... we didn't bother to ask whether we should. - Jeff Goldblum, Jurassic Park

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Awesome site. What's the penalty for a philosophical interlude? :- )

I'll brave it, amigos ... there's a high correlation (> 0.80, I'd say) between interest in astronomy and interest in science fiction. The SETI folks are interested in astronomy, it would seem. The Hubble Telescope is relevant to those perplexed by The Great Silence.

If philosophy ain't your thang, please feel free to scroll past. If it is, here's my $0.02...

(Image source: engadget)

"Thou shalt not make a machine in the image of man" - Frank Herbert, Dune series.

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The Hubble Space Telescope was deliberately designed to allow upgrades via servicing missions while the telescope remains in orbit. The plan was for shuttle missions to carry upgrades, new equipment and tools for repair and dock near the telescope, near enough that astronauts can repair and upgrade the telescope while it remains in orbit. This has worked extremely well.

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What could these mysterious objects be?  Eggs in space?  Or cosmic river rocks?  Find out here and check out more cool pictures courtesy of the Hubble Telescope.

New images from the Hubble Telescope show a mystery object out in space. The super-bright object was observed for 100 days and then it just disappeared. The mysterious object is not being identified as a supernova, or as belonging to any galaxy, no one knows exactly what it is. Read more here. Does anyone have any ideas?

Well, they're just partly to blame. Next month the Space Shuttle Atlantis will be embarking on a mission to do repairs on the eighteen year-old Hubble Telescope. This mission might prove to be a bit tricky due to all the debris floating about in space. According to an article in the Christian Science Monitor:

"The environment where the Hubble orbits, about 350 miles above the Earth’s surface, has more debris than where the International Space Station orbits and where most shuttle missions are conducted, at about 210 miles above the Earth. This “space junk” includes defunct satellites and spent rocket stages, fragments from exploded satellites, rocket engine effluents, paint flakes, and other small particles – all traveling at speeds of more than 15,000 miles per hour."

That doesn't sound very good.

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These images from the Hubble telescope are breath-taking. I haven't been able to stop looking at them. Some of these photos look like abstract or surreal art. It's an amazing universe that we live in, and we're very fortunate to have the tools to be able to look past the heavens into outer space. I can't help but wonder how in all this vastness we could possibly feel alone. It seems silly, I know, but you know there's other life out there. they're probably peering at us through their telescopes and wondering what we're looking at.

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Recently, the Hubble telescope was peering into George W. Bush's head and it found anti-matter--- a black hole.