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About Scientific Research at STScI

The scientific staff at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) lead world-class investigations that touch every aspect of modern day astrophysics, from observations to theory to data modeling to instrumentation. Their work spans a range of research areas, including the characteristics of our solar system, the habitability of exoplanets, the physics of stellar processes, supernova cosmology as a probe of the expansion rate of the universe, the formation and evolution of galaxies, the demographics and cosmic evolution of massive black holes, and the history of the cosmos as revealed by large-scale structure. They also make use of the world’s flagship observatories, on the ground and in space, which cover the electromagnetic spectrum, from the gamma-ray and X-ray through the sub-millimeter and radio, resulting in hundreds of articles in peer-reviewed journals each year.

STScI's Science Mission Office (SMO) works to enable research, both within the institute and in the astronomical community. This team maintains the internal science infrastructure for STScI research staff, and is responsible for external science policy issues, including the support of the Space Telescope Users Committees, and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) telescope allocation processes.

Research Resources

  • Research Groups at STScI

    Get acquainted with the research groups, teams, or collaborations led by STScI research staff members. Find out who to contact, the outstanding research questions these researchers address, and the techniques and facilities they use.

    Billowy, multi-hued clouds fill the field of view. On the right side, the clouds are various shades of blue with some translucent orange wisps throughout. On the left side, the clouds vary from bright orange-red to brown. There are two bright, prominent stars with eight diffraction spikes, as well as a star that appears surrounded by a jellyfish-shaped blob. Additional fainter stars are scattered across the entire image.

  • Research Topics and Programs

    Learn about the research projects STScI staff create and contribute to, including the Solar System and exoplanets; stars and the interstellar medium; galaxies, the intergalactic medium and cosmology; instrumentation; and future space telescopes.

    This artist's concept shows a young star surrounded by a dusty protoplanetary disk. This disk contains the raw material that can form planets as the star system matures.

  • Research Staff Directory

    STScI staff constantly collaborate with partners around the world to conduct research, and publish and present their work. Review our staff directory to find new, or familiar, co-investigators.

    olorful image of near-infrared light from a glowing cloud with a distorted ring-like shape, illuminated from within by a bright central star. The Southern Ring Nebula is a large, semi-transparent oval that is slightly angled from top left to bottom right. A bright white star appears at the center of this image. A large transparent teal oval surrounds the central star. Several red shells surround the teal oval, extending almost to the edges of the image. The shells become a deeper red with distance from the center. The bright central star has eight diffraction spikes. Behind the gaseous teal layers are deeper orange layers that are arranged like threads in a complex weaving. The red layers, which are wavy overall, look like they have very thin straight lines piercing through them, which are holes where light from a central star is traveling. The background of the image is black and speckled with tiny bright stars and distant galaxies.

  • Fellowships

    STScI works with partners to administer fellowship opportunities to promising postdoctoral scientists working in the fields of astronomy, astrophysics, or planetary science. Learn more about the available fellowship opportunities.

    A black background sprinkled with small, colorful galaxies in orange, blue, and white.

  • Events

    Review a list of upcoming workshops, conferences, and events hosted at STScI in Baltimore, Maryland, including a colloquium series, symposia, CoolSci@STScI and HotSci@STScI.

    A pair of interacting galaxies. The larger of the two galaxies is slightly left of center, and composed of a hazy, bright, white center and a ring of gaseous filaments, which are different shades of red and orange. The smaller galaxy to its right is made of hazy white gas and dust, which becomes more diffuse farther away from its center.

Science News

Lagoon Nebula

STScI Newsletters

  • The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) Newsletter provides news and articles of interest to the general astronomical community; presents updates on the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes, and other initiatives; and announces relevant meetings and conferences.

    Read Newsletter Articles

Additional Resources

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