Hubble Deep Field Image Released

Space Telescope Science Institute director Robert Williams presented the Hubble Deep Field image at the American Astronomical Society meeting in San Antonio. Assembled from 342 exposures taken between December 18 and 28, 1995, the image captured a seemingly empty patch of sky in Ursa Major near the Big Dipper's handle. The resulting composite revealed approximately 3,000 galaxies at various evolutionary stages, some dating to within a billion years of the universe's origin. Williams used his director's discretionary observation time for the project.