Happy Birthday Hubble

Today is the Hubble Space Telescope's 18th birthday. It was launched aboard space shuttle Discovery on April 24, 1990. After some growing pains in the first three years, the 1993 repair mission turned the telescope into a fully-functional and very clear-sighted window on the universe. I saw that mission on the launch pad in Florida as a 9th grade student, and that visit to Kennedy Space Center was the single biggest force in driving my future and my decision to become an aerospace engineer.

For more awesome images, visit the Hubble Gallery. Happy Birthday Hubble! Hopefully the final servicing mission later this year will give you many more years of beautiful picture-taking.