Space Telescope Science Institute Archives

From Lothringer et al. (2022). The HST/WFC3-UVIS/G280 transmission spectrum of WASP-178b shows enormous absorption in the NUV by metal species. Observations of other planets hint at a trend of NUV metal absorption increasing somewhere between equilibrium temperatures of 1900 and 2200 K. -- astro-ph.IM

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Characterizing Transiting Exoplanet Atmospheres in the 2030s with the Hubble Space Telescope

by Keith CowingJune 5, 2026June 5, 2026

The Hubble Space Telescope inaugurated the era of exoplanet atmospheric characterization. While the James Webb Space Telescope has largely taken up the mantle of infrared atmospheric characterization, Hubble’s unique short-wavelength […]

AI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, Status Report

Roman Space Telescope Science Platform Will Open New Frontiers in Space Science

by Keith CowingApril 16, 2026April 16, 2026

With the release of the cloud-hosted Roman Research Nexus, STScI provides astronomers around the world an environment where they can prepare to work with the massive data stream expected from […]

Looking at ice-giant planet Uranus over the course of 20 years - STSCI

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Ice Giant, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Uranus, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

20-Year Hubble Study of Uranus Yields New Atmospheric Insights

by Keith CowingApril 2, 2025May 12, 2025

The ice-giant planet Uranus, which travels around the Sun tipped on its side, is a weird and mysterious world. Now, in an unprecedented study spanning two decades, researchers using NASA’s […]

This artist’s concept shows what the exoplanet WASP-39 b could look like based on indirect transit observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope as well as other space- and ground-based telescopes. Data collected by Webb’s NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) show variations between the eternal morning and evening atmosphere of the planet. -- NASA, ESA, CSA, R. Crawford (STScI)

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

Webb Investigates Sunrises And Sunsets On Distant World WASP-39 b

by Keith CowingOctober 21, 2024October 21, 2024

Researchers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have finally confirmed what models have previously predicted: An exoplanet has differences between its eternal morning and eternal evening atmosphere.

This artwork highlights a pair of recently uncovered brown dwarf twins, named Gliese 229Ba and Gliese 229Bb. Gliese 229B, discovered in 1995, was the first-ever confirmed brown dwarf, but until now astronomers thought they were observing a single body not two. New observations from the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Chile revealed that the orb is two brown dwarfs tightly orbiting around each other every 12 days (as indicated by the orange and blue orbital lines), with a separation only 16 times larger than the distance between Earth and the Moon. The brown dwarf pair orbit a cool M-dwarf star every 250 years. CREDIT K. Miller, R. Hurt (Caltech/IPAC)

Gas Giants, Jupiter, Press Release

Mystery Of Famed Brown Dwarf Gliese 229B Solved

by Keith CowingOctober 21, 2024

Hundreds of papers have been written about the first known brown dwarf, Gliese 229B, since its discovery by Caltech researchers at the Institute’s Palomar Observatory in 1995. But a pressing […]

A small rocky exoplanet -- Grok via Astrobiology.com

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Rocky Worlds Director’s Discretionary Time (DDT) Selects Its First Targets

by Keith CowingSeptember 21, 2024September 21, 2024

The Rocky Worlds DDT Program will use JWST to search for atmospheres around a dozen nearby M-dwarf exoplanets while using HST to characterize activity in the host stars. Over the […]

The Webb version of the Pillars of Creation image showcases orange and orange-brown dust that is semi-transparent, with light blue ionized gas against a dark blue background. larger image

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

Astrochemistry and Astrophysics Interplay: The Pillars of Creation – Where Embryonic Stars Form

by Keith CowingJune 27, 2024June 27, 2024

Made famous in 1995 by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, the Pillars of Creation in the heart of the Eagle Nebula have captured imaginations worldwide with their arresting, ethereal beauty.

In this image of the Serpens Nebula from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers found a grouping of aligned protostellar outflows within one small region (the top left corner). Serpens is a reflection nebula, which means it’s a cloud of gas and dust that does not create its own light, but instead shines by reflecting the light from stars close to or within the nebula. NASA, ESA, CSA, K. Pontoppidan (NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory) and J. Green (Space Telescope Science Institute).

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

Astrochemistry Update: First of Its Kind Detection Made in Striking New Webb Image

by Keith CowingJune 21, 2024June 21, 2024

For the first time, a phenomenon astronomers have long hoped to directly image has been captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). In this stunning image of […]