This high-resolution image of the HUDF includes galaxies of various ages, sizes, shapes, and colors. The smallest, reddest galaxies, about 100, are some of the most distant galaxies to have been imaged by an optical telescope, existing when the universe was just 800 million years old.

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field, or HUDF, is an image of a small region of space in the constellation Fornax, composited from Hubble Space Telescope data accumulated over a period from September 3, 2003 through January 16, 2004. It is the deepest image of the universe ever taken in visible light, looking back in time more than 13 billion years. The HUDF contains an estimated 10,000 galaxies^[1]. The patch of sky in which the galaxies reside (just one-tenth the diameter of the full moon as viewed from Earth) was chosen because it had a low density of bright stars in the near-field. Although most of the targets visible in the Hubble image can also be seen at infrared wavelengths by ground-based telescopes, Hubble is the only instrument which can make observations of these distant targets at visible wavelengths. Located southwest of Orion in the Southern-Hemisphere constellation Fornax at right ascension 3h 32m 40.0s, declination -27° 47' 29" (J2000), the image covers 36.7 square arcminutes^[2]. This is smaller than a 1 mm by 1 mm square of paper held 1 meter away, and equal to roughly one thirteen-millionth of the total area of the sky. The image is oriented such that the upper left corner points toward north (-46.4°) on the celestial sphere. The star near the center of the field is USNO-A2.0 0600-01400432 with apparent magnitude of 18.95. Download high resolution version (900x900, 105 KB)Description: Galaxies, galaxies everywhere - as far as NASAs Hubble Space Telescope can see. ... Download high resolution version (900x900, 105 KB)Description: Galaxies, galaxies everywhere - as far as NASAs Hubble Space Telescope can see. ... Layers of Atmosphere - not to scale (NOAA)[1] Outer space, sometimes simply called space, refers to the relatively empty regions of the universe outside the atmospheres of celestial bodies. ... Fornax (Latin for furnace) is a southern constellation which was first introduced by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille under the name Fornax Chemica (Latin for chemical furnace). ... The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is a telescope in orbit around the Earth, named after astronomer Edwin Hubble. ... is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 16th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Universe (disambiguation). ... The optical spectrum (light or visible spectrum) is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that is visible to the human eye. ... For other uses, see Galaxy (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Full Moon. ... This article is about Earth as a planet. ... For other uses, see Infrared (disambiguation). ... Orion (IPA: ), a constellation often referred to as The Hunter, is a prominent constellation, one of the largest and perhaps the best-known and most conspicuous in the sky[1]. Its brilliant stars are found on the celestial equator and are visible throughout the world, making this constellation globally recognized. ... southern hemisphere highlighted in yellow (Antarctica not depicted). ... Fornax (Latin for furnace) is a southern constellation which was first introduced by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille under the name Fornax Chemica (Latin for chemical furnace). ... Equatorial Coordinates Right ascension (abbrev. ... In astronomy, declination (abbrev. ... The J2000. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The celestial sphere is divided by the celestial equator. ... Aerial view of USNO. The United States Naval Observatory (USNO) is one of the oldest scientific agencies in the United States. ... The apparent magnitude (m) of a star, planet or other celestial body is a measure of its apparent brightness as seen by an observer on Earth. ...

In total, the image required 800 exposures taken over the course of 400 Hubble orbits around Earth. The total amount of exposure time was 11.3 days for the ACS and 4.5 days for the NICMOS. Introduction The Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) is a third generation axial instrument aboard the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). ... The Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) is a scientific instrument for infrared astronomy, installed on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), operating from 1997 to 1999, and from 2002 to the present. ...

According to the Big Bang theory, the universe has a finite age, so we might expect very distant (and hence very young) galaxies to look different from the typical older galaxies we see today. This is indeed seen in the HUDF, although some argue^{[citation needed]} that the difference is partly a result of the unusual wavelength used for the HUDF (corresponding to ultraviolet light from the rest-frame of the most distant galaxies)^{[citation needed]}. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field also shows more evidence for galaxy formation and merging than in local studies, as expected for the early universe. For other uses, see Big Bang (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ultraviolet (disambiguation). ... A source of light waves moving to the right with velocity 0. ...

Location of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field on the sky.

Image File history File links Size of this preview: 427 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,390 × 1,950 pixels, file size: 477 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Location of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field on the sky. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 427 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,390 × 1,950 pixels, file size: 477 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Location of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field on the sky. ...

See also

• Hubble Deep Field
• Hubble Deep Field South

The Hubble Deep Field The Hubble Deep Field (HDF) is the result of a series of observations by the Hubble Space Telescope of a small region of the northern celestial hemisphere. ... The Hubble Deep Field South. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Hubble Ultra Deep Field

• Hubble's Deepest View Ever of the Universe Unveils Earliest Galaxies - NASA press release
• NASA site with animations
• Exploring galaxy formation in the early universe - How did the first galaxies get so large so quickly?
• Scalable interactive UDF with 10,000 galaxies mapped. WIKISKY.ORG

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ...

References