalas and his team at the University of California in Berkeley, were responsible for the images.

Save gas! Convert your car to burn water.

Step-by-Step Guide to Increase IQ

Jupiter's Upper Equatorial Stripe Disappears

These pictures of Jupiter's clouds were taken by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). It has captured a dramatic change in the upper equatorial band of Jupiter. It appears to have disappeared and merged with the darker bands. Something is going on in Jupiter's atmosphere that we can only guess on. The two white stripes of Jupiter had always been a favorite sight to see by amateur astronomers using their small-aperture telescopes.

Hubble Shoots Ceres and Vesta to Prepare for Dawn

There are photographs of asteroids Ceres (left) and Vesta (right), two of the most popular asteriods and much viewed by amateur astronomers in the solar system apart from Eros. The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has taken their photographs to help prepare for the coming mission of the Dawn spacecraft, which will be the first satellite to tour a dwarf planet. To see a movie clip of Vesta rotating, click here.

Dark Matter Ring in Galaxy Cluster Photographed

For the first time in history, scientists may have solid visual proof of the existence of dark matter, which supposedly makes up a large percentage of the universe, and which, it has been theorized, can reverse the expansion process and may cause the cosmos to collapse in on itself. The galaxy cluster pictured here was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and is five billion light years away. The distinct ring of dark matter measures 2.6 million light years across. NASAs James Jee says, "Although the invisible matter has been found before in other galaxy clusters, it has never been detected to be so largely separated from the hot gas and the galaxies that make up galaxy clusters." Jee also works at the Johns Hopkins University. "Nature is doing an experiment for us that we can't do in a lab, and it agrees with our theoretical models," said team member Holland Ford. The astronomers said they made the discovery accidentally while mapping the distribution of dark matter within the ZwC10024+1652 cluster in August 2006.

Carina Nebula HST Photo Is Like Art

This is the Hubble Space Telescope's (HST) wide angle photo of the Carina nebula. It is reminiscent of impressionist, even abstract art. Can you name an artist with a style similar to what's depicted in this picture?

Jupiter's Northern Lights Twice the Size of Earth

Pictured here are Jupiter's northern lights (aurora borealis) which measure twice the size of Earth. Taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, the ultraviolet data is in blue. The magenta flash is a powerful x-ray source taken by the Chandra X-ray observatory. See the animation of a rotating Jupiter on the left. It emits radiation every 45 minutes and was first detected in 1979 by the Einstein x-ray satellite, although the location of the source was unknown. Scientists still don't have an explanation for the emission. It is one of the mysteries of the jovian planet that may take a while to solve.

Titan Parades in Saturn Movie

See the giant moon of Saturn, Titan parade across the ringed-planet's surface together with its shadow in a movie made by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Astronomers say it is one of the most amazing sights anyone may witness in a movie. Astronomers involed in the project are proud to have woven images of Saturn, its rings, and several of its moons into three movies. Click the title or picture link to view the amazing movies.