On April 25, 1990, NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) into orbit to explore the final frontier. In the twenty-six years since, it’s done exactly what it was intended to do and more, capturing some of the most impressive and iconic images, all of which are literally out of this world.
Although its replacement already has a 2018 launch date scheduled, NASA has announced Hubble will continue to operate in its current capacity until 2021 while helmed by the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.
Considering its last service mission — carried out in 2009 — was only expected to permit five more years of operation, it’s amazing that this 24,000 pound machine is still capturing images with the help of its 7.9-foot mirror seven years later.
The extra years are more than welcomed, though. By extending Hubble’s operational timeframe, its use will overlap with the operation of its successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
While Hubble views the world through visible and ultraviolet light, the JWST will see only in infrared. By combining the imaging capabilities of both telescopes, astronomers will be able to view outer space with even more detail than originally expected through the capture of an even larger collection of wavelengths.
Hubble user Boris Gänsicke of the University of Warwick said to New Scientist, “It’s fantastic news […] It will give us two completely independent ways of analyzing the same materials, which greatly strengthens the result and allows us to work out what kind of minerals these asteroids were made of.”
But until the two telescopes are in the sky together, it’s up to Hubble to continue wowing the world with incredible images. If history is anything to go by though, there’s no reason to believe that won’t be the case.
Fujifilm just gave its most popular instant camera a serious digital upgrade. The Instax Mini Evo 2 now comes with a touchscreen, larger sensor, and a video feature that captures four seconds before each photo. It is set to arrive by the end of November for $289.95.
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Full-frame cameras tend to be chunky beasts, but Sigma wants to prove that big imaging doesn't need a big body. Enter the Sigma FP2, the successor to its tiny, boxy fp mirrorless camera. It keeps the same modular design but packs in some serious upgrades, including a 24.5-megapixel partially stacked full-frame sensor, improved autofocus, 6K video recording, and 70GB of built-in storage. Sigma calls it the world's smallest full-frame camera, and while it might be tiny, the same cannot be said for its price tag.
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A phone thermal camera is one of those tools you don’t think you need until the first time it saves you from an expensive problem, and the Thermal Master P3 just got easier to try. For Halloween, it’s discounted with the code THERMCAM10, a 10% cut that works out to $107 off the total. It’s also fresh off a win at the 2026 Tom’s Guide AI Awards for best phone thermal camera, which is the kind of third-party nod that separates a serious tool from the cheap clip-on sensors that flood this category.