“Resembling curling flames from a campfire, a magnificent nebula in a nearby galaxy observed by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope provides new insight into the fierce birth of stars as it may have occurred in the early universe.” images-assets.nasa.gov/image/PIA04222/PIA04222~orig.jpg

Researching space using the Hubble telescope in very basic ways relies on just observation and recording of observations.

There is, of course, interpretation and analysis of the data involved that goes beyond simple recording. A tremendous amount of software is used to interpret the data that the Hubble telescope receives. Researchers then add another layer of interpretation and analysis to that.

The use of the Hubble telescope itself indicates that the project involves more than “just” observation.

The caption below the photo (written by NASA) goes far beyond simple observation ; it uses words like “curling flames,” “magnificent,” and “fierce.” This language seems to be more artistic than scientific. This use of language is perhaps a way to make the photos more appealing to the general public. NASA is funded by taxpayers and if it can get more attention / support from the public it may get a larger budget. iNASA has to do more than observe and record: it has to remain relevant to taxpayers who pay for the research.


0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Avatar placeholder

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *