Our previous post briefly mentioned telescopes in orbit around Earth as a platform for viewing astronomical objects. Space telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) provide humanity with unparalleled views of God’s created universe far beyond our Milky Way Galaxy. Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is but one of several hundred billion or more galaxies.
Telescopes were developed early in the 17th century. Galileo Galilei produced a simple telescope in 1608. It collected more light than the human eye and enabled early astronomers to enhance their visual experience, whether at close range or millions of miles distant in outer space. Light rays which ordinarily travel in a straight line can be refracted or reflected according to natural laws. God is the creator of natural laws. Telescopes and binoculars make use of the characteristics of visible light to perceive our environment more accurately.
Technology has enabled humanity to discover marvelous truths about our divinely created universe. Telescopes in earth orbit operate above our planet’s thick atmosphere which distorts light rays and generates turbulence. We are able to observe the wonders of the cosmos in high definition.
Telescope technology has improved in concert with our nation’s advancement in space travel. Humanity has treated space as the “new frontier.” Only recently has man wished to travel to the Moon, to other planets, or beyond. These facts explain why our nation’s scientists have allocated millions of dollars to develop telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and in August 2026 the launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (NGRST). Each telescope is named after an astronomer: Edwin Hubble, in 1929, discovered that the universe is expanding; James Webb was an early administrator for NASA; Nancy Grace Roman (1925-2018) was chief astronomer at NASA. Roman originated the concept of the Hubble Space Telescope, earning the title “Mother of Hubble.” Dozens of NASA space telescopes constructed and launched since the “space race” began have allowed our scientists to experience the wonders of God’s creative artistry.
In 1995 the HST focused on a tiny area of sky near the constellation Ursa Major thought to be devoid of astronomical objects. It encompasses one 24-millionth of the area of the entire celestial sphere which surrounds Planet Earth. That “empty” patch of sky was actually filled with billions of galaxies, each containing billions of stars. The HST is able to observe galaxies which originated 11 or 12 billion years ago in our newly-created universe (Genesis 1:1).
JWST is able to “see” galaxies even older than 11 or 12 billion years. In this way we may call the instrument the ultimate time machine, enabling humanity to observe past events which occurred up to 13.4 billion years ago. That means we observe events which occurred shortly after the beginning of time! Scientists use multiple dating methods to arrive at a consensus of 13.8 billion years for the age of our universe. “These methods work together to create a multi-faceted and robust picture of the universe’s age, providing scientists with high confidence in the 13.8-billion year estimate.” (Quote from The Science Times)
The NGRST studies millions of exoplanets outside our own Solar System. Its chronograph is able to block out light from distant stars and determine conditions on the exoplanets surrounding them. It also studies the mysterious dark energy which permeates our universe. It is a wide-field telescope able to observe large portions of the cosmos all at once. As such, it manifests the “big picture” of our enormous cosmos to modern astronomers.
“When I look at Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” (Psalm 8:3-4 ESV)
