All systems go for Hubble repair mission
Saturday, May 9, 2009 - 23:07
in Astronomy & Space
The fifth and final servicing expedition is unusually risky. But NASA officials say they will do everything possible to ensure the safety of the Atlantis shuttle crew. After 19 years of service, during which time it has provided the most eye-popping images ever of galaxies, nebulae and, most recently, of a planet orbiting an alien star, the Hubble Space Telescope is suffering the pains of old age. It's unsteady, with only half its gyroscopes working, and several of its key science instruments are broken.