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A COSMIC COLLISION
 The
telescope monitored Supernova 1987A, the closest exploding
star in four centuries, providing (for the first time) pictures
of a collision between a wave of material ejected from the
doomed star and a ring of matter surrounding it. The collision
has already begun to illuminate the central ring. In the next
decade astronomers expect even more material to hit the ring,
illuminating the surrounding material, and thereby literally
throwing light on the exploding star's history.
A
FEEDING FRENZY
 Hubble
also is yielding clues to what is causing the flurry of activity
in the hearts of many galaxies. These central regions are
very crowded, with stars, dust, and gas competing for space.
But Hubble managed to probe these dense regions, providing
decisive evidence that supermassive black holes — compact
"monsters" that gobble up any material that ventures near
them — reside in the centers of many galaxies. These
elusive "eating machines" cannot be observed directly, because
nothing, even light, escapes their stranglehold. But the telescope
provided indirect, yet compelling, evidence of their existence.
Hubble's crisp images revealed a doughnut-shaped structure
composed of dust and gas around a central object, presumably
a black hole. The telescope also helped astronomers determine
the masses of several black holes by measuring the velocities
of material whirling around them.
NATURE'S "LIGHTBULBS"
 Most
scientists believe that black holes are the "engines" that
power quasars, powerful light beacons located more than halfway
across the universe. Hubble has surveyed quasars, confirming
that nature's brightest "lightbulbs" reside in galaxies. The
observations also revealed that many of these galaxies are
merging with other galaxies. The mergers kick up lots of dust
and gas, providing an important clue for how black holes feed
and power quasars.
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