About

About WFC3

SouthernCrabNebula
Southern Crab Nebula imaged by WFC3 - Hubblesite.org

The Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) is a fourth-generation UVIS/IR imager aboard the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). WFC3 was installed in May 2009 during HST servicing mission 4, and replaces the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2).

WFC3 is designed to ensure that HST maintains its powerful imaging capabilities until the end of its mission, while at the same time advancing its survey and discovery capability through WFC3’s combination of broad wavelength coverage, wide field of view, and high sensitivity. A key feature of WFC3 is its panchromatic wavelength coverage. By combining two optical/ultraviolet CCDs with a near-infrared HgCdTe array, WFC3 is capable of direct, high-resolution imaging over the entire wavelength range from 200 to 1700 nm. Equipped with a comprehensive range of wide-, intermediate-, and narrow-band filters, WFC3 has broad applicability to a variety of new astrophysical investigations.

WFC3 is a facility instrument. It was developed, constructed, characterized, and calibrated by an Integrated Product Team (IPT) led by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), and composed of staff astronomers and engineers from GSFC, STScI, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and other industrial contractors.

 

WFC3 Instrument Resources

Recently Published Documents

ISRs

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  1. ISR 2024-12: WFC3/UVIS Pixel-to-Pixel Quantum Efficiency 2013-2023

    November 19, 2024F. Dauphin & B. Kuhn
  2. ISR 2024-11: Sensitivity Evolution of the HST WFC3/UVIS G280 Grism

    October 09, 2024Munazza K. Alam, Amanda Pagul, Annalisa Calamida, Benjamin Kuhn, Debopam Som, Sylvia Baggett
  3. ISR 2024-10: Update to WFC3/IR Internal Flatfields 2009-2024

    August 22, 2024J. Green & S. Shenoy
  4. ISR 2024-09: WFC3/UVIS Dragon’s Breath & Scattered Light Update

    August 20, 2024K.Huynh & B.Kuhn
  5. ISR 2024-08: Some Details Related to Velocity Aberration

    June 24, 2024P. R. McCullough

STANs

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  1. WFC3 STAN Issue 46, June 2024

    June 13, 2024
  2. WFC3 STAN Issue 45, March 2024

    March 06, 2024
  3. WFC3 STAN Issue 44, January 2024

    January 08, 2024
  4. WFC3 STAN Issue 43, Sept 2023

    October 03, 2023
  5. WFC3 STAN Issue 42, May 2023

    May 31, 2023

Gallery

Slideshow of WFC3 Images

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Hubble Ultra Deep Field 2014

Hubble Ultra Deep Field 2014

Learn more about this image at Hubblesite.org.

Saturn Opposition 2018

Learn more about this image at Hubblesite.org.

Southern Crab Nebula

Southern Crab Nebula

Learn more about this image at Hubblesite.org.

MACS J0416.1-2403

MACS J0416.1-2403

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Bubble Nebula

Bubble Nebula

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Last Updated: 10/28/2024

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