Snapshot of the Universe

Although people have been studying the night sky for millennia, we still don’t have a complete catalog of all the objects in our own solar system—let alone the rest of the universe. That’s especially true of moving bodies, like rocky asteroids and icy comets. The Rubin Observatory will help scientists learn more about everything orbiting our sun. That includes millions of as-yet undetected asteroids, some of which could pose a threat to life on Earth.

Farther afield, the telescope will track known stars and exoplanets—planets outside our solar system. It’s expected to photograph billions of previously unknown galaxies too. The telescope will also be able to detect objects that change position or brightness over short periods of time. These events often don’t last long, making them difficult for scientists to catch. One such example would be exploding stars called supernovas, which can shine brighter than entire galaxies before quickly fading away.

People have studied the night sky for thousands of years. But we still haven’t found all the objects in our own solar system, let alone the whole universe. That’s especially true of moving bodies. Rocky asteroids and icy comets are some examples. The Rubin Observatory will help scientists learn more about everything that orbits our sun. That includes millions of as-yet undetected asteroids. Some of these could be dangerous to life on Earth. 

Farther away, the telescope will track known stars and exoplanets. These planets are outside our solar system. The telescope is expected to photograph billions of previously unknown galaxies too. And it will be able to detect objects that change position or brightness quickly. These events often don’t last long, so they’re difficult for scientists to catch. Exploding stars called supernovas are one example. They can shine brighter than entire galaxies. Then they quickly fade away.

Finally, by making a precise map of visible objects in the night sky, the Rubin Observatory could reveal more about something scientists can’t see at all: dark matter. Scientists think this substance makes up about 80 percent of all matter in the universe (see “The Dark Universe,” Science World, October 20, 2025). It has mass like regular matter, which makes up everything from planets to people. But unlike regular matter, dark matter doesn’t reflect or emit light. That makes it difficult for scientists to study. “It’s like a substance you can’t see but you know is there because of how it affects things around it,” says Shyam Balaji, a physicist at King’s College London in England.

Vera Rubin, the scientist for whom the new observatory is named, was the first to find evidence to support the existence of dark matter (see “Who Was Vera Rubin?”). Scientists believe the observatory will help uncover more examples of interactions between regular and dark matter, providing new clues about this mysterious substance and how it shapes the universe.

The Rubin Observatory will make an exact map of visible objects in the night sky. That could reveal more about something scientists can’t see at all. It’s a substance called dark matter. Scientists think it makes up about 80 percent of all matter in the universe (see “The Dark Universe,” Science World, October 20, 2025). Regular matter makes up everything from planets to people. Both types of matter have mass. But regular matter reflects or emits light. Dark matter does not. So it’s difficult for scientists to study. “It’s like a substance you can’t see but you know is there because of how it affects things around it,” says Shyam Balaji. He’s a physicist at King’s College London in England.

The new observatory is named after Vera Rubin. She was the first scientist to find evidence that dark matter exists (see “Who Was Vera Rubin?”). Scientists hope to find more examples of interactions between regular and dark matter. They believe the observatory will help uncover them. That will provide new clues about this mysterious substance and how it shapes the universe.

One of the biggest goals of the Rubin Observatory is to combine all the images it collects over the next decade into a time-lapse movie. It will show how our cosmos is changing over time. To create this movie, the observatory will need to gather a massive amount of data in the form of digital images.

To transmit and process the data, engineers laid a long undersea cable that stretches all the way from the observatory in northern Chile to California. Data travels through the cable to a U.S. government research facility run by Stanford University. There, software programs analyze new images, comparing them with ones previously taken by the telescope. These programs look for differences that could indicate an undiscovered celestial body, like a passing asteroid, or a changing object, like a star that’s exploded into a supernova. These observations are classified and flagged. Then the system alerts astronomers to take a closer look. Eventually, the images will be made available to the public.

This new observatory isn’t just capturing amazing views of space—it’s helping astronomers answer some of the biggest questions about our universe. “The Rubin Observatory will really, truly change the way the astronomy community conducts research,” says Sandrine Thomas, the observatory’s deputy director.

One of the Rubin Observatory’s biggest goals is to create a time-lapse movie. To do that, it will combine all the images it collects over the next decade. The movie will show changes to our cosmos over time. This will require a massive amount of data. The observatory will gather it in the form of digital images.

Engineers laid a long undersea cable to transmit and process the data. It stretches all the way from the observatory in northern Chile to California. Data travels through the cable to a U.S. government research facility. It’s run by Stanford University. There, software programs analyze new images. They compare them with older ones from the telescope and look for differences. A change could show an undiscovered space object, like a passing asteroid. Or it could mean a changing object, like a star exploding into a supernova. These observations are classified and flagged. Then the system alerts astronomers to take a closer look. Eventually, the public will have access to the images.

This new observatory isn’t just capturing amazing views of space. It’s also helping astronomers answer some of the biggest questions about our universe. Sandrine Thomas is the observatory’s deputy director. “The Rubin Observatory will really, truly change the way the astronomy community conducts research,” she says.