Fusion Image 3
Source: Johann Bode, Uranographia (Berlin, 1801); History of Science Collections, University of Oklahoma Libraries
Object: Hubble Deep Field in Ursa Major the Big Bear; R. Williams (STScI), the Hubble Deep Field Team and NASA/ESA
Composite: The Sky Tonight, skytonight.org (CC-by)
Object description
The original Hubble Deep Field observations were taken over 10 consecutive days during December, 1995. Astronomers pointed the Hubble to an empty spot in the sky, to see if it might be possible to view through a narrow “keyhole” all the way to the visible horizon of the universe. The result was astonishing: almost 1,500 galaxies, in a bewildering variety of shapes and colors. The result is a photo album of the early days of the universe, capturing a time when the first galaxies had not yet formed many stars.
Constellation description
Ursa Major the Big Bear is included in the ancient star catalogs of Eudoxos of Knidos, Aratos of Soli, and Ptolemy. It is the third largest of the 88 modern constellations.
Source Description
Bode’s magnificent atlas fused artistic beauty and scientific precision. 20 large copperplate engravings plot more than 17,000 stars, far more than any previous atlas. Bode depicted more than 100 constellations, compared with 88 officially recognized today. Bode also included 2,500 cloudy patches, or “nebulae,” cataloged by William Herschel. Bode, director of the Observatory of the Berlin Academy of Sciences, produced the last of the four major celestial atlases in which artful depictions of constellation figures appear alongside the most up-to-date scientific data.