The Hubble telescope, a scientific marvel that has sent stunning photos from deep outer space since the 1990’s, malfunctioned two weeks ago. But NASA says it appears the glitch is found and fixed.
To function properly, Hubble has six rotating gyroscopes that all went under full maintenance in 2009. The telescope can function at max capacity with only three working gyros. Proper working conditions mean that each gyro has a spinning wheel inside that rotates at 19,000 rotations per minute. NASA officials say that with only one gyro working they can still utilize Hubble to an extent.
As of Oct 5 three of the working gyros went down. NASA has a backup gyro, but it hasn’t functioned since 2011. When they tried to get it online this month it showed signs of significant abnormality. The rotation rates were much higher than are useful. Last week, NASA scientists tried an old trick that seemed to work at least for now. They commanded the wheel inside the gyro to rotate the opposite direction. Upon starting the glitches (dust, dirt, debris) seemed to clear out and NASA says the backup gyro appears to be functioning properly.
With the backup working, scientists will now attempt to get the normal number of gyros functioning.
Hubble is the first space telescope. It is maintained by an International cooperative between NASA and global space agencies. Hubble was launched in 1990, but was many decades in the making. The first major repair of Hubble was in 1993 as astronauts worked in space to clear a distorted picture. It was a successful repair. Since that time, all of Hubble’s repairs conducted in space have been successful.
NASA is aware that in time Hubble’s parts will no longer work. With no shuttle trips planned in the near future, any major repairs may no longer be plausible. The reboot this week of the backup gyro gives Hubble a little more time to record the Universe for us to see.
