Zoom out of Stephan’s Quintet

Scientists have concluded the checkout period for NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and are now revealing images showcasing the power of the much-improved observatory. In this zoom sequence Hubble’s new Wide Field Camera 3 focuses its attention on a group of five galaxies known as Stephan’s Quintet. Three of the galaxies are interacting, while one of the galaxies actually lies about seven times closer to Earth than the rest of the group. The wide range of colours in the image depicts the varying ages of the stars.

The video also highlights the imaging capability of the new Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) compared to the retired Wide Field Planetary Camera 2.