Hubble Deep Field (Deep Field Survey) captured by the Hubble Space Telescope for December 18
December 18Deep Field SurveyGalaxies

Hubble Deep Field

Observed in 1995

About This Image

Called the Hubble Deep Field, this image captures several hundred galaxies that had never been seen before. Some galaxies are near and some are very far. Their various shapes and colors provide clues about the evolution of the universe.

Scientific Significance

The Hubble Deep Field fundamentally changed extragalactic astronomy by exposing dense populations of faint early galaxies. It remains a core dataset for galaxy evolution and cosmic star-formation history.

Observation Details

Hubble combined many long exposures across filters and applied strict alignment and cosmic-ray rejection to reach extremely faint limits with preserved morphology.

Location in the Universe

Constellation

Ursa Major

Distance from Earth

Up to 12 billion light-years

Fun Facts

  • 1

    Most points in the image are entire galaxies, not stars in the Milky Way.

  • 2

    The deep field targeted a tiny sky patch that appeared nearly empty beforehand.

  • 3

    It revealed thousands of faint distant galaxies and reshaped survey strategy.

Image credit: NASA, ESA, Hubble Space Telescope