How Taking Pictures of 'Nothing' Changed Astronomy

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July 21, 2022

Dear Reader, This week, we are (or at least I am) still basking in the afterglow of the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope. Our lead story, from astrophysicist Fabio Pacucci, explains the surprising history behind one of those pictures in particular—a so-called "deep field" image of distant, ancient galaxies. Stay tuned next week for much more coverage of the latest news from the wide world of space and physics.

Lee Billings, Senior Editor, Space & Physics @LeeBillings

Astronomy How Taking Pictures of 'Nothing' Changed Astronomy Deep-field images of "empty" regions of the sky from Webb and other space telescopes are revealing more of the universe than we ever thought possible By Fabio Pacucci

Astronomy See the Oldest View of Our Known Universe, Just Revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope Decades of work, $10 billion in spending and nearly 14 billion years of cosmic history have brought us to this moment: the first science from the largest and most powerful observatory ever built. By Lee Billings,Jeffery DelViscio,Jason Drakeford,Tulika Bose,Sunya Bhutta,Henry DaCosta

Space Exploration A New Private Moon Race Kicks Off Soon Commercial spacecraft are vying to land on the lunar surface, but can they jump-start a new space economy? By Rebecca Boyle

Astronomy Maunakea's Controversial Telescopes Are Getting New Management Starting in 2023, control of the summit will shift from the University of Hawaii to an 11-member oversight authority that includes Native Hawaiian voices By Nadia Drake

Space Exploration Astronauts Will Wear These Spacesuits on the Moon--And Maybe Mars, Too The suits, supplied by Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace, will be used in NASA's upcoming Artemis lunar missions and will protect space travellers from micrometeoroids, moon dust and even vomit By Jonathan O'Callaghan

Oceans Exploration Is Fundamental to Human Success Discoveries inspire us, give us hope for a better future and pay off generously By The Editors

Astronomy Meet the Woman Who Makes the James Webb Space Telescope Work Jane Rigby, Webb's operations project scientist, discusses how NASA plans to wring as much science as possible from the $10-billion observatory By Lee Billings

Astronomy NASA Triumphantly Unveils Full Set of Webb's First Images Breathtaking pictures that include the deepest-ever infrared view of ancient galaxies offer a preview of the spectacular science in store for the most powerful space observatory in history By Lee Billings

Astronomy Webb's Record-Breaking First Image Shows Why We Build Telescopes A new galaxy-packed picture from the James Webb Space Telescope offers a chance to rekindle our wonder about the universe By Grant Tremblay

FROM THE STORE Extraterrestrials and the Search for Life Do aliens exist? The enduring mystery of whether we're alone in the universe is a question that continues to drive scientific study into groundbreaking directions. This collection examines the latest thinking in the search for life, from discussing why we haven't found evidence of aliens so far to determining where and how to conduct the search to opening up the possibilities for what otherworldly life could truly look like.

QUOTE OF THE DAY "You can barely see the stars from most cities nowadays. They're dimmed by the light-polluted haze and confused with swarms of satellites. Children look up and wonder what lies beyond. We build telescopes to show them, and to bring magic to their hearts." Grant Tremblay, astrophysicist

FROM THE ARCHIVE Behind Tomorrow's Telescopes: A Bitter Rivalry from Yesterday Old grudges between three teams of astronomers have threatened the survival of ground-based astronomy's boldest, biggest projects By Katie Worth | December 2015

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