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• The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is the largest observatory ever launched into orbit. Its position above Earth's atmosphere allows the HST to gather much more detailed images and readings than ground-based telescopes.

  The Space Shuttle Atlantis embarked on an 11 day mission to make repairs and upgrade the HST on May 11, 2009. On May 14, 2009, astronauts John Grunsfeld and Drew Feustel set out on their first spacewalk at approximately 9:00 a.m. EST. The two began replacing a 15-year-old camera with an upgraded version that was the size of a "baby grand piano." The repairs/upgrades were successfully completed on May 18, 2009.FOXNews.com: Astronauts Begin First Spacewalk to Fix Hubble (May 14, 2009)Reuters: Astronauts pluck Hubble Space... (May 13, 2009)FOXNews.com: Astronauts Wrap Up Last Spacewalk of Mission (May 18, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Joint project between the United States's NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA)
  2. Construction began in 1978
  3. Launched into orbit in April of 1990
  4. Originally estimated construction cost: $400 million
  5. By 1999, total cost of the project was over $6 billionESA: European Homepage for the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope - Frequently Asked Questions
  6. Named after astronomer Edwin P. Hubble
  7. Primary mirror is 2.4 meters in diameter
  8. Orbits 589 kilometers above the Earth's surface
  9. Completes an orbit 96 minutesNASA: Main Hubble Page
  10. One of the four orbiting telescopes collectively named NASA's "Great Observatories"
  11. Produced the Ultra Deep Field, the most detailed photograph of the Universe taken in the spectrum of visible lightHubbleSite: Hubble's Deepest View Ever of the Universe Unveils Earliest Galaxies (March 9, 2004)

• Space Shuttle Atlantis

  The Space Shuttle Atlantis launched on May 11, 2009, carrying a crew of seven astronauts. The astronauts are set to perform repairs and maintenance on the HST, in a series of five spacewalks. The enhancements were expected to make the machine 100 times more powerful, allowing it to examine the universe's mysterious dark matter and dark energy more deeply than ever before.National Geographic: Shuttle Launch Successful; Final Hubble Repairs Await (May 11, 2009)

• Control System Failure

  On September 27, 2008 the Hubble's Science Instrument Control and Data Handling system went down, forcing a switch to the backup channel. However, the backup channel experienced a communications failure, and scientists analyzed downloaded data to identify the cause of the problem. Astronauts were trained to remove the malfunctioning computer and install a spare.CNN: More trouble for NASA's Hubble (October 17, 2008)

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Astronomy | Telescopes | Stars | Black Holes | Chandra X-ray Observatory | Space Shuttle | NASA | Shuttle Launch Cancelled | Mike Griffin | Dark Matter | Space Shuttle Atlantis | Shuttle Launch | Mike Massimino

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