Hubble is Back! Telescope Back Online After Computer Glitch
Good news! The Hubble Space Telescope is back online after a glitch in its onboard computer caused it’s instruments to shut down. The longevity of the telescope is a marvel of engineering as the glitch was caused by a computer that was manufactured in the 1980s. NASA has spent the last month switching the telescope to backup hardware before rebooting the whole system.
Hubble was first launched in April 24, 1990 and has been in service ever since it came online orbiting the planet. The very next day, the five astronauts who accompanies the telescope to orbit, deployed the telescope and extended the solar array panels to power the instrument. It wasn’t until May 20, 1990 that the first images were taken, and the first service mission was conducted in December 1993 to repair an aberration in its primary mirror. Ever since this service mission, Hubble has opened humanity’s collective eyes to the universe. In it’s 31 year service, we have learned about our place in the cosmos more than any experiment before or since. The planned successor to Hubble, the James Webb Space Telescope, is expected to launch November 2021 and will help us see deeper, and with more detail, than previously possible.
Source: SPACE
