From frosty Mars to dark nebula: 4 stunning images released by NASA on 35th anniversary of Hubble Telescope

This week marks 35 years since Hubble first left Earth aboard the space shuttleDiscovery. Instead of receiving birthday presents, Hubble hands out four breathtaking images that capture the beauty, mystery, and vastness of space.

From a frosty view of Mars to the haunting glow of a dying star’s nebula, these newly released photos are a celebration of Hubble’s legacy as one of humanity’s most powerful eyes on the universe. Over its three-and-a-half decades in orbit, Hubble has delivered more than 1.6 million observations and has been central to some of the greatest astronomical discoveries of our time.

In a commemorative release, NASA praised the telescope as a “glowing success story of America's technological prowess, unyielding scientific curiosity, and a reiteration of our nation's pioneering spirit.”

“It's stunning imagery inspired people across the globe, and the data behind those images revealed surprises about everything from early galaxies to planets in our own solar system,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, acting director of the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. “The fact that it is still operating today is a testament to the value of our flagship observatories.”

Let’s take a look at Hubble’s story—and the four new space images it’s gifting the world on this major milestone.

On April 24, 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched aboard the space shuttle Discovery, carrying 24,000 pounds of precision instruments into orbit. Free from Earth's atmosphere, Hubble could see farther and more clearly than ground-based telescopes ever could.

In its 35 years of service, Hubble has observed nearly 55,000 targets and contributed data to over 22,000 scientific papers. From measuring the universe’s expansion to identifying supermassive black holes and even detecting the atmospheres of exoplanets, Hubble has revolutionised modern astronomy. The telescope also helped uncover one of the greatest cosmic mysteries—dark energy.

One of the new images shared by NASA shows Mars as seen from 61 million miles away. Thanks to Hubble’s unique ultraviolet capability, the image reveals wispy clouds of water ice hovering above the Red Planet.

“Thin water-ice clouds, revealed by Hubble's unique ultraviolet capability, give the Red Planet a frosty appearance,” Hubble’s official social media post stated. The planet appears chilled and ghostly, a striking change from the familiar dusty red hues usually associated with it.

Another birthday image focuses on the brilliant nebula NGC 2899, located thousands of light-years from Earth. At its heart is a dying star, emitting powerful radiation and stellar winds that have sculpted the surrounding gas into glowing, symmetrical lobes.

NASA’s Hubble account on X described it vividly: the nebula is “sculpted by the outflow of radiation and stellar winds from a 40,000-degree-Fahrenheit dying star at its center.” The result is an ethereal bubble glowing in deep reds and blues—a fitting tribute to the cycle of stellar death and rebirth.

Hubble also turned its gaze toward a portion of the star-forming Rosette Nebula. The image reveals towering clouds of hydrogen gas laced with dark dust, backlit by the radiation of newborn stars. It’s a dynamic and chaotic region where new stars are still being born.

About 225 million light-years from Earth, the barred spiral galaxy NGC 5335 shines brightly in space. A clear bar runs through the middle of the galaxy, pulling gas toward the center and helping new stars form. Around the edges, patches of young stars twist and swirl, giving the galaxy a lively, glowing look.