Name That Nebula Game

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a … dumbbell?

Hubble Nebula - Helix Nebula

People see all kinds of shapes in the cosmic clouds of the universe, from owls to soccer balls, skulls to insects. Test your nebulae knowledge and match these tumultuous clouds of gas and dust with their true names. Click the image below to begin.

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Hubble Celebrates 34th Anniversary with a Look at the Little Dumbbell Nebula
View a collection of Hubble's nebula images taken over the years.

Hubble's Nebulae

These ethereal veils of gas and dust tell the story of star birth and death.

Hubble's cosmic menagerie of nebulae observations holds a wide variety of awe-inspiring forms, each one revealing part of a grand story of how stars evolve. Find out about the types of nebulae and the science behind them.

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Faint, wispy clouds glow from the light of a central, pale star. A hole in the clouds, roughly in the shape of a keyhole, shows black space.
This cosmic keyhole, called NGC 1999, is a reflection nebula residing some 1,350 light-years from Earth near the Orion Nebula. Reflection nebulae shine by the light from an embedded source. In the case of NGC 1999, this source is the newborn star V380 Orionis, which is visible near the center of the image.
NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI)

More Things Hubble

  • nearly spherical gathering of white stars at center top. Blue gas cloud extends from top left to center bottom

    Hubble Science Highlights

    Hubble’s most notable scientific discoveries reflect the broad range of research and the breakthroughs it has achieved.

  • Upper left: "Hubble Focus" opening of the telescope is the "O" Center: bright-white star, Center Bottom: Orange-red planet with cloud bands, Center: small, bright-white star and very small red-orange dwarf star

    Hubble E-books

    Investigate the mysteries of the universe with Hubble. Learn Hubble's history. E-books dive deeper into Hubble discoveries and more.

  • An astronaut stands in front of a background of a nebula against a deep field of galaxies. The words "Name That Nebula" hovers above.

    Hubble Online Activities

    Find your Hubble birthday image, take interactive tours, play games, and more.

  • Two astronauts service Hubble, one standing in the space shuttle cargo bay and one attached to a robotic arm, with the Earth in the background in the upper half of the picture.

    Hubble Servicing Missions

    Hubble’s serviceable design and modular components enabled upgrades that took advantage of advancements in technology. Astronauts used this capability to service Hubble five times.

  • Hubble Nebula - Crab Nebula

    Explore the Night Sky

    Your backyard telescope and binoculars may not have the capabilities of Hubble, but you can still see amazing objects. Compare what you see with the images Hubble has taken.

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5 min read

NASA’s Chandra, Hubble Tune Into ‘Flame-Throwing’ Guitar Nebula

Normally found only in heavy metal bands or certain post-apocalyptic films, a “flame-throwing guitar” has now been spotted moving through space. Astronomers have captured movies of this extreme cosmic object using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and Hubble Space Telescope. The new movie of Chandra (red) and Palomar (blue) data helps break down what is playing […]

Article14 hours ago
In the center is a large, oval-shaped galaxy, with a shining, ringed core. Left of its center is a second, smaller galaxy with two spiral arms. The galaxy pair is so close that they appear to be merging: a tail of material with a few glowing spots connects from one of the smaller galaxy’s spiral arms to the larger galaxy. A faint halo surrounds both galaxies. Several stars are visible around the pair.
2 min read

Hubble Takes a Look at Tangled Galaxies

Article6 days ago
Labeled “Artist’s Concept” at bottom right, the graphic shows a closeup of a dwarf galaxy, which appears roughly circular with a light-yellow bar in the center. Faint, blue, wispy, cloud-like features surround this yellow bar, and they are sprinkled with tiny white specks. A wide, wispy, purple arc appears to the left of the galaxy. Trailing the galaxy is a large, faint, wide, tail-like feature.
5 min read

NASA’s Hubble Sees Aftermath of Galaxy’s Scrape with Milky Way

Article7 days ago