The Buffalo Museum of Science has been selected to present mural-sized images of the spiral galaxy Messier 101 in celebration of the 400^th anniversary of Galileo's first look through a telescope into the sky. The images will be unveiled to the public in commemoration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 at 1PM on Saturday, February 21^st.

The two images were taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, and Chandra X-ray Observatory.

The 6-foot-by-3-foot image displays three full-color images, showcasing the galaxy's features in the infrared light observed by Spitzer, the visible light observed by Hubble, and the X-ray light observed by Chandra. The images highlight the spiral structure the galaxy is famous for and also the underlying clouds where stars are born and black holes and exploded stars reside. The images provide scientific information Galileo could have never dreamt of, in addition to their pure beauty.

Another 3-foot-by-3-foot image taken of Messier combines the views from Hubble, Spitzer and Chandra. The combination of views from all three telescopes creates a whole new view, much like seeing with your eyes, night vision goggles, and X-ray vision all at once.

After the initial unveiling of the images on Saturday, they will be on display in the museum's Our Place in Space exhibit. Those attending the unveiling are also welcome to observe and engage in the museum's current exhibits, First Observers and Alien Earths.

The fee for the unveiling is the regular museum admission charge: $7/adults, $6/seniors, and $5/students and children over the age of three. The museum is located at 1020 Humboldt Parkway in Buffalo. For more information on other programs and activities taking place at the museum, call 716.896.5200.