在哈勃空间望远镜（Hubble Space Telescope）运行25年、全程达到48亿公里之后，美国国家航空航天局（NASA）和欧洲空间局（ESA）正在展示这架望远镜的各项观测成果。这架于1990年4月发射的观测仪器观测到了宇宙最遥远的星际空间， 加深了我们对大爆炸（Big Bang）以来的宇宙事件的认识。

NASA科学项目理事会（Science Mission Directorate）的退役宇航员约翰·格伦斯菲尔德（John Grunsfeld）说：“哈勃望远镜彻底改变了我们对宇宙的看法，展现了宇宙真正的美景和丰富性。”

哈勃空间望远镜具有以下几个特征：

• 长度近似于一辆公共汽车（13.3米），重量超过1万2千公斤。
• 在地球上方550千米的轨道上，每90分钟环绕地球一周。
• 能观测到极远的地方——相当于一个人站在华盛顿（Washington）能看到东京（Tokyo）的一对萤火虫。
• 通过一个直径约为2.4米的主镜，穿越数百万光年观测到久远的宇宙事件。

哈勃望远镜得到了超过120万个观测图像，改变了科学家观测太空的方式，并估算出宇宙的年龄介于130亿年到140亿年之间。

哈勃望远镜为发现暗能量发挥了关键作用。暗能量是一种推动宇宙加速扩展的神秘力量。

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Things you should know about the Hubble Space Telescope

After 25 years and 4.8 billion kilometers, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are celebrating the achievements of the Hubble Space Telescope. The observational instrument, launched in April 1990, peers into the most distant corners of the universe, advancing our understanding of cosmic events since the Big Bang.

“Hubble has completely transformed our view of the universe, revealing the true beauty and richness of the cosmos,” said John Grunsfeld, former astronaut with NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

The space telescope:

• Is as long as a bus (13.3 meters) and weighs more than 12,000 kilograms.
• Makes a full orbit around the Earth every 90 minutes, at an altitude of 550 kilometers.
• Can see a really long way — the equivalent of a person who is standing in Washington and can see a pair of fireflies in Tokyo.
• Has peered across millions of light-years to see cosmic events of long ago, using a primary mirror about 2.4 meters in diameter.

Hubble’s more than 1.2 million observations have transformed the way scientists look at space and have dated the universe at 13 billion to 14 billion years old.

The telescope played a key role in the discovery of dark energy, a mysterious force that is causing the accelerated expansion of the universe.

Find out more about the Hubble Space Telescope on the NASA website.