Stephans Quintet deep space star galaxy cluster Cutting Board

Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series A clash among members of a famous galaxy quintet reveals an assortment of stars across a wide colour range, from young, blue stars to aging, red stars. This portrait of Stephan's Quintet, also known as Hickson Compact Group 92, was taken by the new Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) aboard NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Stephan's Quintet, as the name implies, is a group of five galaxies. Spied by Edouard M. Stephan in 1877, Stephan's Quintet is the first compact group ever discovered. WFC3 observed the quintet in July and August 2009. The composite image was made by using filters that isolate light from the blue, green, and infrared portions of the spectrum, as well as emission from ionized hydrogen. These Hubble observations are part of the Hubble Servicing Mission 4 Early Release Observations. NASA astronauts installed the WFC3 camera during a servicing mission to upgrade and repair the 19-year-old Hubble telescope. image code: stkcg Image credit: ASA, ESA, and the Hubble SM4 ERO Team