Image credit: Brooke Simmons / NASA Hubble Space Telescope
Image credit: Brooke Simmons / NASA Hubble Space Telescope

 

In optical astronomy the Earth’s atmosphere plays all sorts of havoc with the light coming from objects we want to observe. This image shows how much more detail you can get if you manage to observe from above the atmosphere. On the left is an image from Galaxy Zoo, obtained via a ground-based telescope. On the right is the same galaxy, this time seen from the Hubble Space Telescope. Look at how much more detail there is, especially in the spiral arm structure!