The starry sky has always fascinated man; from the pre-historic times man has always wondered  what is up there that shines, what is up there that moves and in his quest to uncover the mysteries of space has made ample discoveries to satisfy his appetite for knowledge and curiosity, if only temporarily.

Named after Edwin Hubble, an astronomer who discovered that our universe is expanding, the Hubble Space Telescope is one the most versatile space telescopes ever and has drastically changed our understanding of the universe. With the Hubble already scheduled to be de-orbited somewhere between 2014 and 2021, end of an era is near. Today we pay homage to the Hubble by enlisting the top 10 images captured by it that changed the way we look at our universe.

No 10. Runaway galaxy

Starting off the list is the galaxy UGC 10214, also known as the tadpole galaxy. This galaxy is located some 400 million light years away from the earth in the Draco constellation. The apparent trial of the galaxy gives an impression of its running away or like being thrown with some thread wrapped around its sides. It’s a galaxy that actually collided with probably the galaxy seen at the upper-right corner of the big galaxy. The gravitational effects from the collision are responsible for the large trial that stretches over 220 thousand light years.

No 9. Disk galaxy NGC 5866

Also known as the spindle galaxy, this image is one of its kind. The image, of the galaxy seen side-on truly exemplifies the beauty of the universe. The most prominent feature of this image is its extended dust disk making this galaxy one of the brightest galaxies in the NGC 5866 Group.