Early retirement for Hubble

2004/03/01 Lexartza Artza, Irantzu - Elhuyar Zientziaren Komunikazioa Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Astronomia

(Photo: ESA / platform).

The Hubble Telescope has a weight of 11 tons and a length of 13.1 meters and a width of 4.46 meters. The main mirror has a diameter of 2.4 meters. One of the main characteristics of the images obtained is that the Earth's atmosphere does not interfere with the telescope.

The Discovery shuttle launched the telescope in 1990. The initial idea of NASA was later incorporated by the European Space Agency. There were many problems since the idea of creating the Hubble was proposed to its materialization. In 1986, when they were underway, the Challenger ferry suffered an accident that delayed its orbit for four years.

The Hubble Telescope, the birth
of stars, has obtained important information about the birth of stars. In the images, nebula M17 (above) and nearby galaxy NGC 1569 (left), nurseries of stars. These are images taken with Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). (Photos: Hubble (ESA / nasa).

The main objective of Hubble was to observe what was not observed until then and has fulfilled it. In fact, it has been able to detect the light that has traveled in space for several million years and thanks to it we know that the universe is 13.7 billion years old.

We have learned that the universe expands faster and faster through the information provided by the Hubble Telescope, and that this expansion is due to the mysterious dark force. We have seen the birth and death of stars in spectacular images and know much more about the evolution of galaxies. Hubble has given the smallest details about different phenomena taking place in the Solar System.

When Bush introduced his new plan, NASA was preparing the fifth mission for the maintenance of the Hubble telescope. The astronauts performed the necessary repair work on the four previous missions, including new fragments. The fifth mission was to replace the gyroscops with new spectrographs and cameras. Gyroscopes are needed to balance the telescope and only three of the six that the Hubble has work properly.

However, this fifth mission, if current plans are not modified, will be cancelled and the telescope will stop working by 2007. In 2011-2012 it fell out of orbit and fell on Earth. Safe fall plans have already begun.

Nebula in Orion.
(Photo: Hubble (ESA / platform).

From now on, other will be NASA's priorities, as President Bush's main intention is to bring man to the Moon and Mars. The ferry that would have to carry out the mission, from now on, will be dedicated exclusively to the works of the International Space Station. To do this, NASA has mentioned security reasons. In fact, safety regulations have undergone major changes since the Columbia ferry accident.

But these intentions have not been liked by all. Astronomers believe that the disappearance of Hubble will leave a great void and cause a great stop in astronomy. On the other hand, some have questioned the feasibility of President Bush's plans. For this reason, a rescue campaign of the telescope is underway to ask the United States government to review its plans or look for financing alternatives. At the moment, however, it does not seem to be having much success.

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