What can images from the Rubin Observatory reveal about the mysteries of the universe?

By Evan Dawson,

Published July 8, 2025 at 3:05 PM EDT

Five people wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man front left has short brown hair and is wearing an orange t-shirt and khaki shorts; a woman front right has long blonde hair and is wearing glasses, a navy polo shirt, jeans and sneakers; a man back left has short grey hair and is wearing a red button-down shirt; a man back right has short dark hair and a dark beard and is wearing glasses and a pink button-down shirt; a man at center has short dark hair and is wearing a blue button-down shirt, white pants and sneakers.

1 of 6 — (front) Fred Moolekamp and Becky Borrelli, (background) Jim Bader and Segev BenZvi with host Evan Dawson on "Connections"

(front) Fred Moolekamp and Becky Borrelli, (background) Jim Bader and Segev BenZvi with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, July 8, 2025

David Griffin / WXXI News

Three men in white shirts stand by a very large telescope.

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Prior to integration

Timothy J Toal / RubinObs/NOIRLab/SLAC/DOE/NSF/AURA

A scientist works on a very large circular telescope.

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RubinObs/NOIRLab/SLAC/DOE/NSF/AURA

A side view of the telescope at Rubin Observatory.

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M2 Coating

Rubin Observatory/NSF/AURA

Stars and planets are seen on a dark background.

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Small section of the Virgo cluster

AP/NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory

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Combined images revealing features of the Trifid nebula and the Lagoon nebula

AP/NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory

A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.

Rochester's Strasenburgh Planetarium was one of hundreds of locations around the world to host a watch party for the first images from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. As reported by WXXI's Veronica Volk, the advanced telescope is expected to answer some of the universe's greatest mysteries.

This hour, we talk with experts about the galaxies, nebulas, and asteroids they saw and what it all means for the future of science research and our understanding of the universe.

In studio:

Jim Bader, director of the Strasenburgh Planetarium
Becky Borrelli, Ph.D., principal fellow in imaging systems at L3Harris
Fred Moolekamp, Ph.D., research scientist at SoZen Inc./Rubin Observatory
Segev BenZvi, Ph.D., associate professor of physics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Rochester

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