Hubble eXtreme Deep Field - Farthest Ever View of the Universe

This video explains how astronomers meticulously assembled mankind's deepest view of the universe from combining Hubble Space Telescope exposures taken over the past decade. Guest scientists are Dr. Garth Illingworth and Dr. Marc Postman.

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Like photographers assembling a portfolio of best shots, astronomers have assembled a new, improved portrait of mankind's deepest-ever view of the universe. Called the eXtreme Deep Field, or XDF, the photo was assembled by combining 10 years of NASA Hubble Space Telescope photographs taken of a patch of sky at the center of the original Hubble Ultra Deep Field.

The XDF is a small fraction of the angular diameter of the full Moon. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field is an image of a small area of space in the constellation Fornax, created using Hubble Space Telescope data from 2003 and 2004. By collecting faint light over many hours of observation, it revealed thousands of galaxies, both nearby and very distant, making it the deepest image of the universe ever taken at that time.

The new full-color XDF image reaches much fainter galaxies and includes very deep exposures in red light from Hubble's new infrared camera, enabling new studies of the earliest galaxies in the universe. The XDF contains about 5,500 galaxies even within its smaller field of view. The faintest galaxies are one ten-billionth the brightness of what the human eye can see.

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Flight Through the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field

This scientific visualization depicts a flight through the galaxies in the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field (XDF). Using measured and estimated distances for approximately three thousand galaxies, astronomers and visualizers constructed a three-dimensional model of the XDF galaxy distribution. The camera traverses more than thirteen billion light-years of space. For cinematic reasons, the exceedingly vast distances in the 3D model have been greatly compressed.

Science Credit: G. Illingworth, P. Oesch, and D. Magee (University of California, Santa Cruz)

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Flight Through the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field (2D Zoom and 3D Fly-Through Sequence)

This video begins with a zoom into the small area of sky that the Hubble Space Telescope observed to construct the eXtreme Deep Field, or XDF. The region is located in the southern sky, far away from the glare of the Milky Way, the bright plane of our galaxy. In terms of angular size, the field is a fraction the angular diameter of the full Moon, yet it contains thousands of galaxies stretching back across time.

The video then depicts a flight through the galaxies in the XDF. Using measured and estimated redshifts for approximately three thousand galaxies, astronomers and visualizers constructed a three-dimensional model of the XDF galaxy distribution. The camera starts from Hubble's viewpoint, traverses more than thirteen billion light-years of space, and exits the data set past a "red dot" galaxy (or proto-galaxy) with a redshift of 7.82. For cinematic reasons, the exceedingly vast distances in the 3D model have been greatly compressed.

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XDF Moon Comparison Video

This video compares the angular size of the XDF field to the angular size of the full Moon. The XDF is a very small fraction of sky area, but it provides a "core sample" of the heavens by penetrating deep into space over a sightline of over 13 billion light-years. Several thousand galaxies are contained within this small field of view. At an angular diameter of one-half degree, the Moon spans an area of sky only one-half the width of a finger held at arm's length.

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Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Estacion, G. Bacon, L. Frattare, Z. Levay and F. Summers (STScI)

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Tags: hubble extreme deep field xdf ultra udf space telescope galaxies universe video 3d fly-through nasa
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[jamiegrogan]

I LOVE SCIENCE. It blows my mind at how beautiful and scary the universe is.

[vrzar]

when we gonna see the ultra giga drill explosion deep field?

[baiteme]

The universe is so complex it pisses me off.

[candyazz]

Man the deeper in space we explore the deeper my love is for this earth.

[MrRentgould]

I'm going to watch this every morning to remind myself of the enormity of the universe and how amazing it is. And how small and insignificant we really are. How seriously we take ourselves, ha Every moment is a miracle, we should be fearless in living.

[CyberDraco]

The tools we create with science reveal natures that legends of old and new could not begin to imagine.

You don't have to believe in the extremes that science has helped to uncover, but seriously, how could we make this stuff up?

[piffpete]

How can it zoom 13 billion light years away, but can't see in detail the Alpha Centuri star system just 4.2 light years away?

[Thesneakypotato]

We keep searching for life similar to the conditions we live in. what if there are life forms out there that can withstand even the most extreme temperatures. Just a thought but it fascinates me:)

[chrisjpritchard]

To help understand - If we use the analogy of a person looking through binoculars and seeing a forest in the distance then he will see the first cluster of trees . So at 1000s light years away we seem to be picking out a galaxy or star which is the equivalent of picking out first tree in the forest surrounded by bushes smaller trees . The idea that there are a million stars all backed up behind what we observe doesn't appear to be an issue. We seem to accept that we are always looking at the last row of stars/galaxy ( last row of trees in the forest)

[Riotboy]

Thank you astronomers for showing us the (early) light.

[munstrumridcully]

Looking at images of the Hubble Deep Field give me the closest thing to a "religious experience" I've ever felt. Exploring and explaining the majesty and mystery of the cosmos, even with all humanity has discovered in the last 400 years, is, imo, the most fascinating part of scientific endeavor, even if, sometimes, it isn't the most practical. I find it awe inspiring that we can even see such spectacular wonders from our "pale blue dot". =)

[CHV]

The end was awesome... and watching it high made it so much more appreciable. :)

[munseedelaware]

I base it on the fact that from ancient times to the present overwhelming amount of people have described the same exact crafts and the fact I saw the sun craft ( particles jumping around it ) come in from space in a clear sunset sky, sit in the sky for a few then make a triangle pattern, wiggling to each point and stopping at each point, back at the top it stood for a few then brightened three times and darted back out to space. And the nasa videos that show them move in the same manner I saw.

[zooeyhall]

Reading many of the comments to this video, I realize Idiocracy is alive and well and making good progress in America.

[azureskys]

This image is beautiful, extraordinary, mind boggling, thought provoking, and also depressing knowing how little we understand and the magnitude of time and distance on the Universal scale. Whats more depressing is how little we've advanced since the Space Age began due to petty problems made extremely obvious in internet video comments, especially like those on this page, that detract from progress, research, cooperation and advancement for momentary "hmmph, I'm right you're wrong" opinions.

[whacktom]

2:43 made me feel beautiful because this is our world

[nett]

This stuff just blows my mind. I love it.

[ColtaineCrows]

The scale of the universe is so incomprehensible.

[Khether]

I couldn't undestand the differences on the new image, would be nice to have an overlay comparing the two (if the new one is ready, of course)
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on the other hand, the zoom out of the small slice of the sky showing it against the moon size is AMAZING and it's the first time I've seen it! grats!

[SuperflyGaming]

Yes you are, you're the result of an impossible string of impossiblly unlikely chain of events. You are unbelievably unique. Make your life count, you in your universe are the most important of all creation, because without you there would be no universe to observe at all. You are important you always were, don't forget your destiny.