The Hubble Space Telescope, a project of international cooperation between
NASA and ESA (European Space Agency), has fundamentally changed the way we
view our universe time and again. Now in its 32nd year in space, Hubble has
delivered unprecedented insights about the cosmos, from the most distant
galaxy observed so far to familiar planets in our neighborhood, including
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
"Hubble, with its beautiful images and decades-long series of new
discoveries about our universe, has captured the imagination of countless
individuals and inspired so many," said Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen, associate
administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate at the agency's
Headquarters in Washington.
With Hubble continuing to make groundbreaking discoveries, the agency has
awarded a sole source contract extension to the Association of Universities
for Research in Astronomy (AURA) in Washington for continued Hubble science
operations support at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in
Baltimore, which AURA operates for NASA. The award extends Hubble's science
mission through June 30, 2026, and increases the value of the existing
contract by about $215 million (for a total of about $2.4 billion).
This contract extension covers the work necessary for STScI to continue to
support the Hubble science program. This support includes the products and
services required to execute science system engineering; science ground
system development; science operations; management of science research
awards and public outreach support; and data archive support for mission
data in the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes.
Currently, the spacecraft team at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Maryland, is investigating an issue involving missed
synchronization messages that caused Hubble to suspend science observations
Oct. 25. One of the instruments, the Advanced Camera for Surveys, resumed
science observations Nov. 7, and continues to function as expected. All
other instruments remain in safe mode.
During the week of Nov. 8, the Hubble team identified near-term changes that
could be made to how the instruments monitor and respond to missed
synchronization messages, as well as to how the payload computer monitors
the instruments. This would allow science operations to continue even if
several missed messages occur. The team has also continued analyzing the
instrument flight software to verify that all possible solutions would be
safe for the instruments.
In the next week, the team will begin to determine the order to recover the
remaining instruments. The team expects it will take several weeks to
complete the changes for the first instrument.
"Mission specialists are working hard to figure out how to bring the other
instruments back to full operation," Zurbuchen said. "We expect the
spacecraft to have many more years of science ahead, and to work in tandem
with the James Webb Space Telescope, launching later this year."
Webb, a collaboration between NASA, ESA, and the Canadian Space Agency, will
follow up on many of the discoveries that Hubble has made and view them in a
different way. While Hubble observes visible wavelengths of light with
extensions into ultraviolet and near-infrared, Webb will view the cosmos in
the infrared part of the spectrum. Observations from both telescopes will
paint a fuller picture of exotic, far away objects, such as feeding black
holes, as well as objects in our own solar system. By looking at exoplanets
that may harbor habitable environments, for example, the telescopes can get
us closer to answering the tantalizing question: Are we alone in the
universe?
Webb is expected to launch Dec. 18 from French Guiana.
Tags:
Space & Astrophysics