Space Telescope Science Institute

We’re getting a “crash course” on the types of collisions occurring around distant, young stars. Astronomers compiled the largest sample of these “extreme” debris disks to date thanks to the James Webb and retired Spitzer space telescopes. By studying their mineralogical makeup, in particular their silica content, scientists could infer the types of collisions—high-energy, head-on crashes or less energetic interactions like grazing—and the general size of the crashing bodies—Moon- or Mars-sized—that are contributing to the disks’ dust content.

Understanding the types of impacts “feeding” extreme debris disks is improving scientists’ knowledge of our own solar system, which is thought to have undergone similar collisional events—one of which shaped Earth and the Moon: https://news.stsci.edu/47mLryB

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s fine-guidance system, which allows the observatory to lock very steadily onto its targets during observations, passed a spate of tests from Sept. 15 to 21. Then on Sept. 22, the mission’s Coronagraph Instrument opened its eyes to cosmic light for the very first time.

NASA Checks Roman Guidance System, Takes First Coronagraph Observation - NASA Science NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s fine-guidance system, which allows the observatory to lock very steadily onto its targets during observations,

Observed by the James Webb Space Telescope in celebration of its fourth anniversary, Centaurus A, a galaxy warped by a massive collision roughly two billion years ago, is now available as a printable poster.

The poster is available single- or double-sided. The double-sided version includes the image on the front and a description in both English and Spanish on the back.

Download this high-resolution poster here: https://go.nasa.gov/4hwsDlf

Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Elizabeth Wheatley (STScI).

This view, reminiscent of a cavern, is a portion of the galaxy Messier 51. With the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers were able to uncover an incredible amount of detail.

Red and orange gas clumps stretch across this section of one of the galaxy’s spiral arms. Within and near these knots and strands of gas, which stretch tens or thousands of light-years across, are luminous white clusters of young, massive stars.

Standalone stars, which appear as points of light, also densely dot the spiral galaxy’s arm.

Credit: Credit: ESA, NASA, CSA, A. Pedrini, A. Adamo (Stockholm University), FEAST JWST team.

NASA has now confirmed all ground stations supporting the agency’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope are ready to receive the mission’s high volume of data once science operations begin by early 2027.

Large file incoming 📡

Ground systems worldwide supporting the Roman Space Telescope have confirmed the ability to receive the 1.4 terabytes
of daily data!

Learn more: https://go.nasa.gov/4ykCGB2

Within Sagittarius C, a star-forming region that lies near the core of our Milky Way galaxy, is a massive protostar over 30 times the mass of our Sun. This protostar was previously hidden due to the dense cloud of matter, known as an infrared-dark cloud—but was revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope.

This cloud is so dense that light from many other, far smaller actively forming stars can’t reach Webb. This makes the region appear much less crowded when it’s actually one of the most densely packed areas in the region.

Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Samuel Crowe (UVA).

Adopt a pixel from one of Roman’s first images! Each pixel will represent a unique piece of the cosmos.

Join over 500,000 of our friends that have already claimed theirs: https://go.nasa.gov/4rsehqo

More than 5 billion miles around Earth, 1.7 million total observations—and now, 200,000 orbits! The Hubble Space Telescope completed this milestone on September 19, 2026.

One observation taken on that day was fitting for this moment, highlighting one of Hubble’s defining scientific legacies: measuring the expansion rate of the universe. This massive galaxy cluster MACS J0417 helps scientists further understand what’s known as the Hubble Constant: https://go.nasa.gov/4h812b9