The Inquirer wrote:A GLITCH in the Hubble telescope has shut down the imaging spectrograph system. The instrument provides data in the high resolution UV spectrum, such as black hole masses.
It's unclear so far whether the problem can be fixed or not.
According to this web site, the space telescope imaging spectrograph (STIS) stopped after suffering a failed command echo check, and appears to be due to a failed inductor.
STIS is still in suspend mode, with scientists analysing the problem and seeing if there's a way to fix it. Other instruments in the Hubble Space Telescope appear to be functioning normally.
There's some more discussion on this topic on the Bad Astronomy web site. µ
One of the four instruments on board the Hubble Space Telescope has stopped working, US space agency Nasa has said.
The STIS, or Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph, was installed during the second Hubble servicing mission in 1997 and was designed to work for five years
It was used to investigate black holes, to discover dim stars that reveal clues to the age of the Universe and study the atmosphere of an extrasolar planet.
Engineers are currently trying to track down the source of the problem.
Nasa has convened an Anomaly Review Board to determine whether the failed instrument is recoverable.
The STIS separates light from celestial objects into its component colours. This provides astronomers with data on the temperature, composition, density and motion of these objects.
Power problem
The instrument stopped working on 3 August and went into what Nasa officials call a suspended mode. Nasa said it had met or exceeded all its scientific requirements.
Mission managers think the problem could be due to a malfunction in a power converter.
The STIS accounts for about 30% of Hubble's observing time.
A new safety regime brought in for space shuttle flights following the Columbia disaster ruled out any further missions to service Hubble.
Despite recent suggestions made by an influential panel of researchers that the US space agency keep its options open over manned servicing missions, Nasa chief Sean O'Keefe has given no indication that he will change his mind.
However, Nasa has asked for proposals regarding the feasibility of a robotic servicing mission, which could launch in 2007.
Hubble's other instruments - the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS), the Advanced Camera for Surveys and the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 - are all operating normally.
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SDNW4 Nation: The Refuge And, on Nova Terra, Al-Stan the Totally and Completely Honest and Legitimate Weapons Dealer and Used Starship Salesman slept on a bed made of money, with a blaster under his pillow and his sombrero pulled over his face. This is to say, he slept very well indeed.
Do you REALIZE how sad I will be when she goes away. The U.S. should put another, better t-scope up there, I mean, how much interest has that girl generated for the space program over the past 12 (13?) Years? I myself have been mesmerized by many of the pics. Also, How much insight has she given us into the inner workings of the universe? (Or outer, for that matter?) She truly is, however a testament to the space program Reliable, rugged (Okay, mirror thing aside, alright?) I will miss that old battle wagon.
Chardok wrote:Do you REALIZE how sad I will be when she goes away. The U.S. should put another, better t-scope up there, I mean, how much interest has that girl generated for the space program over the past 12 (13?) Years? I myself have been mesmerized by many of the pics. Also, How much insight has she given us into the inner workings of the universe? (Or outer, for that matter?) She truly is, however a testament to the space program Reliable, rugged (Okay, mirror thing aside, alright?) I will miss that old battle wagon.
The James Webb Space Telescope is planned to replace it no earlier than 2009.
evilcat4000 wrote:After it is retired Hubble should be left in orbit. It would be like a flying artifact.
Is it high enough to stay up indefinatly? I thought they had to keep boosting it out of atmospheric drag? But then, I can't see them grabbing it and putting it in the Smithsonian or anything...
The Inquirer wrote:A GLITCH in the Hubble telescope has shut down the imaging spectrograph system. The instrument provides data in the high resolution UV spectrum, such as black hole masses.
It's unclear so far whether the problem can be fixed or not.
According to this web site, the space telescope imaging spectrograph (STIS) stopped after suffering a failed command echo check, and appears to be due to a failed inductor.
STIS is still in suspend mode, with scientists analysing the problem and seeing if there's a way to fix it. Other instruments in the Hubble Space Telescope appear to be functioning normally.
There's some more discussion on this topic on the Bad Astronomy web site. µ
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evilcat4000 wrote:After it is retired Hubble should be left in orbit. It would be like a flying artifact.
They're thinking of trying to boost it to higher orbit, but they might not. They might deorbit to prevent clutter in space. The original plan was to retrieve it, but its inclination takes it too far from the ISS and NASA wants all future shuttle missions to be able to reach there.
Chardok wrote:Do you REALIZE how sad I will be when she goes away. The U.S. should put another, better t-scope up there, I mean, how much interest has that girl generated for the space program over the past 12 (13?) Years? I myself have been mesmerized by many of the pics. Also, How much insight has she given us into the inner workings of the universe? (Or outer, for that matter?) She truly is, however a testament to the space program Reliable, rugged (Okay, mirror thing aside, alright?) I will miss that old battle wagon.
The James Webb Space Telescope is planned to replace it no earlier than 2009.
The thing is, Hubble went up years later than it was supposed to, and even when it did go up the amount of data and awesome pictures it was able to collect was limited by its lens. And the James Webb Telescope is only going to be an infrared telescope, which means it won't be producing the same "Holy shit that's awesome" pics that Hubble makes, AND it's currently scheduled to be launched in 2011.
I'll miss the ol' girl when she's gone, too.
DPDarkPrimus is my boyfriend!
SDNW4 Nation: The Refuge And, on Nova Terra, Al-Stan the Totally and Completely Honest and Legitimate Weapons Dealer and Used Starship Salesman slept on a bed made of money, with a blaster under his pillow and his sombrero pulled over his face. This is to say, he slept very well indeed.
Mayabird wrote:The thing is, Hubble went up years later than it was supposed to, and even when it did go up the amount of data and awesome pictures it was able to collect was limited by its lens. And the James Webb Telescope is only going to be an infrared telescope, which means it won't be producing the same "Holy shit that's awesome" pics that Hubble makes, AND it's currently scheduled to be launched in 2011.
OTOH, the newer generation of adaptive-optics ground mirrors can do a better job in the visual spectrum than Hubble can due to their much larger mirrors.
