Institute prepares for life without Hubble

Barring a financial miracle, the space telescope that brought the world some of the most beautiful and surreal images of our galaxy will come crashing down in the Pacific Ocean in about 10 years.

Due to safety concerns, NASA announced on Jan. 16 that it has cancelled the next scheduled mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. The original plan had called for a service mission in 2006 to replace the telescope's instruments in order to ensure that it was operational until at least 2011.

At that point, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), named after NASA's second administrator, will be launched. The JWST will be more powerful than the Hubble and will use infrared to create a resolution almost three times clearer.

While the cancellation of the project poses no immediate threat to the Space Telescope Science Institute (which runs the Hubble), located on the Homewood Campus on San Martin Dr., its future is uncertain.

The safety concerns are linked to last year's disaster involving the Columbia space shuttle, which disintegrated nearly 40 miles above earth, killing all seven astronauts on board.

"They recognized that space flight is inherently dangerous and to re-certify that shuttle and make it safe, they needed to make some upgrades," explains Stephen Beckwith, Director of the Space Telescope Science Institute.

Some individuals however, are alarmed by the coincidental nature of the Hubble announcement, which came only two days after President Bush unveiled his vision for the future of NASA. The plan included allotting billions of dollars to put more astronauts and on mars and the moon, and a halt to Hubble funding. The annual operating costs of the Hubble amount to about $200 million, or about 2 percent of NASA's budget.

"I think [safety and cost] are both factors," says Beckwith. "I'd have to see an official risk analysis to know how much safety factors in."

Designed during the 1970s, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990, and now orbits 375 miles above earth. The first space mission designed to be regularly serviced, the Hubble has been repaired four times since its launch, the last of which was in 2002. Every day, the telescope delivers from 10 to 15 gigabytes of data to astronomers around the globe. The Hubble has not only provided stunning photographs of space, but has also answered scientific questions about distance between galaxies and the expansion of the universe.

Although there is no known date when the Hubble will stop working, its solar-rechargeable batteries and gyroscopes are already showing wear and tear. Four of its six gyroscopes, which balance and direct the telescope, are currently usable. Three of these are used every day. The Hubble is using its original set of batteries, and as any rechargeable would, they are already deteriorating.

The public realizes, however, that their window to the heavens could soon be clouded, and they're not giving up without a fight.

In October 2003, the Web site http://www.savethehubble.org was launched, and its petition to NASA now has over 26,000 signatures.

"We've seen overwhelming support for the [service] mission," says Beckwith. "We've seen a lot of people who'd like to contribute in any way they can, with offers of money and lots of ideas. It's been very positive and gratifying for us at the Institute."

One reason for the public outcry is that although the JWST will be able to see things that the Hubble can't, its pictures won't be the same as what the Hubble was capable of. "Infrared senses a different set of phenomena," explains Beckwith. "It won't mimic what you would see with your eye when you look at the heavens."

So while NASA and the employees at the Space Telescope Science Institute prepare for life without the cherished telescope, many are still hoping that the Hubble will stay where it was meant to be.