In a not-so-subtle reminder of what's riding on NASA's plans to refurbish the beloved Hubble Space Telescope in a couple of months, the space agency this week released an image as vibrant as a summertime garden in full bloom.

Rather than tomatoes and flowers, this region of space in the Tarantula nebula is brimming with baby stars. The image, taken on the occasion of Hubble's 100,000th orbit, encompasses 100 light years of space. The pillar shaped like a seahorse itself is is 20 light years long -- four times the distance between the sun and the nearest star, Alpha Centauri.

Not to put the pressure on the Hubble servicing crew, but you guys know what you're doing, yes?

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