We’re fortunate to live in these times. Multiple space telescopes feed us a rich stream of astounding images that never seems to end. Each one is a portrait of some part of nature’s glory, enriched by the science behind it all.
All we have to do is revel in the wonder. The ESA’s Euclid space telescope is the latest one to enrich our inboxes. It was launched on July 1st, 2023, and delivered its first images in November of that year.
Now, we have five new images from Euclid, as well as the first science results from the wide-angle space telescope. “They give just a hint of what Euclid can do.” The images demonstrate the telescope’s power and its ability to address some of the deepest questions we have about the Universe.
They are also impressive because of their visual richness and because they took only 24 hours of the telescope’s expected six years of observing time. “Euclid is a unique, ground-breaking mission, and these are the first datasets to be made public – it’s an important milestone,” says Valeria Pettorino, ESA’s Euclid Project Scientist. “The images and associated science findings are impressively diverse in terms of the objects and distances observed.
They include a variety of science applications, and yet represent a mere 24 hours of observations. They give just a hint of what Euclid can do. We are looking forward to six more years of data to come!” The leading image is the most stunning and perhaps the most relatable.
It shows Messier.
