Cloud-9: First of A New Type of Astronomical Object | Hubble Space Telescope FriendsofNASA.org | Full Article: https://www.friendsofnasa.org/2026/01/cloud-9-first-of-new-type-of.html A team using the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope has uncovered a new type of astronomical object—a starless, gas-rich, dark-matter cloud that is considered a “relic” or remnant of early galaxy formation. Nicknamed “Cloud-9,” this is the first confirmed detection of such an object in the Universe. T

The Hale Telescope is used every night for astronomical research thanks to a modern and evolving instrument suite. Some of the Hale instrumentation uses adaptive optics capabilities that correct for distortions caused by Earth’s atmosphere—known as seeing, what makes stars twinkle—to deliver sharp images comparable to those produced by space telescopes from a ground-based facility. PALM-3000 is the facility adaptive optics system for the Hale Telescope. The heart of the system is a deformable mi