Edwin Hubble lived from November 20, 1889 to September 28, 1953, a time where astronomy and such was just getting popular and space exploration was just beginning. He is credited with many discoveries, such as the idea that the universe extends beyond the Milky Way, probably his most impacting discovery. In addition to seeing that the universe was vastly larger than previously noted, Edwin Hubble also discovered that other galaxies and celestial bodies were constantly moving at rates calculable with what is now called “Hubble’s Law”. His discoveries also led to the eventual (possible) calculation of the Big Bang Theory, which was calculable by finding the source/center of all the moving galaxies and their various rates in relation to each other.
He also discovered an asteroid, named “asteroid 1373 Cincinnati”, in August of 1935 in addition to writing a book on observational astronomy (mostly naked eye and some telescopic) and a book about nebulae. He spent a lot of his later years pushing for astronomy to be considered in the physics sector of the Nobel Prize, and shortly after his death, the Nobel Prize committee decided that work in the astronomical field could be considered for the physics prize. The current telescope, from which so many fascinating and mind-blowing pictures come from, The Hubble Space Telescope, was named after Edwin and his passion for astronomy.
http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/hubble_essentials/edwin_hubble.php
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bahubb.html
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